The defining feature of Indian democracy is the concept of secularism. But religious hatred, communalism, and political extremism have withered away our idea of secularism. This decline has been most evident in the form of the Parliament Elections 2019.
The entire election debate was on Sabarimala and Ayodhya, when the country was suffocated by various problems ranging from demonetisation, G.S.T, mob-lynching and, the greatest of these, the National Registry of Citizens.
Borrowing words from Mahua Moitra, the poor people of our country are asked to submit documents to prove their nativity at a time when the ministers can’t provide their college degree certificates. Politics has become so narrowed that they tend to appeal to voters through their religious sentiments, above all else.
Religion has always been unfair to India throughout its history. The Muslim invaders who lay siege to India around 750 AD were often a formidable threat to Hindus living in the subcontinent. Temples were, as The Hindu once reported, looted. Taxes were levied on non-Muslims. At the same time, Hindu landlords humiliated tenants and workers from minority communities, treating them as inferior races which eventually produced the oppressive caste system. The Christian missionaries and the Portuguese also lay claim to indigenous people of the erstwhile Indian states.
The reservation system in India, which was meant to uplift minority communities, has also soured, without really eliminating the caste system. Under Reservation, the terms “Schedule Tribe” includes a lot of indigenous tribe groups that require affirmative action, but what ends up happening, due to an outdated reservation system, is that the comparatively equipped and resourceful communities within the group tend to drain the opportunities of other groups of the same reserved community.
We are living in an era where we forcefully forget our rich cultural history. This fact is evident from our reluctance to protect our national monuments. The plight of the Taj Mahal, on of the Seven Wonders of the World, caught the attention of the Supreme Court, recently.
The latest bone of contention is the move to demolish Errum Manzil in Telangana.
These events show how quick we are to erase our history.
This attitude will never do good to a democracy like India’s.
It is high time that we realise who we are. To be proud of our heritage rather than neglecting our history for political gains. We should stay united to achieve our long-cherished dreams.