The news of attack on Taslima Nasreen- a Bangladeshi woman writer who currently lives in India is a shocking one. In Hyderabad (India), fundamentalist Muslims -led by 3 Muslim MLAs- tried to assault Taslima in a press meet. The MIM party’s MLA- Akbarrudin Owaisi- has reportedly said: ” We are not bothered about our MLA status. We are Muslims first. And its our responsibility to test those who have said anything against Islam in which ever way possible.”

What a shame! Not only these so-called Muslims bring shame to Islam, they are denigrating India also. These acts are contrary to the Indian values. India stands for pluralism, social harmony,religious tolerance and freedom of expression. Religious fundamentalism is already bringing disrepute to us. We want it no more!

The people involved in this shameful act must be brought to the book.

This week-end I visited the United Nations at New York. The guided tour took us through various chambers, notably Security Council Chamber, Trusteeship Council Chamber and ECOSOC (Economic & Social Council Chamber) and finally General Assembly Hall. In the Security Council Chamber, the guide- who was a young French lady- stressed upon the pivotal role being played by the UN in maintaining international peace and security. My mind reflected upon the role of UN vis-a-vis USA on these issues. Clearly in the era of American hagemony, the value of UN has been systematically eroded as far as international peace and security are concerned. Iraq’s case is in point. Today the US is highly conflicted over the issue of Iraq where it finds itself badly trapped. America feels that leaving Iraq at this juncture will result in escalation of the civil- war there. Whereas US dilemma may not be entirely misplaced, it is high time that the UN is more actively involved on this issue. The US army should withdraw in a gradual fashion and UN peacekeeping force should take over. Diplomatic efforts must also be increased by the international community to bring about peace in that country.

The news about British Kinghthood to Salman Rushdie- a British author of Indian origin- has sparked public protests in Pakistan and some other Muslim countries. The Pak parliament also passed a resolution deploring the Award. However, the British High Commissioner to Pakistan Robert Brinkley said that Rushdie’s knighthood was a reflection of his contribution to literature and was not intended as an insult to Islam or the Prophet Mohammad. However Pakistan summoned Brinkley to protest against the Award. Britain’s envoy in Iran was also summoned.
Meanwhile protests are being witnessed in Afganistan also.

Thankfully, India has not done nothing so far ( It may be noted that India has a bigger Muslim population than the total Muslim population of Pakistan). That probably to some extent also derives for the fact that in a theocratic state -as Pakistan chose to be- the mills of religious passions and intolerance always keep on grinding, whereas a ‘secular’ democracy sets different types of tones and thus it becomes hard to sustain the religious passions!

The growing religious intolerance, particularly of Islamic world, is of concern to India. India is surrounded by Pakistan and Bangladesh (and Afganistan ) and as we know the first two were parts of undidvided India at one time. It is so painful to have lost territories of your country first on purely the flawed basis of religion and then see these countries engrossed in totally misplaced priorities. It concerns India beacuse we need peaceful neighbors. I have alwys maintained that we need friendly ties with Pakistand and Bangladesh and we need stable democracies in these countries. I abhor the way the two countries keep igniting the animosity and refuse to mutually resolve the issues (I am not trying to underplay the complexities of the issues, but we need to move ahead for sure) India must engage them diplomatically towards these issues. But the likes of current developments totally offset the hope that I have indicated in my columns.

Why Pakistan is acting as a custodian of Islam, more so of a militant Islam? Why were we divided? What went wrong with our ancient civilizationa and the oldest religion on the earth (read Hinduism) that preaches universal peace? Can cultural invasion (Mogul rule) put your identity at stake? Can same people -who speak kind of same languages, dress the same way, look similar, still share many cultural ethos, but are divided on the basis of religion – behave so differently? I am pained to say that an implanted religion on Indian sub-continent is drawing attention world-wide and for wrong reasons!

Meanwhile this article titled “The Real Problem With Pakistan” by Fareed Zakaria published in the June 25, 07 issue of NewsWeek tries to analyse the complexities of Pakistan. He rightly says: ” If there is a central front in the war on terror, it is not in Iraq, but in Pakistan”. And he concludes his article with these apt remarks: “Back in the 18th century, Frederick the Great’s Prussia was characterized as “not a state with an army, but an army with a state.” So it is with Pakistan. A complex reality”. Despite this, I would reiterate that a stable and democratic Pakistan should be the long-term goal for India and it must play its role in achieving this goal more responsibly, instead of uttering the usual rhetorics. India and US should see this as a common goal and should work in tandem to acheive this. However, the current Bush administration -who treats Pakistan as an ‘ally in the war against terror’- will have to revise its strategy and see the facts in a newer light.

The ongoing clashes between two communities in Rajasathan has once again brought to the fore the contentious issue of caste-based reservation in our country. The clashes erupted between Gujjars (who are demanding to be included in Scheduled Tribes category) and Meenas (who already enjoy the benefits of reservation) deciding to take law into their own hands and getting into clashes with Gujjars so as to oppose their demands for reservation. This has literally paralysed eastern part of Rajasthan. So much so that 17 MLAs (belonging to the Meena community ) of the ruling BJP in Rajasthan have threatened to resign if Gujjars are given reservation! On the other hand, Gujjars from across the country are rallying up to support their Rajasthani brethern. The caste-based solidarity is a well known trait which we all Indians seem to have in our genes and we never shy short of exhibiting that! So much for the nationalism!

This is yet another illustration as to how divisive the reservation issue has become. It is causing incalculable damage to the the fabric of our unity and we must find a way to end it over several years with an alternative mechanism for social justice taking over. The politicians have failed to show us the vision, but clashes and choas is also not a solution. The social scientists, the intelligentia and the public at large must take the initiative and compel our law-makers to do something regarding this. Catse- based reservation is also a reflection of inhumane way of classifying people, and thus clearly discriminatory. I donot know what were the merits of a class- based society in ancient times, but it is totally out of sync with the realities of modern times! Whereas the world is rising to the tides of a “global village”, it is time to shun this practice. And an official way of doing this is to get rid of caste-based reservation.