Modi's Hindu rashtra pursuit

The demonic Hindutva is marching ahead step by step. If last August the Modi establishment revoked special status of Occupied Kashmir, it has now passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, commonly described as 'CAB' which renders nearly two million Muslims of Assam stateless and excluded as citizens. The bill passed by India's lower house on Tuesday clearly violates Article 14 of the country's constitution, but who cares when union minister Amit Shah wants to "correct injustices meted out to the Hindu majority with partition in 1947". If in Modi's India, the 200 million Muslims are would-be second-class citizens, non-Muslims from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are welcomed as honourable nagriks (citizens). The controversial bill will give refuge to "persecuted" in these countries, claim its supporters. Undoing the outcome of partition being the sworn doctrine of the RSS, the fountainhead of ruling BJP government, India's Muslim minority has a bleak future. In fact, by keeping its cool on revocation of special status of Occupied Kashmir the Muslim leadership in India tends to forfeit its right to be equal citizens. The RSS may revisit its 1980s Ekit Mata Yatra and seek their pervertan (return) to Hinduism. Of course, there were violent protests in northeastern India; but there is a different context to this agitation. The protestors questioned demographic impact of the CAB which invites Hindus from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. "Assam and other northeastern states had already taken a huge burden of illegal foreigners," argues Samujjl Bhattacharya while speaking on behalf of North East Students' Organisation.

Given India's growing economic clout the kind of world protest the CAB should have received is not there as yet. It should be there given the resurrection of Nazism in world's so-called largest democracy. So far, Pakistan and bipartisan US federal agency named the Commission on International Religion Freedom (USCIRF) have strongly reacted to Modi government's communal agenda. Seeking sanctions against India's Home Minister Amit Shah, USCIRF has urged the US government to act firmly against Shah and his cohorts "given the religion criterion in the bill". Prime Minister Imran Khan pointed out that the said legislation "violates all norms of international human rights law and bilateral agreement with Pakistan". Pakistan's Foreign Office called it a "complete violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international covenants on elimination of all forms of discrimination based on religion or belief". But, what we call Islamic World is deaf and dumb to India's draconian legislation. Modi's methodology of denying citizenship to Muslims tends to set a dangerous example. If today India refuses citizenship to Muslims in Assam, the Hindus in some Muslim countries could face a similar treatment.

That CAB is part of the BJP's agenda to marginalise Muslims is a fact. This anti-Muslim bill clearly violates articles of equality, fundamental rights and the right to life. India's Supreme Court is, therefore, expected to dispense justice in response to a petition that has urged it to declare the bill illegal and unconstitutional.