Date: Fri, 19 Dec 2008 09:47:17 +0530 From: "Marshall Mendonza" <mmendonz...@gmail.com>
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3859250.cms Excerpt: Nevertheless, if the Indian state should conduct a soul-searching, so too should many Indians. The routine discrimination endured by Indian Muslims and other marginalised sections is no fiction. Yet so pervasive is the casual acceptance of this prejudice ^ or even indifference to it ^ that it barely registers comment. At its most benign, this outlook takes on the form of slights and innuendos. But at its most malignant, it assumes an uncontrollable frenzied rage. What is also required is for political parties to make the case for an inclusive India. That a people with multiple identities can prosper together is part of the founding ideal of the republic. It is time to reclaim its essence, [end of excerpts] Mario responds: Will this barrage of codswallop never end? Once again a far left wing journalist demonstrates a state of denial, while accusing everyone else. Here we see a Rishabh Bhandari follow in the footsteps of Arundhati Roy, Ramachandra Guha and others in trying to deflect blame for the terrorism against innocent Indians from the real jihadi perpetrators, all of whom were recruited and trained in Pakistan, and somehow place the blame on Indians, using convenient euphemisms like "monster in the mirror" and "soul-searching" and other similar piles of verbal manure. A series of Indian government reports posted by Marshall unintentionally made my point - that, while the Muslim community is performing a step behind the rest of the country, the Indian government bends over backwards in its concern for Muslims and tries hard to uplift them. There is strong evidence that any general backwardness that exists among Indian Muslims stems from their own culture and inability to access the opportunities available to them in India. Those who do take the initiative are just as well off as anyone else in India and many are better off. Other than the new immigrant countries of Australia, Britain, Canada, NZ and the US, India is the most inclusive country for Muslims in the world - far more inclusive than all the so-called Muslim countries where normal Muslims, especially women, are subjected to unbelievable discrimination and pressure from religious fanatics.
