Over the past few years a line has been drawn between different religions. There is constant regimen in bisecting the religious, cultural and historical diversity of our nation. There is certainly some sort of negative force working in the society on this particular field of dividing the nation.
If we take some instances, we could understand a lot, whether it was Mohammed Akhlaq, a 52-year-old man who was brutally killed by a mob in the name of cow in Bisara village near Dadri, Uttar Pradesh; or whether it’s Tabrez Ansari in Saraikela in Jharkhand who was forced to chant “Jai Shri Ram” and eventually killed by a mob in the name of the same god.
It’s an undeniable fact that India has been a land of diversity since ages and the people of India with different cultural, linguistic, and religious backgrounds have lived in peace and harmony since the inception of the nation. But it is also true that over the past few years this peace and harmony has been distorted. In this regard, a very genuine question often strikes in the mind of the people: who is dividing the nation?
You will be surprised to know that on a recent visit to an orphanage run by an NGO, I came across an interesting case. I saw that few children were watching TV and a discussion was on a news channel regarding the cricket world cup. To make conversation, I asked the kids who they thought would win the match being discussed. One of the kids said Pakistan would. When I asked him why, another kid replied saying, “Arre kyunki yeh Musalman hai!” (Oh, because he’s a Muslim)
It was really shocking for me to be exposed to mentality like this, that too, of a child! Rather than talk about the nation, the kid spoke of religion.
If this is the condition on the ground level, then just imagine the consequences of this kind of mentality. Eventually, some questions arose in my mind. Who made them distinguish between religions? How have they came to know that their religion is the first priority over the nation and humanity? Who made them realise them that one of them is Muslim and the other is Hindu, despite living together?
These are some genuine questions which came to my mind that are still bothering me. And the most genuine concern repeats itself: who is dividing the nation?