Back when India was not independent, it was surely not a tolerant country. People, especially women, uneducated, the lower class were not considered worth considering. But now, has the scenario changed? Not really.
We cannot proudly say that it has become tolerant. Mr Rajnath Singh once quoted, “India is the most tolerant country in the world”. Either he is overstating the fact by using “in the world”, or he isn’t really aware of the reality!
Today, there are many cases which show intolerance in the country. For example, when the farmers in Haryana were protesting to get their rights, the Indian media was busy and more interested in the celebrities allegedly consuming drugs. Also, the Sushant Singh Rajput case has still not been solved in spite of getting national recognition. But, imagine: how many infamous Sushants are there in the country who are left unheard and unrecognized and who no justice is rendered to?
As a matter of fact, the rape and harassment cases in India are a sign of intolerance too. Justice for the victims is delayed. Recently, a 19-year-old girl was brutally gang-raped. But, that girl might not get justice because Indian media is more concerned about Deepika Padukone and her drug consumption, instead of a this gang-rape case which actually needs to be heard. Rapists still freely roam in India. India needs to be serious in such issues.
How long will it take to eradicate this culture?
Tolerance does not just include unity and religions, it includes various other factors. Yes, we have freedom of speech as a tolerant country but what kind of freedom is it if there’s no justice or recognition of wrong? India has a lot of aspects in which it can be called a tolerant country but those aspects still need to be polished to make it really tolerant.