Like all such political movements, Hindutva uses and abuses Hinduism and Hindu symbols to pursue political aims ("Modi Not Welcome: Meet the UK activists who projected their message on the British parliament"). But just as one crime does not justify another, the abuse of Hindu symbols by the Sangh Parivar does not justify the Awaaz Network's act. The group's claim that it protests against intolerance of all kinds is also not convincing. A look at their website will tell you how much attention has been paid to "other" kinds of intolerance. – Suresh M
***
This is a disgusting act. The last time I checked, Narendra Modi was still the elected leader of the world's largest democracy. Very disrespectful and abominable on the part of those responsible. – Vinita Ullal
***
Such lies have a sinister agenda – that of spoiling the peace of a nation which has elected its government and prime minister. I am a Christian, but I face no divisive attitudes. My brother-in-law is a Muslim and we all live quite happily despite differences in religion and outlook.
India is one of the most tolerant societies in the world. Yes, we do have law and problems, especially in states like Uttar Pradesh where the alleged beef lynching incident took place. Why is Awaaz not targeting the state government instead? We are a federal democracy and the state is responsible for law and order, not the central government or Prime Minister Narendra Modi. – Laxmi Varde Lobo
***
Thank you for showing the real Narendra Modi. Because of the economic blockade along Nepal' southern borders, thousands will die due to lack of food, medicines, and everyday essentials. – Tara P Shrestha
***
The Awaaz Network's false accusations are nonsense and the misinformation being dished out by its members are nothing but regurgitated trash from many years ago.
The group's behaviour can be compared to Adolf Hitler's minister of propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, who followed the philosophy of repeating a lie a million times so that it might just become true. But their lies remained lies. Similarly, Awaaz's regurgitated trash will remain trash.
The group is falsifying facts to malign and tarnish the image of Narendra Modi and his millions of supporters. But their efforts will go in vain. – Hasmukh Velji Shah
***
A nation divided on the basis of religion, which was ruled by Muslims and the British, is now being educated about tolerance.
There are forces hell-bent on destroying this great nation in the name of secularism. This nation has been in the limelight for centuries. You cannot write off the great nationalists of this great Bharat. – Sanjay Mahajan
***
Narendra Modi's fundamentalism is having an effect on the neighbourhood as well. When he could not impose his ideas on Nepal, which refused to declare itself a Hindu nation, he started an economic blockade. The Himalayan nation is now on the verge of a Narendra Modi-engineered humanitarian crisis. – Sunita Chhatkuli Pandey
***
It's very easy to protest when a democracy allows you to do so. But before standing in a queue, we should know what the queue is for. – Atul Bendal
***
Does the Awaaz Network have the faintest idea about the significance of the Om symbol? It has a history of thousands of years and is represented in yoga, Buddhism, and Hinduism with deep reverence.
Awaaz UK has proven that they are a bunch of ignorant bigots. How can they associate the symbol with a political leader? Do we insult Shiva because the Shiv Sena associates themselves with that god. – Sameer
***
This is not just an insult to a sacred symbol, but also to Indian democracy. By insulting the democratically-elected leader of India, you have insulted its people and the Constitution. Such a disgusting display also belittles the Jews and the British people who suffered the tyranny of the Nazis. May god grant you the wisdom of correcting your ways. – Amogh Gupte
Reeks of sycophancy
This is hilarious ("Modi propaganda video is add-on treat at many ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ screenings"). We could have laughed our guts out had the intent not been deadly serious. Like the Film and Television Institute of India, the censor board has been anointed with a Bharatiya Janata Party sympathiser.
These appointees will continue their attempts to poison the agenda and responsibilities bestowed on them. It's evident from the content of this film that Pahlaj Nihalani, in his blinkered view, did not expect a drubbing in the Bihar elections.Instead he chooses to sing paeans about his lord and master. It is quite incredible that Narendra Modi and his coterie do not cringe at such blatant sycophancy. – Denzil George
Lost in the neighbourhood
An incisive and very well written article ("On a road to nowhere: Indian foreign policy seems to have lost its way in the neighbourhood"). Indian foreign policy has become the casualty of hawkish behaviour resembling bipolar disorder One day, these hawks will make Narendra Modi a hero of the stature of Don Quixote, even without Sancho Panza. – Basanta K Lohani
***
I am especially concerned with this line in the article: "It should have been the bureaucrats at South Block in the first instance to warn the government and its mentors that the national security state is about to land in a cesspool."
Bureaucrats like the Indian ambassador to Nepal and the foreign secretary are the ones who create problems in the first place. So how can we expect good work from them? They have provided the political leadership with wrong information on many occasions. These bureaucrats do not want any political intervention from the Indian leadership in matters related to Nepal. They want to try and solve the problem on their own.
