CAMPAIGN AGAINST COMMUNALISM

- Acharya JB Kripalani - 

...In my humble opinion, the recent campaign against' communalism is carried on in way which would give an impression to the outside world that the majority community, the Hindus, want the elimination of the minority Muslim community. The fact is otherwise. It is only a tiny section of Hindus who may entertain such ideas....

It is quite legitimate to carry on vigorous .propaganda against communalism. It is the duty of every Indian whatever community he may belong, to lend a helping hand to fight the evil. It is also permissible to denounce the a ties of those groups and parties who, in one's opinion are responsible for spreading communal ill-will and causing riots, grievously injuring the country. But, as the propaganda is being carried on today, it would give a wrong and distorted impression of what is happening in this connection to the people, specially to the foreigners unacquainted with the political life of our country. The foreigner may not be expected to know that whatever is done is by politicians and political parties these days to enhance their standing and prestige with the people or a particular community, is justified. No rules or morality or decent behaviour are relevant in party politics. What counts is the success of the objective in view.

In my humble opinion, the recent campaign against comniunalism is carried on in a way which would give an impression to the outside world that the majority, the Hindus, want the elimination of the minority Muslim community. The fact is otherwise. It is only a tiny section of Hindus who may entertain such ideas. This section is confined to three or four states in the North. The South has been free from communal riots`.

Further, the propaganda forgets deliberately or unconsciously that wanton and cruel destruction of life and property may not be intended by those who are supposed to have initiated the trouble, whether they belong to the majority or the minority community. It may be the work of anti-social elements who exist in all communities and are only waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of the initial trouble. Some-times it may even be a private quarrel between individuals of the two communities, which develops into a riot and is given a communal twist. The anti-social elements, the Goondas, are always waiting to take advantage of it and appear as the saviours of one or the other community. Their nefarious activities, they feel with some justice, will gain respectability. They feel that they may also escape punishment in the confusion that follows. The authorities, when awakened, quell the riot in a couple of days. If they had taken effective action before the trouble began, there would have been no rioting at all! At that time they would have needed less force than was used afterwards. The Goondas are known to the police. After the riot they are rounded up. They could .have been rounded up before the trouble began. Prevention is always better than cure.

The anti-social elements become active not only in communal troubles, but they also take advantage of economic troubles as was witnessed in Bengal. It will be difficult to know how much private land in Bengal was occupied by the needy from those who had too much of it, and how much was grabbed by Communist partisans and Goondas, who took advantage of the confused law and order situation. The loosening of the rule of law was the work of the authorities themselves. They could have brought in land legislation and redistributed the land, which they propose to do now. They need not have allowed individuals to take the law into their own hands and occupy their neighbours' lands at will.

 I would, therefore, humbly request those who have let loose this propaganda campaign against communalism to cover up their inefficiency, to be a little more careful in what they say and do. They must not create an impression outside the country that in India communal riots are the order of the day and the life and property of the members of the minority community are not safe and that our land has become a boiling cauldron of communalism and that the minorities are living in constant fear. Such a propaganda would he justified if the facts were so. But are they? Any exaggerated statement on this crucial and delicate question is fraught with as much danger as ignoring or minimising the evil of communalism.

My advice to the members of the Hindu community, who are inclined to use violence to settle communal misunderstanding or conflict, is that they should do nothing that would injure their religion and their country. Their boast is that Hinduism is the most liberal religion in the world. It has never persecuted people for holding different views in religions and for following different modes of worship. Their scripture, the Rig Veda, the earliest in the world, says that 'The Supreme Deity is one; but the Sages call Him by different names. If they, as members of the majority community, retaliate any real or fancied insult or injury done to them by the minority community or its members, they can inflict harm on them out of all proportion to the initial provocation. A majority cannot be wished away out of its power. The very fact is that it is the majority that would whet its appetite for revenge. The minority community is bound to suffer most. They will gain the sympathy not only of their fellow religionists inside and outside India, but also of other peoples in the world. They will also be condemned by a large section of the Hindus. Moreover, they may not forget, though an inefficient government may, that behind the initial trouble, there may be the hand of Pakistani agents present here or who have come from there.

If, therefore, the Hindus or a section of them suffer are injury at the hands of a member or members of the minority community, the best thing for them is not to take the law into their hand, but to call into their aid the authorities, This is also the civilised way. They must understand that the Hindu community being in a majority has to bear most of the cost of rehabilitating, through taxes or private donations, the members of the minority community who have suffered. Why then for a little revenge should they thus injure the community they love and the country which they presumably love? They must exercise patience and control over themselves in their own best interest and that of the country.

What the Muslim community should do under the tense atmosphere of today is for their leaders t advise. As I happen to be born a Hindu, any advice to them by me in this respect may be suspect. All that I can say is ‘let no community take its morality from another those conduct it consider as wrong and harmful’. That is not the way morality has found currency in the world.