DEAR Muslims,
I am writing this with full responsibility and knowledge of the situation on the ground. I live thousands of miles away from Indian shores but visit thrice in a year and closely follow events and remain in touch with friends and acquaintances.
Please do not get me wrong, this shouldn’t be interpreted as a patronising lecture. I understand the sentiments you express on social media and share the anger and frustration over events taking place in several states. However, please understand that nothing is permanent and what goes up is bound to come down. The prevailing climate will change very soon. I can see that happening. Things that happened six months ago are no longer happening. There are signs of change in every sphere of Indian society. Issues of bread and butter are a great leveler and hurt indiscriminately, regardless of your caste and religion. It has started to hurt people — businesses are suffering, jobs are vanishing, sources of livelihood are shrinking. In a short span of time, these issues will consume all the sections of the society. Religion or ideology can’t fill tummies, create jobs or propel growth. People will understand this very soon, they have begun to understand — protests by farmers in Maharashtra and anger of Patels in Gujarat are good examples.
Most importantly, for every person blinded by Hindutva, there are nine good Hindus who believe in peaceful co-existence and harmony. Just look around and see who are fighting these thugs. Lawyers, journalists, former bureaucrats and others — all are Hindus. Similarly, just look around at your workplace and neighborhood, you will find that most hate this climate of fear and polarisation.
So, stay calm and focus on your jobs, studies and continue to do whatever you do. Just avoid one thing — do not overreact and paint all with the same brush.
Thank you for reading.
—First published on Facebook wall of Bobby Naqvi, UAE Editor, Gulf News.