Had the Indian ambassador played a positive role right from the beginning, the current dire situation would not have arisen. Instead he is acting like a political leader in Nepal by appearing on television every day. The Modi government should be aware of its own bureaucracy, especially on matters related to Nepal. – Madhav Pathak
Communal harmony
It's very heartening that Indians overseas still have a close affinity to the mainland and wholeheartedly follow all religious rituals ("Watch this Tamil-speaking Chinese grandmom from Malaysia tell you how to make traditional Diwali rangoli"). Whenever I travel abroad, I find that there is perfect communal harmony. In India, we are dealing with the emergence of fringe elements actively supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Prime Minister needs to take the lead. – HNS Myer
Tipu Sultan's atrocities
I read your article on Tipu Sultan's atrocities against Christians in Mangalore ("By expelling Christian priests, Tipu was only following precedent set by European rivals"). They are not "Nazarenes" as you have mentioned. Nazarenes or Syrian Christians mostly belong to Kerala. They were not converted by the Portuguese, but were Christians from the 1st century AD. Some say Apostle Thomas converted them from Brahmins, and another theory claims they were Jews. Nazarenes were also severely affected by Tipu's atrocities, especially when he attacked the centuries-old Arthat Church in Kunnamkulam, Thrissur. – Abraham K
Communication gap
So well said ("Arundhati Roy: 'Intolerance is the wrong word for the lynching and mass murder of human beings'"). All right-thinking people echo Arundhati Roy's thoughts, but how are we to convey this to those whose mindsets are warped beyond redemption? To those who brutalise intelligence through sheer pigheadedness or ingrained foolish ideologies? Or to those with vested interests?
I can only think of an "each one teach one" policy for those of us who may not have the freedom or the power or wherewithal to be heard. There is hope as long as there are activists and fearless writers and journalists who cannot be bought. – Usha Hooda
PM's personal defeat
The prime minister brought the election campaign under his command ("With Bihar defeat, BJP has lost its biggest asset ‒ Modi's aura of invincibility"). He should not have got so deeply involved in state politics. He worked like a state-level leader in this election, and that is why he must treat the result as a personal defeat. The election defeat was a necessary check for the Bharatiya Janata Party. It stooped too low by calling people names, but Nitish Kumar kept his cool and did not make any derogatory remarks. – tspswamys on email
Conveniently secular
As expected, Ajaz Ashraf's logic is conveniently secular ("War trophies: When Hindu kings raided temples and abducted idols"). He forgets to mention that the demolition of un-Islamic sites of worship isn't unique to India. It has been an inseparable part of Jihadi invasions all over the world as it comes with explicit Quranic sanction. In fact, more than temple demolition, it is the forced conversion of kafirs that is a more sacred duty for Muslims.
The author is also suitably mum about the fact that no Hindu king has ever demolished mosques, slaughtered Muslim civilians, forcibly converted them to Hinduism, or raped Muslim women.
By the same logic, Muslims should care little about the demolition of the Babri masjid. – Sanjeev Patwardhan
Augmented reality
The problem with these television channels and pollsters is that they are infested with yuppies who are biased towards the Bharatiya Janata Party ("This one chart shows how pollsters and TV channels were clueless about Bihar"). These young people are disconnected from reality, which is the rural and semi-urban mofussil towns.
They merely believe in vikas, which the BJP is showing them through the glamour and lights of cities in which India seems to be shining and everybody is happy. These people think that the BJP is very strong after last year's thumping victory in the Lok Sabha elections. But the fact is that the victory was a wave. Now, 75% of secular voters do not want to vote for the BJP.
The yuppies sitting in Delhi remain blind followers of Narendra Modi and also think that all opposition parties are foolish and bad. That is why they believe that the BJP is winning without doing any real work. They do not project the correct findings and fudge all the real samples sent by their ground reporters in favour of the BJP. I hope that the Bihar election results will serve as a wake-up call, or else their credibility will be suffer in future elections. – Vishal Jindal
Dissent against dissent
It appears that a handful of people among the Narendra Modi's government most obstinate supporters have come up with an ingenious plan to mount a protest against protests ("Nobody has the right to call India intolerant, says Anupam Kher"). This course of action is mystifying for several reasons, beginning with the fact that protesting is an act of public dissent and strangely enough, this dissent seems to be directed against the growing dissent in the country.
Simply put, the counter-protest is not much of a protest at all. Instead, it would be more appropriate just to qualify it as a public rally in support of an embattled government that has failed to deliver on its promises and is slipping into a directionless policy stupor on several fronts.
