India’s secular credentials and communal riots

Indian secularism appears to have been tainted once again by communal designs of some political groups by another Gujarat-like carnage, only at a smaller scale. It seems that the recent riots in Muzzafarnagar, Uttar Pradesh (UP) were part of efforts to raise communal temperatures so as to bank on it in the parliamentary elections, which are just round the corner.
This naturally raises the question as to who should be held responsible for this havoc. If these were politically planned, why should the secular identity of the state i.e. UP and the country be questioned?
It is true that in the wake of the Muzaffarnagar riots questions are being raised on the credibility of Indian secularism. However, before jumping to conclusions, one must need to study the situation carefully. Without taking into consideration all the aspects, it would be unwise to question the very basic ideals of a nation or country.
Indians have come a long way off from where their secular, communal and religious motives were in 1992. To a degree, when widespread riots took place in most parts of the country over the Ayodhya issue, common Indians had their priorities jumbled up.
At that time, communal fanatics — keen on transforming secular India into a Hindu state — had succeeded in duping many Hindus through raising religious slogans and demolished Babri Mosque on Dec.6 1992. The effective propaganda against the mosque and Muslims was to a degree accepted by some Indians in the name of religion.
However, two decades have considerably changed that approach. Thanks to the communication revolution, it has become easier for common Indians to see through communal agenda being planned by so-called leaders to serve their political interests. It is now an accepted fact that even the religious fervor attached with the Ayodhya issue was politically motivated. If politics were not the key agenda of saffron-brigade and its political wing, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), they would not have agreed to put their Hindutva-agenda on the backburner to please their secular allies and assume power at the center.
It is because people are now familiar with Ayodhya having been played up for political reasons; the BJP has failed to win Uttar Pradesh assembly elections for a considerable stretch of time. The people’s message is clear, they don’t want to tarnish their secular and religious credentials by falling into communal trap being laid by communal politicians and other extremists.
The Indians asserted their secular identity, when following the Gujarat-carnage (2002), they voted against the then BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in 2004 polls. They used their electoral power to assert that they do not want Gujarat-carnage to be repeated in other parts of the country. Thus, rather than have the NDA return to power at the center, they voted against it, giving a chance to the Congress to form a coalition government.
Against this backdrop, what can be said about the communal disturbances in Muzaffarnagar? Should these be viewed as a repetition of the Gujarat carnage at a smaller scale? Gujarat carnage may not have occurred if the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi did not entertain visions of entering politics at the national level. He probably expected the communal fire to spread at a larger level and would help BJP return to power without support of its NDA allies. The nature of Modi’s political cards helped him succeed only in Gujarat assembly elections. The politico-communal reach of Gujarat carnage remained confined to Gujarat.
Similarly, thanks to Indian secularism, recent communal disturbances have remained confined to Muzaffarnagar. At the same time, one is prompted to deliberate on the pathetic level to which standards of Indian politics have declined. Keeping in mind Gujarat carnage and Muzaffarnagar riots, the question rises, how much importance do Muslims really enjoy in Indian democracy? Is their importance confined to their being a vote bank and to counting of their dead after riots? The question may be extended to include their being easily picked and blamed for being “terrorists” as well as their being killed in fake encounters.
Whoever is responsible for having ignited communal fire in Muzaffarnagar, the difficulties faced by Muslims there cannot be ignored. Of course, politicians have not backtracked in trying to show their concern for these victims. But this concern is not going to bring back the dead nor will it restore the material losses suffered by the people. Also, it does not answer the question as to why the communal flare-up encouraged? Was it primarily directed to promote political agenda of certain communal fanatics? Yes, at present questions are being raised over the failure of Samajwadi Party (SP) in controlling the situation in Muzaffarnagar. The frenzy with which demand is being voiced for dismissal of SP government from UP cannot be missed.
And this raises the question, were the riots planned to tarnish the image of the SP? It is possible. What hurts is that minimal importance was given to loss of human lives, social turmoil and economic loss that this could lead to? Now, do these carry minimal or practically no importance for communal politicians planning them, with their eyes set only on political gains for themselves.
Be it the case of Ayodhya, Gujarat or Muzaffarnagar, communal politics has been at play. The politicians involved can be blamed and punished for having indulged in communalism. Their secular credentials have certainly been tainted. But it would be erroneous to assume that secularism of the entire country and all Indians has given in to their communal ploys. It has not. Their secularism remains intact. And they must be saluted for this. If it had been tainted by communal designs, Gujarat carnage would not have remained confined to Gujarat and riots in Muzaffarnagar to Muzaffarnagar!

• The author is an Indian freelance journalist who has written extensively for national newspapers.
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