19

Mar

An Unpardonable Act in Land of Mahatma Gandhi

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Today’s Edition

New Delhi, 19 March 2024

Mediamap News Network

 

In our media world's preoccupation with the Lok Sabha election schedule, the electoral bonds case and seat adjustments among political parties in two rival alliances the unsavoury and shameful incident in a university campus in Ahmedabad went completely unnoticed.

In the evening of Saturday last Muslim students from foreign countries in the Gujarat University were offering Namaz on the first day of the holi month of Ramzan a crowd of hooligans attacked them raising slogans of Jai Shri Ram.  Several of the students who had fasted during the day were hurt. But what was worse was the attitude of the vice-chancellor of the university. Whatever her explanation she showed utter insensitivity towards the Muslim students and failed to act as a responsible head of the institution.

The right approach and proper sensitivity towards the foreign students have been shown by a Delhi-based social activist, Suranya Aiyer who has been working closely with the Jain community and social activists in Gujarat on a complicated social relief case. She has expressed her shock and sense of shame at this indecent act of aggression on and violence against foreign students while offering namaz. She has said that it is a shame that such an incident has taken place in the land of Mahatma Gandhi, the apostle of peace and humanitarianism.  

A person in a purple dress Description automatically generatedDaughter of a Sikh mother and Tamil father, Congress leader and former bureaucrat Mani Shanker Aiyer, Suranya is a dedicated social worker. Though she had her grooming in a political atmosphere, her major areas of interest are social issues with a humanitarian underpinning rather than politics. Outraged at the incident she wrote an open letter to all Gujaratis as their sister, friend and well-wisher. The following are the excerpts from her emotion-packed letter:

"     For the last 3 years, I have been working closely with the Jain Gujarat community and BJP supporters regarding the racist and cruel snatching of the child of a tech family from Gujarat in Germany. For years I have been helping them write their appeals to Indian and German officials pleading for the religious and cultural rights of the baby to be respected.

 

It took over a year to make them understand how to make the case against the cultural erasure of an Indian minor in a foreign country. What a serious violation that was of international laws and the ethos of democratic nations.

 

Many Gujaratis, especially Jain brothers and sisters, keep writing to me asking the about progress in the case, they repost my tweets to the German Ambassador for Germany's racist and cruel treatment of the baby. They have friended me on Facebook. So I think I can speak to them as a friend and sister. I want to ask them: are you not ashamed of what is a Hindutvavadi mob shouting "Jai Shri Ram" slogans has done against foreign students at Gujarat University last night?

 

With what face can you ask for Indians' religious and cultural rights to be respected abroad when foreign Muslim students are attacked here - with knives and stones - for offering namaz during Ramzan?

 

Did the young misguided men in the mob know that the evening namaz is offered after a day of strict fasting? How can you attack a person when they are weakened by fasting? Is that brave? Is that honourable?

 

Does it give Hinduism a good name for attacks to be done in its name under cover of the night and against people who are subdued in fasting and prayer? Do you know that in the Ramayana and Mahabharata Ram, Lakshman, Arjun and other great warriors would never attack someone who had fallen down or lost his weapon - even in the midst of battle?

 

I spent days and nights helping you without asking for anything in return. I shared in your pain like your own sister, and now I ask you to heed mine.

 

Please tell me, is this how you want our country to be? Will you teach your hot-headed youngsters what I have taught you about respecting foreigners and other religions and cultures? Will you stand up and tell fellow Gujaratis that enough is enough and we all have to draw the line against aggression and bullying in the name of Hindutvavad?

 

The Gujarat University Vice Chancellor has tried to make excuses for the incident. Instead of condemning the mob she has said that the foreign students need to undergo cultural sensitisation.

 

Is this not a travesty of justice? Can such a person be considered fit to lead a university with international students, or, for that matter, any university? I am appealing to you to educate your people in restraint and civic behaviour before it gets too late. If for no other reason, I say that this must be done for your own sakes as Indians now live all over the world.

 

But charity begins at home. I respectfully submit that vote for whom you like, but it is high time that you cleaned up your society. Gujarat is the state of Mahatma Gandhi - one of the greatest and noblest men ever to walk this earth. Do not allow these young thugs to degrade you in this way. Please write to the international students at Gujarat University and apologise on behalf of all of Gujarat for the incident. Please write to the Vice Chancellor for her to undergo cultural sensitisation instead of blaming the victims.

(Words 895)

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