“We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens: Justice, social, economic and political; Liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; Equality of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all Fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation; In our Constituent Assembly this twenty-sixth day of November 1949, do hereby adopt, enact and give to ourselves this constitution.”
– Preamble, Constitution of India
This solemn resolve that all of us must have at least once in our lives chanted out loud has been weakened to the point of no return under the BJP government and its Hindutva mission. Is India still a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic when its borders are breached, and the leaders do nothing?
When there is still hunger and starvation, with most of the population still struggling to access necessities after 75 years of alleged independence? There is no place for any religion besides the dominant Hindus (who are not ‘khatre mein’, by the way), and when the voting machines are sitting in politicians’ cars. At the same time, we believe the farce that is India’s ‘fair and just’ electoral system?
Indian minorities today are facing an unprecedented danger in a country that has made its stand on the composition of its population abundantly clear. In this country, under the BJP government, anyone who is not an upper-caste Hindu is a second-class citizen, and is being ‘allowed’ by the government to stay here, provided they comply with every ‘Jai Shri Ram’.
In the seven years it has held power. The BJP has flipped the country’s social fabric that Ambedkar envisioned in the Constitution. That is alright, though, because questioning the government is sedition. Disrespecting the Constitution isn’t. The latest trend in the long list of methods in which the rights of minorities are being trampled is bulldozer politics.
On April 20th, bulldozers entered North Delhi’s Jahangirpuri and demolished the entrance gate of a mosque, as well as various homes, shops and buildings in the area. I would ask you to take a wild guess as to who owned the homes and shops that were razed by the orders of the local authorities, but it would hardly be a tough question.
Although the local police and politicians claimed that the bulldozed buildings were illegal, authorities stopped the bulldozer from going anywhere near the entrance of a Hindu temple that was only 50 metres away from the mosque. The bulldozing is just a part of the routine intimidation of Muslims to show them their place in this country.
The last seven years have been an elaborate campaign by Hindutva activists to erase Muslims and their livelihoods (The Diplomat, 2022). Soon after, Jahangirpuri saw communal violence when Hindutva activists reportedly hoisted a saffron flag in front of a local mosque during their Hanuman Jayanti procession.
In a more recent instance in May, Nupur Sharma, the then-spokesperson of the BJP, made offensive remarks about the Prophet Mohammed on national television, creating outrage amongst 200 million Indian Muslims. Moreover, it led to various Islamic countries criticising and taking tough diplomatic decisions concerning India.
Nupur Sharma was suspended from the party, but the BJP took no further accountability and threw her under the bus by calling her a “fringe element”. Following Nupur Sharma’s inappropriate remarks, protests were held in New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand, among others, where some instances of stone-pelting were reported. However, the police authorities used excessive force and shot a 15-year-old protester.
“The government of India is selectively and viciously cracking down on Muslims who dare to speak up and peacefully express their dissent against the discrimination faced by them,” said Aakar Patel, the chair of Amnesty International India Board (ABC Net, 2022).
Javed Mohammed was one of the prominent activists who protested against Nupur Sharma’s remarks. He is the leader of the Welfare Party of India and has been accused of being the key conspirator of the demonstrations in Uttar Pradesh on June 10th. His daughter, Afreen Fatima, a student activist, has also been vocal about the systemic attack on Muslims in the country and gained popularity during the anti-CAA protests.
What did Javed Mohammed and Afreen Fatima get for raising their voice against state-sanctioned oppression? First, the Uttar Pradesh authorities put a notice outside their house, asking them to vacate it before it was demolished. Bulldozer Baba works fast when it comes to clamping down on the fundamental and civil rights of lawful citizens, not so much regarding women’s safety or development, though.
Their house was apparently “illegally built”. However, they made sure to pay all the house taxes, water taxes and electricity bills on time. Before June 11th, the house was legal enough for the government to collect taxes. There are various discrepancies regarding the “legal” notice (The Wire, 2022).
India is no longer secular, no longer socialist and no longer safe enough for Muslims. The BJP government made sure of that. This bulldozing and severe disregard for Muslims’ human, civil and fundamental rights is nothing but a step towards extermination. The BJP has been clear about its Hindutva aim. As long as people like Narendra Modi, Yogi Adityanath and Amit Shah hold the country’s reins, there is no hope for a safe, secular and democratic country.