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You are here: Home / Archives for Kerala

'We cannot accept violence against any religion': Narendra Modi

February 17, 2015 by Nasheman

The PM’s speech at the celebration of the elevation to sainthood of Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Mother Euphrasia.

Narendra-Modi-Christians

by Narendra Modi

I am delighted to participate in this function to celebrate the elevation to sainthood of two great saints of Kerala – Saint Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Saint Euphresia. The whole country is proud of their recognition. Their elevation was preceded by that of Saint Alphonsa, who also hailed from Kerala.

The life and deeds of Saint Chavara and Saint Euphresia are an inspiration not only to the Christian community, but to humanity as a whole. They are shining examples of dedication to God through selfless service for the betterment of mankind.

Saint Chavara was a man of prayer and also a social reformer. In an era when access to education was limited, he stressed that every church should have a school. He thus opened the doors of education to people from all sections of society.

Few outside Kerala know that he started a Sanskrit school, and also a printing press. His contribution towards women’s empowerment was also noteworthy.

Saint Euphrasia was a mystic who dedicated her life to prayer and devotion to God.

Both these saints dedicated their life to God through service of fellow beings. The ancient Indian saying: “आत्मानो मोक्षार्थम् जगत हितायाचा” – welfare of the world is the way to moksha (salvation) – explains their life.

Friends,

Spiritualism is rooted in India’s heritage. Indian saints and Greek sages had intellectual and spiritual exchanges thousands of years back. India’s openness to new ideas is manifest in the Rig Veda: आनो भद्राः क्रतवो यन्तु विश्वतः Let noble thoughts come to us from all sides. This philosophy has guided our intellectual discourse since time immemorial. Mother India gave birth to many religious and spiritual streams. Some of them have even travelled beyond Indian borders.

The tradition of welcoming, respecting and honouring all faiths is as old as India itself. As Swami Vivekananda said: We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true.

What Swami Vivekananda had said a century ago holds good and will, for ever, not only for this nation but also for this government or for that matter any government in India, run by any political party. This principle of equal respect and treatment for all faiths has been a part of India’s ethos for thousands of years. And that is how it became integral to the Constitution of India. Our Constitution did not evolve in a vacuum. It has roots in the ancient cultural traditions of India.

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore had inspired us to dream of a land where the mind is without fear and the head is held high. It is that heaven of freedom we are duty bound to create and preserve. We believe that there is truth in every religion. एकम सत विप्र बहुधा वदन्ति

Friends,

Let me now come to the issue which is central and critical for peace and harmony in the contemporary world. The world is increasingly witnessing division and hostility on religious lines. This has become a matter of global concern. In this context the ancient Indian plea of mutual respect for all faiths is now beginning to manifest in global discourse.

This long felt need and urge for mutually respectful relations led to the interfaith conference on ‘Faith in Human Rights’ at the Hague on tenth December, 2008. This was coincidentally also the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations.

Religious leaders representing every major world religion – Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Baha’i Faith, Buddhism, Islam, Taoism and indigenous religions met, discussed and pledged to uphold the Universal Declaration and of freedom of religion or belief.

In their historic declaration, this is how they defined what constitutes freedom of faith and how it is to be safeguarded.

We consider the freedom to have, to retain, and to adopt, a religion or belief, is a personal choice of a citizen.

The world is at cross roads which, if not crossed properly, can throw us back to the dark days of bigotry, fanaticism and bloodshed. This harmonious convergence among religions could not be achieved even when the world entered the third millennium. And now it has been. This shows that the rest of the world too is evolving along the lines of ancient India.

Speaking for India, and for my government, I declare that my government stands by every word of the above declaration. My government will ensure that there is complete freedom of faith and that everyone has the undeniable right to retain or adopt the religion of his or her choice without coercion or undue influence. My government will not allow any religious group, belonging to the majority or the minority, to incite hatred against others, overtly or covertly. Mine will be a government that gives equal respect to all religions.

India is the land of Buddha and Gandhi. Equal respect for all religions must be in the DNA of every Indian. We cannot accept violence against any religion on any pretext and I strongly condemn such violence. My government will act strongly in this regard.

