Ban Halal not Gulal

Last Deepavali we got to know of a new development. In posh schools run by minority communities the students (many if not most of who are Hindus) were being discouraged if not dissuaded from bursting fire-crackers as part of Deepavali celebrations. That these crackers pollute the air was given as the reason. We asked a few students if any alternative ways of celebrating the festival were suggested, we got no answers. We smelled a rat. Though, after a while, we forgot about it. This Holi, the media was abuzz with how huge quantities of water is wasted in celebrating Holi. And it was at once confirmed that the smelling rat was that of anti-Hinduism.

It is very very important to realize that we need to develop a We-are-Hindus-and-we-love-Hindus consciousness. We also need to develop an attitude of asserting our rights, and our liberties. In stead, all the so called extreme right wing Hindutva groups bleat like sheep.

It was not in the least surprising that the self-annointed Hindutva groups were thumping chest about how IPL (the cricket tournament) would result in a waste of much more water. While environmental and resource conservation concerns are legitimate, it is very annoying to see the pseudo-Hindus run for cover and take apologetic and defensive positions. There was none who had the audacity to say: Ban Halal not Gulal.

Dabbled in Twitter; Back to Blogger!

We have been away from blogging for a while, and quite infrequent from blogging for a longer while. In the mean time we dabbled in Twitter. Now we propose to strike a better balance (so, much less tweeting!). We invite reader's views on what would be a good balance.

An Open Letter To The President of India

In one of our previous posts (see here) we proposed a declaration by Hindus, as it were. In this post we write an open letter to the president of India. This too may be considered a draft version. Those who are better versed in legal terms and are conversant with writing using legal language might do a better job and improve this draft.

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Dear Mr. President,

We are a group of frustrated human beings seeking cheap publicity.

Before you and/or those who are in agreement and/or in collusion with you allege about us that these guys are frustrated humans who are seeking cheap publicity, we emphasize that notwithstanding the state of our being, nor the nature of our motivation, we must require no one's permission to be in a functional mode of Responsible Liberty.

However, we find that the state of which you are the President and the Constitution of which you are the Custodian seem to implicitly claim that they have the moral authority to constrain our freedoms beyond any explicitly mutually agreed notions or natural notions of Responsible Liberty.

Any document, however well conceived and however well intended, does not obtain any legitimacy to exercise any control over the conduct of peoples' lives merely because the document contains phrases like "we the people" and "give ourselves this constitution", interspersed with phrases indicating however high sounding goals.

There is no gainsaying the fact that in that moment of history when "those people gave themselves" the constitution, going by the then existing poor literacy rate, except for a minuscule fraction of the then population, few could have ascertained if they got what they sought, or whether they even sought whatever they got.

Also, be that as it may, the we-the-people then had no right to pledge any commitment on behalf of us, the we-the-people now.

Any document, the contents of which are not, in some sense, self evident, objectively demonstrable, subjectively verifiable, or voluntarily explicitly consented can not be binding except through the exercise of unethical coercion.

Given the fact that the freedom to disagree to give consent to the document is absent, it is inconceivable to regard the said coercion as anything other than enforcing slavery, and the adjectival term constitutional does not grant any legitimacy to the imposition of Constitutional Slavery.

While we, as a group, do have at the very least, nebulous views on what we would prefer to term a Meta-Constitution, and Proto-State, we are free from the folly of intending to coerce our views on the unwilling. Further, notwithstanding the nebulous nature of our views, we are open to the method of debate, voluntary and free exchange of ideas and opinions, and most importantly the freedom to disagree as well as the freedom to disassociate.

However, your state and its Constitution remain culpable of the charge: Why such presumptuousness - enforcing constitutional slavery - should not be considered as an act of aggression against the people.

The onus of proof is on you.

In particular, you need to establish that the constitution (the intended content of the constitution) is, in some reasonable sense, one or many of 

(a) Self-Evident,

(b) Objectively Demonstrable,

(c) Subjectively Verifiable,

(d) Voluntarily Explicitly Consented.

Failing which, you need to explain why enforcing constitutional slavery not be considered an act of aggression.

Let the People be the Court, the Lawyers, as well as the Judge: as individuals or groups for themselves.

Sincerely,

Some among the We-the-people now.

A Recommended Strategy for KJP (BSY)

This time BSY drew sufficient courage and separated himself from the BJP. While he is seeking the support of all, his detractors are calling him a leader of merely Lingayats. His detractors forget that it this mere leader  who won Karnataka for the BJP.

Be that as it may, for our analysis, let us suppose that there indeed are vote-banks. Thus the BJP must be at the very least afraid of losing the lingayat votes, while the possible outcome of such a swing in votes can be a matter of long and winding debate.

The two parties that are openly drooling are the JD(S) and the Congress. For even if they gain no additional seats - something that is very unlikely - they do gain in the sense that any loss to the BJP is a gain for them, viz. JD(S) and Cong. Therefore, these two will push the wedge (of BSY into BJP) even more.

Optimists in the BJP would like to believe that BSY is another Keshubhai Patel, who will lose and marginally dent BJP's victory. JD(S) and Cong wish that BSY is another Kalyan Singh whose exit will wreak havoc and decimate the BJP for long. Such prospects have made Mayawati join the beeline of droolers.

The man himself, that is BSY, must be wanting to become a Modi of Karnataka. Someone who wins on `Hindutva' and then `Development' planks.

