WE ARE ALL INDIANS
Communal and Divisive VHP-RSS-BJP – Hands off Bengal!
Ever since the Narendra Modi led BJP government has assumed office in New Delhi, the onslaught of the communal forces has increased manifold. Over 600 communal riots have been organized in various parts of the country, from UP to Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka. A church has been burnt down in Delhi and communal riots broke out on the eve of Muharram. Most recently, there have been incidents of forceful conversion of Muslims in Agra by the RSS-BJP. BJP MP from UP, Yogi Adityanath, has been making communally charged and inflammatory hate speeches. The Minister of External Affairs has openly advocated that the Hindu scripture Gita should be accorded the status of national book.
All this has followed from the proclamation by the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat that "India is a Hindu Rashtra", in his speech in Mumbai in August 2014. We strongly condemn the live coverage of RSS chief's speech on Vijaya Dashami day by public broadcaster Doordarshan. It is clear that under the garb of the slogan of 'development', the RSS-BJP is trying to push its communal fascistic agenda.
West Bengal has been a state that has rejected communal politics since independence. The RSS-BJP never found a foothold in the state earlier because of a strong leftwing movement. Bengal is now the prime target of the RSS-BJP. Followed by the recent visit of the BJP's national President in the state, the VHP is now organizing a program in Kolkata on December 20, to be addressed by the champions of communal politics like Mohan Bhagwat, Ashok Singhal and Pravin Togadia. These agent provocateurs of hindutva have been in the forefront of communal mobilization in India over the past three decades. Pravin Togadia was openly involved in the Gujarat pogrom of 2002, while Ashok Singhal has been one of the chief architects of the Ramjanmabhoomi movement.
The poster for the VHP's December 20 meeting in Kolkata loudly proclaims, 'We are all Hindus'. Hoardings with such a blatantly divisive message have been displayed across the city. It is common knowledge that all citizens of India are not Hindus – there are Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, other religious minorities and also non-believers. The Indian Constitution is secular and does not discriminate on the basis of religion. We are not all Hindus - We are all Indians. Moreover, most of the citizens of West Bengal speak the Bengali language, irrespective of religious denominations. Ganamancha calls upon the people of Bengal to decisively reject the communal propaganda unleashed by the RSS-VHP-BJP, which is trying to destroy our culture and legacy of harmony and amity.
The people of the state, of all faiths, are waging everyday struggles for survival at a time when the BJP-led central government is unleashing a neoliberal onslaught in the shape of more FDI in insurance, defence sector, railways etc. and changes in labour laws. By dividing people on communal lines, the RSS-VHP-BJP is trying to destroy popular resistance and pave the way for the loot and plunder by big corporates and foreign capital.
In West Bengal, since the Khagragarh blasts in October, allegedly involving Bangladeshi fundamentalist groups, sections of the media and RSS-BJP have tried to brand the entire Muslim community as terrorists. The perpetrators of the Khagragarh blast must be severely punished, but the vilification of the entire Muslim community by the RSS-BJP must be resisted. It is in this atmosphere of minority bashing that the RSS-VHP leaders are going to address the public meeting in Kolkata to further communalize the society and reap political dividends for the BJP.
Nathuram Godse who had killed Gandhi was also a RSS activist. BJP lawmaker Sakhshi Maharaj has recently called Godse, a 'patriot'. This shows the dangerous communal, fascistic character of the RSS. Ganamancha demands that all RSS activists who are allegedly linked with recent terrorist incidents like the bomb blasts in Nanded, Malegaon, Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid and Samjhauta Express, must be severely punished.
It is the duty and responsibility of left, democratic and secular sections to counter the communal politics of RSS-VHP-BJP and strengthen the movement for defending the rights of the working people. Ganamancha is organizing a protest meeting against the RSS-VHP-BJP on December 20, at Kolkata's College Street in front of Coffee House, to demand that RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat withdraws his statement - "India is a Hindu Rashtra". This has hurt the sentiments of millions of secular minded Indians and goes against the basic tenet of the Indian Constitution. We appeal to all secular and democratic people to participate in the protest meeting in large numbers to proclaim that West Bengal has no place for communal fascists like Mohan Bhagwat, Pravin Togadia and Ashok Singhal.
Communal forces, Hands Off Bengal!
Communal fascists like Mohan Bhagwat, Ashok Singhal, Pravin Togadia, GO BACK!
Sd/-
Ganamancha Conveners
Abdur Razzak Mollah
Avash Munshi
Kunal Chattyopadhyay
Partha Ghosh
Prasenjit Bose