The ‘communalism’ divide

NOW that Hindu fundamentalism is on the verge of extinction, can we start discussing it and fundamentalism in general with a degree of detac...

NOW that Hindu fundamentalism is on the verge of extinction, can we start discussing it and fundamentalism in general with a degree of detachment? Probably not but I am going to try. With Hindutva’s poster girl Uma Bharati in disgrace, our most important Shankaracharya in jail and the BJP in seemingly terminal decline it seems clear that Hindutva’s might was hugely exaggerated. What puzzles me is how a phenomenon that could be extinguished by an electoral defeat should have assumed such proportions that someone as supposedly knowledgeable as President Clinton’s national security adviser, Sandy Berger, could liken it to Islamic terrorism? Strobe Talbott in his new book, Engaging India, describes a lunch with Jaswant Singh at which he points out to Berger the rumblings of radical Islam and how important India’s role could be in helping the West fight it and Berger replies that he is as worried about Hindu fundamentalism in India.

This was before 9/11 but for Berger to even consider the comparison is indicative of how good we Indians are at maligning our country. It is from the writings of Indian journalists that Western policy makers got the impression that Hindu nationalism was as much a threat to the world as radical Islam and that nuclear weapons were as unsafe in our hands. It is from the writings of Indian journalists that Western NGOs formed the impression that Christians and Muslims in India were on the verge of being wiped out. You may remember how often we reported that Gujarat was the ‘‘laboratory’’ for this plan but what you probably do not remember is the untruthful reports (never denied) that churches were being burned by Hindus in districts like the Dangs. What you probably do not remember is the alleged gangrape of nuns in Jhabua (allegedly by Hindu fanatics) that never happened and that again went un-denied.

Indian journalists of ‘‘liberal’’ bent have been predicting the death of Indian secularism since the Babri Masjid was pulled down, so it is strange, is it not, that what appears to have died instead is Hindutva.

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In the vanguard of those fighting Hindu fundamentalism was Teesta Setalvad’s magazine, Communalism Combat. It won awards, went from strength to strength, received laurel upon laurel until, recently, when Teesta’s protege Zaheera Sheikh condemned her for exploiting her for money.

When she made these charges I remembered other charges that had been made and contacted Teesta’s husband and partner, Javed Anand. He requested a list of questions which I sent and he answered, albeit in hurt tones that I should ask the same questions that had been raised by the ‘‘saffron brotherhood’’. In answer to a question, he said the magazine did not need to be registered as an NGO because it was not one. It was a private limited company, he said, that rendered accounts to the Income Tax Department. Fine. Though communalism is an odd subject to make a profit out of.

This is not about Communalism Combat or the fight between Zaheera and Teesta. What it is about is the number of magazines and NGOs that have thrived on maligning India for being a country as fundamentalist as our Islamic neighbours. Is it not time to ask where their funds come from?

With Hindutva gone for the foreseeable future, can we now please start dealing with the more serious problem of radical Islam? And can we hope that the magazines who thrived on painting India as a country of fanatics will now concentrate on exposing communalism of the other kind?

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Personally, I doubt this or we would already have seen some attempt in these journals to draw attention to the fact that the most successful exercise in ethnic cleansing in India has been of Hindus from the Kashmir Valley. Last week in Jammu, the Prime Minister offered them better accommodation than the hovels they have lived in for nearly 15 years, but is that all we can offer them?

There was a time when secularists argued that there was no point in worrying about ‘‘minority communalism’’ because it could not break up the country while Hindu fundamentalism could. With radical Islam transcending international borders this is no longer the case. Javed Anand, in his response to my questions, charged me with ‘‘unfairly tarnishing an entire community’’ when I wrote of the dangers of Islamic terrorism. But I would be telling less than the truth if I did not say that on my travels I see a dangerously radical mood among ordinary Muslims that manifests itself mainly as rage against the US. I do not know how this rage can be calmed but do know that it would be dangerous to ignore what is happening.

write to tavleensingh@expressindia.com

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