It is a testimony to the lack of political imagination of these assorted loyalists that the form their public statement of support has taken is that of an attack against the regime’s perceived enemies. – Nachiket Joshi
We welcome your comments at
[email protected].
***
This is a disgusting act. The last time I checked, Narendra Modi was still the elected leader of the world's largest democracy. Very disrespectful and abominable on the part of those responsible. – Vinita Ullal
***
Such lies have a sinister agenda – that of spoiling the peace of a nation which has elected its government and prime minister. I am a Christian, but I face no divisive attitudes. My brother-in-law is a Muslim and we all live quite happily despite differences in religion and outlook.
India is one of the most tolerant societies in the world. Yes, we do have law and problems, especially in states like Uttar Pradesh where the alleged beef lynching incident took place. Why is Awaaz not targeting the state government instead? We are a federal democracy and the state is responsible for law and order, not the central government or Prime Minister Narendra Modi. – Laxmi Varde Lobo
***
Thank you for showing the real Narendra Modi. Because of the economic blockade along Nepal' southern borders, thousands will die due to lack of food, medicines, and everyday essentials. – Tara P Shrestha
***
The Awaaz Network's false accusations are nonsense and the misinformation being dished out by its members are nothing but regurgitated trash from many years ago.
The group's behaviour can be compared to Adolf Hitler's minister of propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, who followed the philosophy of repeating a lie a million times so that it might just become true. But their lies remained lies. Similarly, Awaaz's regurgitated trash will remain trash.
The group is falsifying facts to malign and tarnish the image of Narendra Modi and his millions of supporters. But their efforts will go in vain. – Hasmukh Velji Shah
***
A nation divided on the basis of religion, which was ruled by Muslims and the British, is now being educated about tolerance.
There are forces hell-bent on destroying this great nation in the name of secularism. This nation has been in the limelight for centuries. You cannot write off the great nationalists of this great Bharat. – Sanjay Mahajan
***
Narendra Modi's fundamentalism is having an effect on the neighbourhood as well. When he could not impose his ideas on Nepal, which refused to declare itself a Hindu nation, he started an economic blockade. The Himalayan nation is now on the verge of a Narendra Modi-engineered humanitarian crisis. – Sunita Chhatkuli Pandey
***
It's very easy to protest when a democracy allows you to do so. But before standing in a queue, we should know what the queue is for. – Atul Bendal
***
Does the Awaaz Network have the faintest idea about the significance of the Om symbol? It has a history of thousands of years and is represented in yoga, Buddhism, and Hinduism with deep reverence.
Awaaz UK has proven that they are a bunch of ignorant bigots. How can they associate the symbol with a political leader? Do we insult Shiva because the Shiv Sena associates themselves with that god. – Sameer
***
This is not just an insult to a sacred symbol, but also to Indian democracy. By insulting the democratically-elected leader of India, you have insulted its people and the Constitution. Such a disgusting display also belittles the Jews and the British people who suffered the tyranny of the Nazis. May god grant you the wisdom of correcting your ways. – Amogh Gupte
Reeks of sycophancy
This is hilarious ("Modi propaganda video is add-on treat at many ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo’ screenings"). We could have laughed our guts out had the intent not been deadly serious. Like the Film and Television Institute of India, the censor board has been anointed with a Bharatiya Janata Party sympathiser.
These appointees will continue their attempts to poison the agenda and responsibilities bestowed on them. It's evident from the content of this film that Pahlaj Nihalani, in his blinkered view, did not expect a drubbing in the Bihar elections.Instead he chooses to sing paeans about his lord and master. It is quite incredible that Narendra Modi and his coterie do not cringe at such blatant sycophancy. – Denzil George
Lost in the neighbourhood
An incisive and very well written article ("On a road to nowhere: Indian foreign policy seems to have lost its way in the neighbourhood"). Indian foreign policy has become the casualty of hawkish behaviour resembling bipolar disorder One day, these hawks will make Narendra Modi a hero of the stature of Don Quixote, even without Sancho Panza. – Basanta K Lohani
***
I am especially concerned with this line in the article: "It should have been the bureaucrats at South Block in the first instance to warn the government and its mentors that the national security state is about to land in a cesspool."
Bureaucrats like the Indian ambassador to Nepal and the foreign secretary are the ones who create problems in the first place. So how can we expect good work from them? They have provided the political leadership with wrong information on many occasions. These bureaucrats do not want any political intervention from the Indian leadership in matters related to Nepal. They want to try and solve the problem on their own.
