Shahrukh Khan, an actor who has made India proud through his craft, is world famous, married a Hindu, continues to essay characters from various faiths in his movies and is loved by people for a lot of reasons, can be targeted for speaking about “Intolerance” by just having a Muslim name. Then imagine the plight of any other Muslim.
Imagine someone with a full beard, a skull cap and is not even famous.
The Pakistani Reference, will never leave us. At least not till people vote to power jokers like these.
Not just this, to defend Muslims, we need to justify their existence. Despite, being a Muslim, Kalam was a Patriot.
Ikhlaq’s son was in Airforce. The Vice President, also a Muslim, has been accused falsely on multiple occasions as well.
Shahrukh’s father was part of Freedom struggle. So, our existence depends on doing something “notable”?
“If you don’t agree to this, Go to Pakistan”
Time and again, one leader from the mainstream (Oh yes, now the fringe is the mainstream), can be seen proudly echoing these sentiments. Be it for eating Beef or voting against them, the “Pakistan” reference never fails to go out of fashion. Although when it came to trying to make Yoga mandatory for school children, ones who opposed the move were asked to drown in the sea. Thankfully no one asked, which sea, and the answer might just be on similar lines.
To put things in a logical perspective, just refresh the History tab of the Indian Browser. 1947, India got Independence. For reasons that are complex in their political and egoistical approach, the proposed two-nation theory saw the light and a separate state of Pakistan state for Muslims was carved out. Muslims who wanted to cross-over did, and same with Hindus who crossed over to this part of the country. There was no compulsion on the Indian Muslims to go to Pakistan, and those who wished to stay back, were free to do so. For starters, even though the Two-nation theory was put in place, the Indian state wasn’t a Hindu-state but a secular state (in essence and later constitutionally) of India and an Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
There were of course many, especially those who propagated the two-nation theory in the first place like the RSS, who still harbor the same idea. RSS, for the uninitiated was an organization which didn’t took part in our Independence and boot-licked the Britishers. Now, of course, they are back in the mainstream to again push for the same agenda of converting this into a “Hindu-Rashtra”, under the guise of their politically active sister party, Bharatiya Janata Party.
Coming back to the Pakistan reference, the cultural identity of an Indian Muslim is subject to constant scrutiny as always. What we eat, what we wear, what we speak, where we pray and what we even think is all open for discussion. If you’re silent after a terrorist attack anywhere in the world, you are by default seen as someone supporting the act.
Muslim-ghettos are on many occasions referred to as “Mini-Pakistan”. Ghettos are mostly a result of post-riot insecurity and fear of backlashes. India has witnessed many such riots and formation of these ghettos are a result of these. Lack of development or rehabilitation is of course absent from these regions from a good amount of the year, but close to elections it gets frequented by the politicians. Indian Muslims, for a long time, have been nothing but vote bank for them. Recent issues of discriminations are just a matter of gaining media attention, but they have continued since long.
Identity of an Indian Muslim
To stress on the divide between the Hindus and Muslims, to bring the existing difference of religious dissimilarity, organisations are constantly pushing their agenda towards an “Us vs Them”. All the problems that our country faces are a result of minority “appeasement” and it is because of them that the country is facing so much of troubles. One has to agree with everything that the megalomaniacs at the centre does, else you aren’t being supportive enough for the country development. That is the general statement, which is on loop since this government started off to bring acche din. To those saying acche din won’t come, should just see what has happened to all the chargesheeted/accused in riot cases or bomb blasts, who don’t happen to belong to the minority communities, all are free. The fringe is on the loose, issuing statements at their will without any word of caution from the government. The only time the mouth speaks is, when chest-thumping is required.
The Identity of a Muslim living in India is a subject of debate every other day. The “Pakistani” reference is just one of the many ways to increase differences and bring about a situation of an “Us vs Them”. Just to add, whenever you see a Green flag with a crescent and a star it is not always a Pakistani Flag, but might be an Islamic Flag.
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