With this commitment, I appeal to all religious groups to act with restraint, mutual respect, and tolerance in the true spirit of this ancient nation which is manifest in our Constitution and is in line with the Hague Declaration.

Friends,

I have a vision of a Modern India. I have embarked on a huge mission to convert that vision into reality. My mantra is Development – सबका साथ, सबका विकास.

In simple terms it means food on every table, every child in school, a job for everybody and a house with toilet and electricity for every family. This will make India proud. We can achieve this through unity. Unity strengthens us. Division weakens us. I sincerely request all Indians, and all of you present here to support me in this huge task.

Let the elevation to sainthood of Saint Chavara and Saint Euphrasia, and their noble deeds inspire us:

-to maximize our inner strength
-to use that strength for transforming society through selfless service
-to fulfil our collective vision of a developed and modern India.

Filed Under: India Tagged With: Christians, Communal Violence, Kerala, Narendra Modi

VHP continues its ‘Ghar Wapsi,’ reconverts 17 Christians in Kottayam

December 25, 2014 by Nasheman

File photo

File photo

Kottayam: Continuing with its ‘Ghar Wapsi’ programme, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) Thursday reconverted about 17 Christians to Hinduism in Kottayam district.

There were unconfirmed reports yesterday that the Hindu outfit would stage mass conversion events at several places on Christmas day, mainly targeting Dalit Christians.

On Wednesday, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said there had been no forceful conversions in the state.

Kerala all these years has steered clear of any controversy when it came to forced religious conversion, Chandy said.

Chandy was responding to a question on the reported conversion of 35 people from Christianity to Hinduism in two Kerala districts last Sunday.

“We have always steered clear of any such happenings and there has been no forceful conversions in our state. If anyone decides to convert, it’s their decision. If there is a need for any government intervention, it would be done, but for that to happen, there has to be forceful conversion and it does not take place here,” he said.

The peculiar situation in Kerala is that Hindu SC/ST people enjoy government reservations which are not open to Christian SC/ST people.

Filed Under: India Tagged With: Christians, Ghar Wapsi, Hinduism, Kerala, Kottayam, Religious conversion, VHP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad

"Not getting any reservation benefits, hence converted to Hinduism"

December 23, 2014 by Nasheman

home-coming-Hinduism

Thiruvananthapuram: As Kerala Police began a probe into reports of 35 people in two districts converting to Hinduism, two families Monday said they did it on their own and not under any pressure.

The families of Babu and Joy, siblings from Cheppad in Alappuzha district, told the media that in official records they were classified as Christian Cheremars, but they had been practising Hinduism right from childhood.

They said that despite being classified as Christian Cheremars, they were not getting any reservation benefits.

Hence, they decided on their own to convert to Hinduism to enjoy the benefits.

They also said they had approached the local leadership of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), and it was they who made arrangements for their conversion rituals.

A total of 35 people from Alappuzha and Kollam districts had Sunday converted to Hinduism, following which state Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala had ordered a probe.

Additional Director General of Police A. Hemachandran has been asked to conduct a detailed probe and submit a report, Chennithala’s office told IANS.

“He has constituted a team of officials and they are trying to find if there was any forced conversion. The report is awaited,” the office said.

The VHP leadership Monday continued to maintain that there was no attempt on their part to woo people to convert to Hinduism.

Fr. Paul Thelekkat, spokesperson of the Syro Malabar Catholic Church, told IANS that there exists a problem in Kerala where reservation benefits are there for Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe Hindus and not for SC/ST Christians.

What happened Sunday was probably to enjoy those benefits, he said.

“Moreover, the Bharatiya Janata Party, through this could look to polarisation of Hindu votes,” Thelekkat said.

(IANS)

Filed Under: India Tagged With: BJP, Christian Cheremars, Christianity, Christians, Hinduism, Hindutva, Kerala, VHP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad

Kerala CM lets off RSS youths from murder case, match fixing between Congress and BJP cries CPM

October 23, 2014 by Nasheman

Oommen-Chandy

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala unit of Congress is caught in an another controversy as its Chief Minister has revoked a murder attempt case involving RSS workers against a police officer.

The executive order has created a storm as CPM said that it was a sign of match fixing between Congress and BJP going on in Kerala.

