5/9/2016

Our'nationalism'isagainstotherIndiansRediff.com

Printthisarticle

Our'nationalism'isagainstotherIndians
March24,201616:52IST

'OurgreatIndiannationalistsarerousingpassionsagainsttheirownpeople,notagainstanothernation.'
'Ourfraudnationalistsgoaftertheirowncitizensfortheirreligion,orfortheirviews.'
'Theirconcernandtheirpassionistheenemywithin.'
'Thatisnotloveofnationorloveofanythingelse.'
'Itishatredanditisbitterness,'saysAakarPatel.

IMAGE:PrimeMinisterNarendraModi,BharatiyaJanataPartyPresidentAmitShah,seniorBJPleaderLK
AdvaniandFinanceMinisterArunJaitleyattheBJP'snationalexecutivemeetinginNewDelhi,March20,2016.
TheBJPnationalexecutiveissuedastrongcallfornationalism,andruledthatfreedomofexpressioncannotbe
anexcuseforantinationalstatements.Photograph:KamalKishore/PTIPhoto.

MuslimlegislatorhasbeensuspendedinMaharashtraforsayingheprefers'JaiHind'(VictorytoIndia)to'BharatMata
KiJai'(VictorytomotherIndia).
Whatthedifferencebetweenthesetwodeclarationsis,Iamnotreallysure,butclearlyitisenoughtomeritpunishment.
OnMarch19cameareportthatUrduwritershavebeenaskedtoguaranteetheyarenotwritingantiIndiamaterial.The
NationalCouncilforPromotionofUrduLanguageunderHRDMinisterSmritiIraniisaskingUrduwriterstosignformswhich
havethefollowingdeclaration:
'I ___ son/daughter of ___ confirm that my book/magazine titled ___ which has been approved for bulk purchase by
NCPUL's monetary assistance scheme does not contain anything against the policies of the Government of India or the
interestofthenation,doesnotcausedisharmonyofanysortbetweendifferentclassesofthecountry,andisnotmonetarily
supportedbyanygovernmentornongovernmentinstitution.'
ThisiswhattheIndianExpresshasreported.Thoseofushopingthatthefraudandmanufactureddebateonnationalists
versusantinationalswouldendsoonhavebeendisappointed.Itseemstheonlythingthisgovernmentseemstobemaking
inIndiaisdisharmonyandanxiety.
IwanttowriteaboutotherthingsthereisaWorldCupincricketcurrentlyonbutwearebeingsuckedintotakingsidesin
thismedievalbattledaily.
Also, it is a different sort of nationalism that our Hindutva nationalists are promoting. It is not the same as Europe's
nationalism,whichwasdefinedasafeelingthoseinonenationhadtowardsanothernation.

http://www.rediff.com/news/column/ournationalismisagainstotherindians/20160324.htm?print=true

1/2

5/9/2016

Our'nationalism'isagainstotherIndiansRediff.com

he First World War happened because the Serbians were hated by theAustroHungarians, who were hated by the
Russians,whowerehatedbytheGermans,whowerehatedbytheFrench.IcannotremembernowwhytheItaliansjoined
thewar,butitistruethattheBritishhatedeveryone.
Whenthefusewaslit,everyonefelloneachother,pullinginothernations,liketheTurks,theArabs,Indiansandeventually
Americans.
The damage their nations did to themselves because of their two wars made Europeans lose their parochialism. It later
produced their enthusiasm for the European Union. This union was a group of those peoples who wanted to be
denationalisedandopenuptheirbordersandmarketstooneanother.
Intoday'sIndia,ontheotherhand,our'nationalism'isnotagainstanothernation.ItisagainstotherIndians.Thisiswhyitis
different.
Our great Indian nationalists are rousing passions against their own people, not against another nation. Our fraud
nationalists go after their own citizens for their religion, or for their views. Their concern and their passion is the enemy
within.
Thatisnotloveofnationorloveofanythingelse.Itishatredanditisbitterness.
Persecution of Indian Muslims and Indian Dalits is not nationalism. This word we use so easily as an accusation, 'anti
national',isnotreallycurrentinEuropeanlanguages.Onlyprimitivepeoples,likeIndians,useit.Itmeansoppositiontothe
thingsanationstandsfor.
Butwhoistodecidewhatpositivenationalismis?Otherthansaying'BharatMataKiJai,'IdonotreallyknowwhatIndian
nationalismis.
Jawaharlal Nehru University has been organising a series of open lectures on nationalism.This is available on a set of
videosthatisscholarly,butaccessibletothelayperson.Thisisanobleeffort,butIamafraidthatforthemostpartitwillbe
wasted on Indians. It does not matter how terribly you behave, as long as you loudly say 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai,' you are a
nationalistinIndia.

etanotherstoryinthepapersisabouttwoMuslims,oneofthemachildof15,torturedandlynchedfromatree,justlike
African Amercians in the United States. They were herding buffaloes so it is not clear what their crime was. But it is
absolutelycertainwherethehatredwasstirredup.
Isthismakingthegovernmentpause?Notatall.TheBJPnationalexecutivemetovertheweekendanditcalledforyetmore
'nationalism.'Haven'twehadenoughofthatalready?
DothepeopleintheBJPdecidingthisknowwhateffectthishasonIndia'sreputationasacivilisedsociety?Pickupany
foreignpaperormagazineandmostofthenewsaboutIndiaisnegative.Why?Because,asmanyofushereandtherestof
theworldhaveconcluded,avoidableincidentsofsimilarnaturearecomingwithsuchregularitythatitisnoteasytoescape
thesuspicionthatthesethingsaredeliberate.
Forthosehatefilled,fraudnationalistshere,achchedinhavearrived.
AakarPatelisExecutiveDirector,AmnestyInternationalIndia.Theviewsexpressedherearehisown.
Youcanreadhisearliercolumnshere.
AakarPatel

http://www.rediff.com/news/column/ournationalismisagainstotherindians/20160324.htm?print=true

2/2