[Right-wing Hindu activists at a
conference took an oath to harm Muslims if necessary to make “a Hindu-only
nation,” the most blatant example of rising anti-Muslim sentiment across
India.]
By Sameer Yasir
“If 100 of us are ready to kill two
million of them, then we will win and make India a Hindu nation,” said Pooja
Shakun Pandey, a leader of Hindu Mahasabha, a group that espouses
militant Hindu nationalism, referring to the country’s Muslims. “Be ready
to kill and go to jail.”
Even by the standards of the rising
anti-Muslim fury in India, the three-day conference in the city of Haridwar,
150 miles north of New Delhi, produced the most blatant and alarming call for
violence in recent years.
The crowded auditorium, where
right-wing Hindu monks called for other Hindus to arm themselves and kill
Muslims, included influential religious leaders with close ties to Prime
Minister Narendra Modi’s governing party, and even some members of the party.
Videos of the event have spread
widely on social media in India this week. Yet Mr. Modi has maintained a
characteristic silence that analysts say can be interpreted by his most extreme
supporters as a tacit signal of protection.
The police, who readily
jail rights activists and comedians on
charges lacking evidence, have been slow to take action. Even opposition
political groups have been restrained in their response, an indication of the
degree to which right-wing Hindu nationalism has gripped the country since Mr.
Modi came to office in 2014.
The inflammatory remarks come as
some states governed by Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, or B.J.P., are
holding elections, including in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, where the
conference was held. Mr. Modi was busy campaigning this week in Uttar Pradesh
for Yogi Adityanath, his hard-line protégé and the state’s chief minister, who
has frequently fanned anti-Muslim hatred.
Multiple episodes of violence
against Muslims have been reported during election season, including attacks by
mobs trying to close businesses owned by Muslims.
“There are virtually only a handful
of political leaders left who even mention the need to preserve India’s
secularism,” said Gilles Verniers, a professor of political science at Ashoka
University near New Delhi. “The B.J.P. may face increasing political
challenges, but it has won its cultural war, with lasting effects on India’s
democracy, and on India’s largest minority.”
Right-wing Hindu nationalists have
preached violence online for years, but the violence has recently spilled onto
the streets. Muslim fruit sellers have been beaten and their earnings snatched
away after being accused of luring Hindu women into marriage to convert them.
Muslim activists have been threatened with prosecution under an antiterrorism
law that has been scrutinized by courts.
In recent months, Hindu
nationalists in Gurugram, a major technology center about 15 miles south of New
Delhi, have confronted Muslims during Friday Prayer. Bands of right-wing Hindus
have interrupted prayers with chants of “Jai Shri Ram!” Meaning “Hail Lord
Ram,” a major Hindu god, the chant has become a battle cry for Hindu
nationalists.
“We are fast losing everything in
this country, including the right to worship,” said Niyaz Farooqi, a Muslim who
works in an automobile showroom in Gurugram. “A right given to us by the
Constitution of this country.”
On Friday, four days after the
conference ended, and after the videos circulated widely, the police in
Uttarakhand announced that they had opened an investigation but that no arrests
had been made. Officials said they have registered a case against organizers of
the conference for promoting “enmity between different groups on grounds of
religion,” which can mean a jail term of five years.
“We will do the investigation as
per law and such types of incidents will not be tolerated,” said Ashok Kumar, a
top police officer in the state of Uttarakhand.
During the conference, Swami
Prabodhanand Giri, head of a right-wing Hindu organization in Uttarakhand, said
the country now belongs to Hindus.
“This is why, like in Myanmar, the
police here, the politicians here, the army and every Hindu must pick up
weapons, and we will have to conduct this cleanliness drive,” he said while
referring to Muslims. “There is no solution apart from this.”
Mr. Prabodhanand’s aides declined
to comment for this article.
Videos from the conference also
showed Suresh Chavhanke, who heads a news channel, administering an oath to
turn India into a Hindu-first country.
“We make a resolution until our
last breath: We will make India a Hindu nation, and keep it a Hindu-only
nation,” he said. “We will fight and die if required, we will kill as well.” He
then tweeted
a video of the oath to his half a million followers.
Political observers say the
government is allowing hate speech of this kind by remaining silent in the face
of calls for violence, a silence underscored by the meekness of the political
opposition.
Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, a biographer
of Mr. Modi who has written extensively on the rise of the Hindu right, said
the B.J.P.’s earlier leaders thought they could use Hindu nationalism to
mobilize constituencies but then contain the ideology. That calculation
backfired in 1992, when Hindu activists demolished a major mosque.
Many earlier B.J.P. leaders
expressed regrets about the episode, but Mr. Modi has no such qualms, Mr.
Mukhopadhyay said at a recent book event.
“They thought they were going to
ride the tiger, easily tame it and get down. But you can’t easily tame a tiger.
If you ride the tiger, you have to decide that at some point the tiger is going
to eat,” he said. “Modi decided to allow the tiger to eat sometimes and lead
the tiger when he wants to.”
Mujib Mashal contributed
reporting.
Rising Intolerance in India
In
a Region in Strife, India’s Moral High Ground Erodes
In
India, Modi’s Policies Have Lit a Fuse
Under
Modi, a Hindu Nationalist Surge Has Further Divided India
Modi
Founds Temple on Mosque’s Ruins, in Triumphal Moment for Hindu Base
Sameer Yasir is a reporter for The
New York Times. He joined The Times in 2020 and is based in New Delhi. @sameeryasir