August 1, 2019

Hindu extremist gang axing Muslim youth to death video goes viral on social media

By Abdus Sattar Ghazali

A video is viral on social media these days showing an Hindu extremist gang axing and brutally murdering a Muslim youth apparently working in a field in Uttar Pardesh ruled by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Alarmingly, the video of the brutal murder of a Muslim youth came as a15-year-old Muslim boy was set on fire on Sunday (July 28) by four people in Chandauli district (UP) when the boy refused to chant "Jai Shri Ram".

He gave this statement on the hospital's camera: "I was walking on Dudhari bridge when four men kidnapped me. Two of them tied my hand and third one started pouring kerosene. After which they set me on fire and ran away," he said adding, he was being forced to chant "Jai Shri Ram". [Outlook India]

The 15-year-old boy has succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday. Khalid was brought to Kashi's Kabir Chaura hospital with 60 %burn injuries on 28 July.

Lynching of Minorities in BJP-ruled States Continue with Impunity

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Sunday said that lynching of minorities in BJP-ruled states "continue with impunity", reacting to reports of a retired Army captain beaten to death by unidentified assailants in UP.

64-year-old retired Army officer, Amanullah, was beaten to death on Saturday night in Godiyan ka Purva village in Amethi district, according to police. "Lynchings of minorities in BJP ruled states continues with impunity. That the victim was a retired army officer only bears testimony to the level of hatred being fuelled by this political ideology where those responsible for punishing lynchers protect them," he tweeted.

There is an alarming increase in the incidents of killing and forcing Muslims to chant "Jai Shri Ram" after the landslide victory of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this year’s general election. Narendra Modi is a member of the extremists Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since when he was 21 year old.

It may also be mention that 49 celebrities from different backgrounds penned an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi calling for an end to mob lynching and demanded exemplary action against the perpetrators.

They had pointed out that 254 religious identity-based hate crimes were reported between January 1, 2009, and October 29, 2018, regretting that not much has been done to tackle the issue.

Instead of calling mob-lynching a crime, RSS chief Bhagwat calls it an attempt to ‘defame’ Hindus

Instead of reprimanding and criticizing those encouraging mob lynching, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat chose to make it about defaming Indian culture.

Refusing to acknowledge that several of these Hindu extremists were part of the Sangh Parivar, Bhagwat said that some anti-social elements were trying to spread hatred through mob lynching. And he asked the members of Sangh Parivar to “be cautious”.

“There is a deep conspiracy of defaming Hindu religion and culture in the name of mob violence in the country nowadays,” Bhagwat said in Vrindavan UP.

The Sangh Parivar (translation: "Family of the [Rashtriya Swayamsevak] Sangh" or the "RSS family" refers, as an umbrella term, to the collection of Hindu nationalist organisations spawned by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and remain affiliated to it. These include the political party Bharatiya Janata Party, religious organisation Vishva Hindu Parishad, students union Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and the worker's union Bharatiya Kishan Sangh.

RSS chief proclaims India as a Hindu nation

In January 2018, The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) held one of its largest congregations at the Khanapara Veterinary College field, with 50,000 people turning up to attend Mohan Bhagwat's address.

The RSS chief, Mohan Bhagwat, said the congregation was not a show of strength but an attempt to make people see that "the essence of India is Hindutva".

It was not the first time that Bhagwat talked about Hinduvita. A few weeks after Narendra Modi’s election as the prime minister of India in 2014, the RSS chief  had proclaimed India as a Hindu nation saying "the cultural identity of all Indians is Hindutva".

It is no secret that the RSS since its inception in 1925 has been working to declare India as a Hindu Rashtra. But, the 2014 General Elections results added extra impetus to this plan.

Hindu Rashtra convention of 2019

More recently, the 8th All India Convention for the ‘Hindu Rashtra’ was organized by Hindu Janajagruti Samiti from 27th May to 8th June at Shri Vidyadhiraj Meeting Hall of Shri Ramnath Temple. 174 Hindu organizations from 25 States committed for establishing the ‘Hindu Rashtra.’

Not surprisingly, the Hindu Rashtra convention passed a series of resolutions. The first resolution says that the Hindu organizations participating in the Convention will work through lawful means towards declaring India a ‘Hindu Rashtra’.

The resolution called for insertion of the word ‘Secular’ in the Indian Constitution by unconstitutional means should be replaced by the word ‘Spiritual’ and India be declared a ‘Hindu Rashtra’.

The Convention also wholly supported Nepali Hindus in their demand of declaring Nepal a Hindu Rashtra.

The convention asked the central government to rename the cities, towns, roads, etc. that are currently named after foreign invaders (read as Muslim names). A ‘Central Commission for Naming’ be formed with immediate effect for suggesting the names that are in line with India’s glorious cultural legacy.

India Displaying Signs of Neo-Fascism

Tellingly, Mahua Moitra, of the opposition Trinamool Congress Party (TMC), has warned that India is showing "signs of early fascism."
In a speech in parliament in June 2019, she listed seven "danger signs of early fascism":

"There is a powerful and continuing nationalism that is searing into our national fabric," she said. "It is superficial, it is xenophobic and it is narrow. It's the lust to divide and not the desire to unite."

She pointed to a "resounding disdain for human rights", which she said had led to a 10-fold increase in the number of hate crimes between 2014 and 2019.

Ms Moitra criticized the government for its "unimaginable subjugation and control of mass media". She said India's TV channels spend "the majority of airtime broadcasting propaganda for the ruling party".

She attacked the government for what she said was an "obsession with national security". An "atmosphere of fear" pervaded the country, with new enemies being created every day.

"The government and religion are now intertwined. Do I even need to speak about this? Need I remind you that we have redefined what it means to be a citizen?" she demanded, saying laws had been amended to target Muslims.

She said "a complete disdain for intellectuals and the arts" and "the repression of all dissent" was the most dangerous sign of all - and it was "pushing India back to the Dark Ages".

The last sign, Ms Moitra said, was the "erosion of independence in our electoral system".

Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of America (www.journalofamerica.net) email: asghazali2011 (@) gmail.com
 

 The Journal of America Team:

 Editor in chief:
Abdus Sattar Ghazali

Senior Editor:
Prof. Arthur Scott

Special Correspondent
Maryam Turab
 

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