Seven decades after Independence, India’s status as a secular nation is under a stress test with the central government led by the Hindu nationalist BJP spearheading a constitutional amendment to the citizenship law that seeks to keep out the Muslim community from its ambit.
The amendment, passed by the lower house of parliament , notwithstanding protestations to the contrary by the government, completely alters the basic character of the Indian Constitution and its secular foundation. In the last five years, several states led by the BJP banned cattle slaughter or tightened existing cattle laws affecting thousands of Muslims and the marginalised Dalit community which are engaged in the leather industry and other related occupations.
More recently, the long-drawn-out dispute over a temple versus a mosque on a site in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya town was resolved by a controversial judgment of the Supreme Court that favoured the construction of a Hindu temple of Lord Ram on the site. There is more to come for India’s Muslims under the BJP government. The amendment to the citizenship bill will soon be followed by what is known as the National Register of Citizens .
Meanwhlle Hindus living in Muslim countries supporting this. Its time to show them their way outside