Had the Indian ambassador played a positive role right from the beginning, the current dire situation would not have arisen. Instead he is acting like a political leader in Nepal by appearing on television every day. The Modi government should be aware of its own bureaucracy, especially on matters related to Nepal. – Madhav Pathak
Communal harmony
It's very heartening that Indians overseas still have a close affinity to the mainland and wholeheartedly follow all religious rituals ("Watch this Tamil-speaking Chinese grandmom from Malaysia tell you how to make traditional Diwali rangoli"). Whenever I travel abroad, I find that there is perfect communal harmony. In India, we are dealing with the emergence of fringe elements actively supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Prime Minister needs to take the lead. – HNS Myer
Tipu Sultan's atrocities
I read your article on Tipu Sultan's atrocities against Christians in Mangalore ("By expelling Christian priests, Tipu was only following precedent set by European rivals"). They are not "Nazarenes" as you have mentioned. Nazarenes or Syrian Christians mostly belong to Kerala. They were not converted by the Portuguese, but were Christians from the 1st century AD. Some say Apostle Thomas converted them from Brahmins, and another theory claims they were Jews. Nazarenes were also severely affected by Tipu's atrocities, especially when he attacked the centuries-old Arthat Church in Kunnamkulam, Thrissur. – Abraham K
Communication gap
So well said ("Arundhati Roy: 'Intolerance is the wrong word for the lynching and mass murder of human beings'"). All right-thinking people echo Arundhati Roy's thoughts, but how are we to convey this to those whose mindsets are warped beyond redemption? To those who brutalise intelligence through sheer pigheadedness or ingrained foolish ideologies? Or to those with vested interests?
I can only think of an "each one teach one" policy for those of us who may not have the freedom or the power or wherewithal to be heard. There is hope as long as there are activists and fearless writers and journalists who cannot be bought. – Usha Hooda
PM's personal defeat
The prime minister brought the election campaign under his command ("With Bihar defeat, BJP has lost its biggest asset ‒ Modi's aura of invincibility"). He should not have got so deeply involved in state politics. He worked like a state-level leader in this election, and that is why he must treat the result as a personal defeat. The election defeat was a necessary check for the Bharatiya Janata Party. It stooped too low by calling people names, but Nitish Kumar kept his cool and did not make any derogatory remarks. – tspswamys on email
Conveniently secular
As expected, Ajaz Ashraf's logic is conveniently secular ("War trophies: When Hindu kings raided temples and abducted idols"). He forgets to mention that the demolition of un-Islamic sites of worship isn't unique to India. It has been an inseparable part of Jihadi invasions all over the world as it comes with explicit Quranic sanction. In fact, more than temple demolition, it is the forced conversion of kafirs that is a more sacred duty for Muslims.
The author is also suitably mum about the fact that no Hindu king has ever demolished mosques, slaughtered Muslim civilians, forcibly converted them to Hinduism, or raped Muslim women.
By the same logic, Muslims should care little about the demolition of the Babri masjid. – Sanjeev Patwardhan
Augmented reality
The problem with these television channels and pollsters is that they are infested with yuppies who are biased towards the Bharatiya Janata Party ("This one chart shows how pollsters and TV channels were clueless about Bihar"). These young people are disconnected from reality, which is the rural and semi-urban mofussil towns.
They merely believe in vikas, which the BJP is showing them through the glamour and lights of cities in which India seems to be shining and everybody is happy. These people think that the BJP is very strong after last year's thumping victory in the Lok Sabha elections. But the fact is that the victory was a wave. Now, 75% of secular voters do not want to vote for the BJP.
The yuppies sitting in Delhi remain blind followers of Narendra Modi and also think that all opposition parties are foolish and bad. That is why they believe that the BJP is winning without doing any real work. They do not project the correct findings and fudge all the real samples sent by their ground reporters in favour of the BJP. I hope that the Bihar election results will serve as a wake-up call, or else their credibility will be suffer in future elections. – Vishal Jindal
Dissent against dissent
It appears that a handful of people among the Narendra Modi's government most obstinate supporters have come up with an ingenious plan to mount a protest against protests ("Nobody has the right to call India intolerant, says Anupam Kher"). This course of action is mystifying for several reasons, beginning with the fact that protesting is an act of public dissent and strangely enough, this dissent seems to be directed against the growing dissent in the country.
Simply put, the counter-protest is not much of a protest at all. Instead, it would be more appropriate just to qualify it as a public rally in support of an embattled government that has failed to deliver on its promises and is slipping into a directionless policy stupor on several fronts.
It is a testimony to the lack of political imagination of these assorted loyalists that the form their public statement of support has taken is that of an attack against the regime’s perceived enemies. – Nachiket Joshi