From: bcsabha.kal...@gmail.com To: http://www.asianews.it/news-en/For-Indian-Jesuit,-Narendra-Modi's-bluff-will-be-called-sooner-or-later-33509.html# 02/19/2015INDIAFor Indian Jesuit, Narendra Modi's bluff will be called sooner or laterby Nirmala CarvalhoFr Cedric Prakash, SJ, director of the Prashant Centre for Human Rights, Justice and Peace in Gujarat, speaks about the prime minister's statement on religious freedom. Leader of a right-wing Hindu nationalist party, Modi said that his "will be a government that gives equal respect to all religions". Yet, he has failed to mention attacks on churches and minorities across the country.Mumbai (AsiaNews) - "Sooner or later Narendra Modi's bluff will be called," said Fr Cedric Prakash, SJ, director of the Prashant Centre for Human Rights, Justice and Peace in Gujarat, as he spoke to AsiaNews about the Indian prime minister's recent statement in defence of religious freedom.Modi's words "surely look good on paper, but many are wondering if he will actually 'walk his talk'," noted the clergyman after the prime minister told a Syro-Malabar gathering in Delhi that his government would give "equal respect to all religions"."My government," the prime minister said, "will ensure that there is complete freedom of faith and that everyone has the undeniable right to retain or adopt the religion of his or her choice without coercion or undue influence. My government will not allow any religious group, belonging to the majority or the minority, to incite hatred against others, overtly or covertly. Mine will be a government that gives equal respect to all religions."Many in India and around the world have praised Modi's statement. The prime minister, head of the right-wing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), had been criticised for not speaking out against recent attacks on churches in Deli and for failing to respond to concerns raised by US President Barack Obama over rising religious intolerance in India.However, Modi "was groomed and nurtured by the right-wing Hindu groups commonly referred to as Sangh Parivar," Fr Prakash said. "He is an integral part of them, shares their ideology and world view. It is they who catapulted him to power."Sangh Parivar groups (which are close to the ruling BJP) believe in Hindutva, an ideology that advocates the creation the Hindu Rashtra, a country that is 100 per cent Hindu with no place for religious minorities.In his youth, Modi was a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a paramilitary organisation that is part of the Sangh Parivar."At no point in his speech did he condemn or take a position against attacks on Christians and other minorities in India," said the Jesuit clergyman about Modi's words. "If he was serious he would first repeal the draconian and unconstitutional anti-conversion law that he introduced in Gujarat in 2003." At that time, Modi was chief minister in that state.Speaking to The Times of India, Surendra Jain, joint general secretary of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, another Sangh Parivar group, indirectly confirmed Fr Prakash's analysis."The Prime Minister did not say 'minorities' nor did he mention any particular religion," Jain explained. "The news traders are misreading his message to suit their agenda," he added.Since he did not mention any names, "you have to see in what circumstances" Modi spoke. "The supposed attacks on churches have been going on for a while now but the PM never came out and spoke [about them]. He spoke only after the Delhi Police pointed out that 206 temples were attacked. He spoke on a day a temple was vandalized in the US."==========Delhi polls, NRIs forced Modi U-turn on faithhttp://www.thehindu.com/news/national/delhi-polls-nris-forced-modi-uturn-on-faith/article6909736.ece
Representatives of Christian groups met PM Modi on Christmas eve to request him to assuage their fears of the ghar vapsi and attacks on churches, but he refused to do so.Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement at a Church function on Tuesday calling for religious tolerance and freedom underline a course correction brought about by a series of events in the past three months.Mr. Modi had been remaining silent despite the demand from Christian leaders that he speak out against conversions and attacks on Church institutions.“There had been a sustained signature campaign by a U.S.-based group of Indians to apprise President Barack Obama of the attacks and strong public opinion that found expression in national and international media asking for Mr. Modi to break his silence,” said a Christian leader who was among those who met the Prime Minister and urged him to make a statement.Mr. Obama’s remarks in New Delhi on January 27 and at the National Prayer Breakfast shortly after his return to the U.S. could have led to the change in stance, experts said.The Delhi election results, which saw the Aam Aadmi Party trump the Bharatiya Janata Party, made Mr. Modi break his silence.“The rejection in Delhi has given the BJP a big jolt, leading to a course correction and a perception management exercise,” Balveer Arora, political scientist, said.Till recently, Mr. Modi had maintained that while the government would ensure the security of everyone, he would not issue a statement in favour of any community or on religious issues to keep the focus from shifting from development. On Tuesday when Mr. Modi spoke, he made a strong statement against violence “against any religion on any pretext.” He later tweeted his remarks.Modi held out against speaking on conversions, church attacksRepresentatives of Christian groups met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his 7 Race Course Road residence on Christmas eve to request him to assuage their fears of the re-conversion (ghar vapsi) campaign of Sangh affiliates and attacks on churches, but he refused to do so, at least two members of the delegation confirmed it to The Hindu separately.“We want to thank him for speaking at last. We had been requesting him to do this. We would like to see in the coming days what measures the government takes to stop hate crimes against minorities,” said Vijaysh Lal, executive director of the Evangelical fellowship of India, who was in the delegation.“We had been seeking an appointment since June and we finally got it on December 24. We repeated our request to the PM to make a statement on the attacks on Christians, but he refused. He said don’t go by what the media says,” another delegation member said. “We came out disappointed.”As the news of the meeting spread among members of the community, the sense of disappointment grew, he said.After the attack on St. Sebastian Church in Delhi on December 1, the Christian community in the national capital sent a memorandum to the Prime Minister the next day regarding “incidents of violence against our churches and personnel in the country.” The memorandum listed the Delhi incident, along with several instances of violence against Christians in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and the rest of India.“We hope and pray that such discrimination and targeted violence will be ended by strong political will and administrative action,” it read. “You and your government are poised in a unique moment in the history of the nation to ensure that all people, irrespective of faith, feel secure. Small religious communities such as the Christians need to be reassured they are protected and are secure and safe in their motherland.”=======