These were the words from “We and Our Nationhood Defined”, the book written by M S Golwalkar, chief architect of Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh. A true follower of Hitler and Nazism, he considered even after Independence that India was yet to attain freedom. The country would be liberated only when a Hindu state is formed.

Hitler and Golwalkar are both today part of history and yet get back a new life whenever the reactionary vested interests get the upper hand in the society. They never take up economic issues, never go against the monopolies or the landlords. Balasaheb Deoras, who succeeded Golwalkar as the RSS chief in 1973, did everything to achieve the objectives laid out by his predecessor. Their machinations continued and got accelerated after 2014, when the BJP won an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha. The ten years of the BJP rule witnessed frequent attacks on minorities with the government pursuing an overt Hindu communal agenda.

The process has continued even in the aftermath of the recent Lok Sabha elections when there has been a sudden spurt in the attacks on minorities in different parts of the country. Major incidents have been reported from Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.

In Raipur, capital of Chhattisgarh, three Muslim men transporting bullocks were branded as cow-smugglers and killed by so-called cow-vigilantes. In Aligarh, a Muslim man was beaten to death on allegations of theft. In Mandala, Madhya Pradesh, eleven houses of Muslims were demolished within 24 hours after alleged reports of “beef” being recovered from their refrigerators.

In Lucknow’s Akbarnagar, a predominantly Muslim area, homes of over a thousand families were bulldozed for the construction of the river front. Similarly, people belonging to the Hindu community in the neighbourhood have come out in open protest against the allotment of a flat to a Muslim woman in a low-income group housing complex under the Chief Minister’s Housing Scheme in Gujarat’s Vadodara.

In Himachal Pradesh’s Nahan, the shop of a Muslim was looted and vandalized after allegations that he had sacrificed a cow during Eid-al-Adha. A case has also been registered against him for the alleged cow slaughter. All the other 16 Muslim shop-owners in the town have been forced to flee following the incident.

In Delhi’s Sangam Vihar there are reports of residents fleeing the area after provocative speeches made by members of Hindutva outfits, following the recovery of a cow carcass near a place of worship.

Such sharpening of communal assaults following the setbacks suffered by the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections highlight the fact that the BJP and the Hindutva communal forces will intensify their attempts at polarization with a renewed vengeance.

This year, the International Religious Freedom Report, released on June 26, observed that communal atmosphere in the country has been worsening.
The report highlighted that violence occurring at the societal level, sometimes at worship places, contributed to the repression of religious communities. The US ambassador for international religious freedom, Rashad Hussain, mentioned that in India, local police were reported to have aided mobs that disrupted worship services or stood by while mobs attacked members of Christian communities and then arrested the victims on conversion charges.

Vengeance itself is an attack on the freedom of the other. The Religious Freedom Report comes out annually and is published by the US Department of State. It highlights the state of religious freedom in every country around the world. The Report provides information on the state of religious freedom, government policies that violate religious beliefs and practices of groups, religious denominations, and individuals, as well as US policies promoting religious freedom across almost every country and territory globally. The report covers the period from January 1 to December 31 of the previous calendar year.

The United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, stated that there has been a “concerning increase” in hate speech, anti-conversion laws, and demolitions of homes and places of worship for members of religious minorities in India. Blinken made these remarks while unveiling the US State Department’s 2023 International Religious Freedom Report.

In 2022, there were 272 instances of communal violence, including attacks on religious minority groups, including killings, assaults, and intimidation. The United Christian Forum reported 731 attacks on Christians in the year, with the highest number in Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The Supreme Court criticized the central government and the Manipur state government for failing to halt the violence, leading to officials being appointed to investigate incidents, ensure humanitarian assistance, and rebuild homes and places of worship. Public celebrations of Hindu festivals sometimes led to communal violence, especially when they involved processions through areas where Muslims were in the majority.

In December, Parliament approved new criminal laws that included provisions to criminalize making false promises and concealing one’s identity to sexually exploit a woman, including for marriage. Media commentators said the new laws could be used to punish Muslim men seeking to marry non-Muslim women. Opponents said the new laws were unnecessary, and the strict penalties were out of line with lighter penalties given for more serious offenses. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also called for enacting a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) at the national level in place of the present system of separate personal laws for religious communities. Muslim, Sikh, Christian, and tribal leaders, and some state government officials have opposed the initiative on the grounds it is part of a project to turn the country into a “Hindu Rashtra” (a Hindu Nation). (IPA Service)