The murder attempt case was registered in 2005 against 32 RSS workers after they attacked and hurled bombs on police inspector Mohan Nair, who tried to contain campus violence in the state capital. A seriously injured Nair had been hospitalized for more than a year.

The CM took the decision in December 2012 after police had submitted the charge sheet and trial was about to begin. His contention is that he received an appeal from a youth saying that if he is not relived from the case he would lose the job of being a police constable. His selection would be disqualified on this ground. He was a student at the time of the incident. CM says that it was done on humanitarian grounds.

The current Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala washed his hands off the pardon given to the RSS and even Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, the ex-Home Minister denied that it had anything to do with him.

Reports say CM’s A group MLA Palode Ravi had recommended for this RSS man.

Filed Under: India Tagged With: BJP, CPM, Kerala, Oommen Chandy, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, RSS, Thiruvananthapuram

Arrested for being seated while national anthem was played in the theatre

August 26, 2014 by Nasheman

Salman_Zalman

Statement by concerned citizens on the arrest of Salman and demanding his immediate release

On August 20th night 12 pm Salman a student and social activist from Trivandrum was picked up by the police from his home in Peroorkada. The immediate accusation against him was that he had insulted the national anthem while it was being played in a theatre, where he had gone to watch a movie. Later his comments on Facebook where he questions nationalism as a philosophical and political concept were also pointed out as a reason for his arrest. It is also being reported that there was a deliberate attempt to frame him by some right-wing hindutva groups and that they are the ones who are behind his arrest.

There is a lack of clarity regarding his arrest and the way it was conducted, late in the midnight hours of August 20th. It is clear, though, that none of the customary norms were followed during his arrest. Even after it was said that Salman was taken to the Thampanoor station, the police themselves later denied this. For a whole night and the next day even Salman’s parents had no access to him. In fact, Salman was taken from prison to prison like it is usually done with so called ‘notorious terrorists’ and the police refused to give out any information about him both to his parents and to the lawyers who had contacted them. It was onlyon August 21st evening that it was made known that there was an FIR recorded against him and that a case was registered under IPC act 124 A and 66 A charging him of sedition and of sending offensive messages through communicative service. Though there were many other students with him it is surprising that it was only Salman who was picked out and arrested.

The media too automatically reiterated the police version in their reports, without attempting to investigate into the case, in spite of the fact that police injustice towards Muslim youth is growing day by day. Further, we want to bring attention to the fact that vigilante right-wing hindutva groups are at present conducting an extremely abusive hate campaign against Salman on Facebook. The abusive comments on his Facebook wall have become so vicious that some even threaten to rape the women who are in support of him.

We strongly condemn the arrest and inhumane treatment of Salman Zalman at the hands of the Kerala police and call for his immediate release. We consider the charging of IPC 124 A (sedition) on him as a gross over stretching of the sedition act to encroach into the rights of a citizen to criticize the nation.We also condemn the abusive campaign that is being conducted on Facebook against him and the discriminatory nature of the media reporting, which is aiding such human right abuses.

Salman Zalman

Salman Zalman

It must also be noted that whatever the nature of the crime, the withdrawal of constitutionally established human rights is extremely problematic and illegal. We would surely connect the arrest and incarceration of Salman to the way in which Muslim youth in Kerala and elsewhere are being constantly oppressed by the criminal justice system (please remember the case of Muhsin, another trivandramite youth fabricated in a “letter bomb” case from which he was acquitted only after seven years). To avoid such illegal incarceration and delayed justice we demand that he should be allowed to use his fair legal rights as promised by the constitution.

His arrest is all the more troublesome because he was a student who has been a part of many human rights campaigns in the past and was even an artist in the play that was held in protest against UAPA in front of the Secretariat on August 14th. His clandestine arrest and subsequent secret incarceration and denial of legal access for a whole day and night reeks of police impunity, which selectively target the youth who question state ideology. We must remember that, at this moment, it has become a norm to first arrest, torture and incarcerate Muslims before allowing them to seek any kind of justice. This is sheer discrimination and we urge everyone to come together to condemn the arrest of Salman and to demand his immediate release.

Filed Under: Human Rights, India Tagged With: Facebook, Human rights, Kerala, National Anthem, Rabindranath Tagore, Salman Zalman, Sedition, UAPA

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