(This is a reprint from NewsBred).
Pavan K. Varma, member of JD (U), usually hedges his bets quite nicely but his edit piece in Times of India on Saturday (December 9, 2017) deserves a considered rebuttal.
Basically, Varma praises Jawaharlal Nehru ("Scientific
Humanist") and Mahatma Gandhi ("Catholic spirit") for the
Varma pompously terms it a "malevolent design." He writes that such forces "know very little about what Hinduism is." Therefore, "Hinduism needs to be reclaimed"from rampant bigotry."
Since Varma knows so much about "Being Indian", having
written a book by this title, he needs be told what Nehru thought of Indians
while seeking permission from his father to shift from
As for his praise of Gandhi for the "Catholic spirit", Varma
needs be asked if it's the same "Catholic spirit" which makes a Pope condemn
the attempts of US-based protestant missions in Latin America but show his
double standards by keeping silent on Catholic missions in
Is it the same "Catholic Spirit" he has in his mind when he
surveys Church buildings standing on the debris of Hindu Temples in
Indeed, European landscape is studded with churches containing false relics of false saints to whom false martyrdom is attributed. [iii]
Now, let's return to Mahatma Gandhi which Varma praises for his "respect for all religions." Does Varma remember that Gandhi had made the last-ditch proposal to Jinnah to accept Muslim/non-Muslim parity in Parliament, making one Muslim equal to three non-Muslims? (As an aside, how could Gandhi who has "respect for all religions" be praised for his "Catholic spirit"? Too bad, Mr Varma for using a communal brush on your hero.)
Varma calls out Hindutva forces for communalization in this
country. Doesn't he know that it was Hindutva forces who opposed communal electorates
and recruitment quota which Congress had endorsed in pre-Independent
We all know, as I am sure Varma does, that words such as "secularism" and "Hindu communalism" were made popular by Nehru. But did Nehru, his other hero, ever say a word about Muslim League which was a reincarnation of "communalism?"
Let's now take up Varma's diatribe against the Hindutva forces, which as I infer, is Rashstriya Swamsewak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In RSS' official statements, the notion of a "Hindu state" is totally absent. Every BJP member, on joining the party has to take the solemn pledge of "Sarva Dharma Sambhav." That, "I subscribe to the concept of a secular state and nation not based on religion."
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