INDIAN MOSLEMS BELIEVE IN THEIR INDIANNESS

INDIAN MOSLEMS BELIEVE IN THEIR INDIANNESS

EXCERPTS FROM REDIFF INTERVIEW with FORMER INDIAN INTELLIGENCE BUREAU JOINT DIRECTOR M. KRISHNA DHAR
July 21 06

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You are the author of three bestselling books. Would you care to recount any incident was sparked off by these writings, which you found memorable?
I will recount two things. One, when Mission to Pakistan came out, I landed in a pitiable and pathetic situation when a mother of an Indian spy who died in Pakistan contacted me, and said you have written about my son, who was like this. I found it really heart-rending. I had to visit her home, console her, say that I share your pain and all that, but you must understand that your son did everything for the country, and did a good job.
Another occasion I remember is that when my latest book Fulcrum of Evil was published, certain politicians were very unhappy, because they felt I had made certain gestures towards them being Pakistani agents etc. Some of them wanted to browbeat me. I told them look, I am always available, always visible. If somebody fires a bullet at me, that's okay. I will continue to write on these subjects.
You have never made any attempts to cover your leanings towards the RSS. How relevant is the RSS as an organisation now?
The RSS was a historical necessity. It grew up at a time when the Tableeq Jamaat was growing up, when the Akali Dal was growing up, the Jamaat-e-Islami was taking strident steps, at a time when the theory that the Muslims are a separate nation was haunting the country. I strongly believe that at that point of time, the growth of a Hindu organisation within the nationalist movement was needed.
However, in the present day context, we are witnessing another historical phase in which religious resurgence is taking place everywhere. Under Bush, America is experiencing the rebirth of Christianity. Islam is going through another widespread resurgence.
Unfortunately, in India, the prime Hindu organisation, the RSS, is not giving as much attention as it should towards strengthening the strongest building block of the nation, the Hindus, by unifying them, by removing the curse of caste separation, and bringing equality and unity in the Hindu society.
I cannot imagine today that any Hindu organisation will frenetically work in the direction of promoting Hinduism, vis-à-vis any other religion in India. Those days are gone.
I also believe that we have no reason to be critical of any other religion in India, because everybody has a place. But we have reasons to say that Hindus should rectify themselves, there should be a renaissance and new unity among the Hindus, because only then will Hindus realise how strong they are.
I hope the RSS will understand this, and reorient itself to work towards Hindu reunification.

But wasn't that the initial objective of the RSS? Where did they go wrong?
It got lost because it wanted to have political power. So therefore it promoted Ayodhya, this thing, that thing. In India, the only way to get into politics is through the Constitutional system. There is no religious way to get in. I cannot and do not approve of it.
If you have to fight, there is the technology of elections, there is a democracy, you form a political party, and you fight. But someone who wants to fight on the basis of religion, he is as condemnable as any other organisation which does this.
The RSS should therefore not lay emphasis on a political agenda, but on a social agenda, and on uniting Hindus on one platform, that is that the Hindus are the strongest building block of this nation. They should be like a piece of granite, not sand particles.
But can we really separate the Church and State in India?
Oh yes, why not? Religion cannot be the basis of our State. Particularly a multicultural, multilingual, multiracial, multi-ethnic country like India. We are not a monolithic country. Like the Teutons or Anglo-Saxons. We are not like that. We are Hindus, Christians, Jains, Muslims, and what not.
We have to be a cauldron of multi-culturalism, and in that we have to find unity. We are a complex nation, where each person contributes to his country.