Few incidents in the past week or so – one in a sports arena in Budapest, Hungary – and some others like the one in a classroom at Muzaffarnagar where a Moslem boy was slapped by his classmates at the instigation of a lady teacher and another in the same town of Uttar Pradesh where a 19 year old young pregnant woman was strangled by her parents because she refused to testify against her lover, or the one in a school in Jammu where a teacher beat up badly enough to get him hospitalized because he wrote Jai Shri Ram on the black board – have most graphically delineated two different faces of India. One brings out a sportsman spirit of the highest order that preaches universal brotherhood transcending religious differences. The other brings to the fore the filthy and shameful mindset that the current communal polarisation by Right-wing political parties and their zealots have created across India. However, we must realize this hatred that we see today is not new but has been existing for a very long time in the hearts and minds of the average Indian. This hatred is born not out of love for one’s religion or God but rather the feeling of personal inadequacies that has been hiding under the blanket of religion in most of us. The sense of strength in being part of a mob chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ or ‘Allahu Akbar’ is giddy and helps overcome every individual’s personal weaknesses. That is us Indians.
In Neeraj Chopra’s case – a common man has become a model for others and has shown what tolerance, respect for others and humanity at large, as taught by Indian culture and the lofty ideals of sports, stand for. In the other cases, from a sixty-year-old Hindoo woman and that too, a school teacher who got one of her Moslem students beaten to a Moslem teacher who brutally thrashed a young Hindoo student, both exhibited how they have been infected by the poison of communal hatred being sown for the past few years. Added to this were the intolerant parents of a young woman who demonstrated their hate for love by murdering her. All these are our own images being thrown back at us. The first case, however, inspires hope and confidence that hate campaigns cannot blur the vision of many sober, right thinking citizens in the country.
The sporting and magnanimous gesture shown by India’s golden boy, winner of javelin gold medal at World Athletics Championship Neeraj Chopra to Pakistan’s silver medallist Arshad Nadeem in Budapest, has been hailed by people all over the country. A video showing Neeraj inviting Nadeem to pose for the camera with the Indian flag went viral on social media. Many netizens immediately started showering praise on Chopra for his sportsmanship. What one wrote is revealing, indeed, “Neeraj Chopra called Arshad Nadeem for this beautiful click. Spread love, not hate between neighbors.” Another wrote: “Respect and prayers for both of them.”
After the competition was finished, the medal winners were seen posing for photos together with the flags of their respective nations. However, Nadeem was missing from the frame as he did not have a Pakistan flag. Neeraj was quick to invite Nadeem to pose with him as both athletes stood together under the Indian flag. Nadeem did not hesitate to respond nor did he mind sharing the honour under the Indian flag. The patriotism and fellow-feeling of both the athletes shone even more gloriously in that unique pose. Whenever Neeraj and Nadeem compete against each other there is a lot of interest considering the history between the two nations, but Chopra said that there was no “bad blood” between the two athletes. He said Nadeem had gone up to him and they congratulated each other after the event.
It was a spontaneous, unpremeditated act that seemingly came so naturally to Neeraj. He and Nadeem had been taking part in international competitions for the past few years and encouraged each other to forge ahead in the true sportsman spirit without caring a fig for the animosity that politicians, militaries and bureaucracies on both sides of the border bear against one another.
Jingoism has acquired a new pitch under the current dispensation in India when it comes to India-Pakistan relationships. The political atmosphere gets vitiated especially during election time by anti-Moslem and anti-Pakistan rhetoric by Hindoo zealots and their political champions. Neeraj’s gesture could be termed as a resounding slap on their face.
On the other hand, the school teacher of UP Tripta Tyagi shocked the conscience of the nation by asking students of her class to take turns to punish a Moslem student who could not tell the tables correctly. The video that went viral showed her exhorting the students to hit the child hard and while she was using communal slurs. It shows to what extent the communal poison has spread in the country.
Since then there has been nationwide condemnation which forced the BJP-ruled state administration to act and lodge cases under sections of non-cognizable crimes which means she would not be arrested. A similar incident has also been reported from a school in Delhi and the police have begun investigation. At a time when India’s scientists have created history with their lunar mission to the south pole of the moon which remains in permanent darkness, attempts are being made to enslave young and adult minds with dark, narrow and bigoted ideas of a religious divide that may help none in the future.
This evil, now out of the bottle, may be very difficult to overcome even if there be any political change.