Sarah Khan
Islamabad
Religious extremism has increased exponentially in India especially during sway of Hindu extremist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Exploiting their hold in government during recent elections, the BJP won a three-fourths overwhelming majority in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly and is returning to power after 14 years. As a result of land slide victory in local elections, Yogi Adityanath, BJP’s Lok Sabha MP from Gorakhpur, has been named Uttar Pradesh’s new chief minister. Yogi Adityanath, whose real name is Ajay Singh Bisht, is a five-time BJP MP from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. He runs the Hindu Yuva Vahini in Purvanchal, an outfit that has been known for instigating communal tension. This Bajrang Dal-style organisation is particularly effective in the east UP districts of Deoria, Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar and Siddharthnagar. Activists of Yuva Vahini have been involved in forced conversions often resulting in communal conflagrations.
The BJP overnment headed by Narendra Modi, ever since its inception has been pursuing discriminatory policies against Indian Muslims and other minorities, inspired by the RSS ideology of Hindutva, a form of extremist Hindu nationalism which explodes the myth of the much touted Indian secularism. Hindutva means India for Hindus to the exclusion of all other communities and religions. That philosophy adequately explains the occurrence of incidents of violence against Muslims and Christians under the Modi government. In fact even during the previous BJP government anti-Muslim and anti-minorities policies were either pursued at the official level or the extremist elements were encouraged to pursue the BJP agenda based on RSS ideology.
Adityanath, the chief priest of one of Uttar Pradesh’s largest temples, has regularly stirred controversy – and significant personal popularity among rightwing Hindus – with incendiary rhetoric about Indian minorities, particularly Muslims, who make up one-fifth of Uttar Pradesh’s 220 million residents. Adityanath is facing criminal charges of attempted murder, defiling a place of worship and inciting riots in Uttar Pradesh, a state where communal tensions run high and religious violence four years ago killed more than 60 people.
The newly appointed CM of most populous state, Uttar Pardesh has spent 11 days in jail in 2007 for violating public restrictions imposed in an area at risk of erupting into Hindu-Muslim violence, and vowed in one speech: “If one Hindu girl marries a Muslim man, then we will take 100 Muslim girls in return ... If they [Muslims] kill one Hindu man, then we will kill 100 Muslim men.” In 2015, famous filmstar Shah Rukh Khan complained of growing “extreme intolerance” in India, Adityanath said the Muslim actor was “speaking the same language of terrorist”. He has also called Mother Teresa “part of the conspiracy to Christianise India”.
Appointment of a radical as CM, who possess extreme fanatic views against Muslim minority in UP will usher an era of endless merciless terror in India. BJP is already ruling a reign of terror against minorities particularly Muslims and Christians. The findings of United States Commission on International Religious Freedom in India are glaring. The report has noted that India is becoming worst place in terms of religious freedom and it might be ranked as country of particular concern in years ahead. In such a situation, Adityanath’s appointment is a matter of grave concern for Muslims in UP. The international organizations on Human Rights and religious freedom must take notice of this radical decision by BJP and must ensure that extremist and criminals must not be appointed on ministerial position in states with sizable Muslim population.
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