In our opinion, BSY's wanting to become Modi is legitimate, however for BSY it is neither necessary nor desirable. We would rather want BSY to try and do even better. Most importantly we would like BSY to do better by being different from all of them. Thus KJP could focus on the following things:

1. KJP must ignore all allegations of being potentially dynastic, and unashamedly state that they are not averse to being dynastic. After all Congress, JD(S), RJD, and all have been shamefully dynastic.

With this point, he hits JD(S), Cong., and BSP ,etc., all in one stroke.

2. BSY must not be afraid of being called a dictator. However, the key is to have new ideas and the courage to accept responsibilities. This include the glories of successes and the blames of failures.

With the above point he becomes structurally similar to Modi. This may be difficult for BSY who has generally appeared to be a cry-baby, but it would be better if BSY proved this image to be wrong. But then what can BSY do to become clean like Modi?

3. BSY must blow the whistle on all, JD(S), Cong., BJP, himself, all. The key is all. Including, the truth regarding Santosh Hegde as well as H R Bharadwaj being the agents of anti-Hindu forces. Once the dirtiness of all is in public view, BSY can claim the mantle of being a genuine crusader against corruption. In this way he could also pave the way for something like this.

What about development? BSY can easily emphasize that he could play the Gujarat model of growth. If Shivraj Chauhan and Raman Singh can do development, BSY too can.

However,  there is one point, where BSY can do better than Modi. This is the crucial point which needs even more courage than doing point 3, which involves only being a small-time whistle-blower.

4. BSY must question the Universal True Secular Development model. This UTSD model delivers development to all, including Muslims, therefore including Islam and its inevitable corollary Jihad. No secularists whether pseudo or true are questioning Secularism itself. And all of them are deafeningly silent about the threat of Islam. BSY must initiate this debate on the Islam Question.

The above can have two possible consequences. One is that he might lose even the lingayat votes and become an eternal nobody. Second is that he will gain both ligayat and hindu votes. This will make him bigger than Modi.

Why should BSY take the risk of the former possibility? Let us analyze that in some detail. 

(a) BSY built RSS and BJP in Karnataka from the ground up. We are sure that he had some love for the Hindus which made him do so. Now that very Hindu society is under threat, in spite of BJP and RSS, for they have sold themselves onto true-secularism.  

(b) BSY has already made some money and he has already been a chief-minister. Now by winning elections he does no better than merely regaining the same. However, this win is not certain.

(c) With a safe secular strategy, even if he wins, he will at best become another Shivraj Chauhan or Raman Singh. However, if he loses, he descends into ignominy, though he may have the satisfaction of revenge if he can cause the downfall of BJP in Karnataka. More over, afterwards even if returns to BJP he will become a toothless tiger. The black mark of being back-stabber to the parent organization would persist as well.

(d) On the other hand, taking the risk if BSY wins, he becomes a hero, a new initiator, someone who even eclipses Modi. Alternatively, even if he loses, he starts a new chapter in Indian politics.

In our opinion, the number of Hindus who are strongly disenchanted with the true-secularism of BJP will vote for him in droves. The grassroots workers in BJP and RSS will love BSY and subvert the true-secular forces. Most importantly, BSY who possibly loves RSS would initiate a service for Hindus for which even the grassroots RSS-BJP will remain eternally emotionally loyal to him.

(e) Thus taking this risky path BSY will be able to surpass both Kalyan Singh and Modi; the former in his commitment to Hindus, and the latter is his commitment to cleaning up corruption.

It must be clear that what we have proposed is something that every politician who loves Hindus and Hinduism must do. In our opinion, it is a risk that BSY must find worthwhile.

A Draft of Declaration by Hindus

Some time ago we had proposed a declaration here. It might be considered the first draft. That was written in the aftermath of the horrific and tyrannical government perpetrated violence. 

In the aftermath of the recent incidents of Delhi Gang-Rape and Owaisi-Speech etc., the tyrannical approach of the government has become subtler but more vicious. There has been an orchestrated drive by the media as well as the state to push for Marxist-Feminism and anti-Hate-Speech-laws. Both of these are horrendous ideologies and they aim to stifle the Hindus.

This is a second draft for the declaration. This too is far from being the final version. We have also borrowed some style from the American Declaration of Independence.

The Declaration:

Historically, we Hindus have been a very Peace Loving and Accommodating People. We suffered innumerable evils under Islamic Invaders as well as European Colonizers, and yet we have still retained our basic character, owing to the heroic and valiant resistance offered by our predecessors.

We have been a civilization which is founded upon Truth, Freedom and Responsibility. For ages, our civilization has held on to the principle: ``Know the Truth and the Truth will set you Free.''. While the knowledge of truth delivers freedom, the wisdom borne out of such a knowledge makes us perceive our responsibility.

Despite gaining Independence from the British Rule on August 15, 1947, the plight of the Hindus has remained largely unmitigated. It has been as if the `Islamic' invaders and the `British' colonizers left, but the `Indian' Invaders and Colonizers have taken over. While there have been innumerable atrocities on Hindus by various `Indian' governments, the events during the night of that fateful day, namely June 4, 2011, have reaffirmed that at the midnight of Aug. 15, 1947, Hindus did not gain independence.  As Hindus, we have no rights, we have only the duty to forbear the evil deeds of these anti-Hindu governments. Successive governments have used propaganda to induce ethical confusion and have perpetrated the emasculation of the Hindus. The existing constitution, however well-intentioned and well-crafted it might have been, has summarily and comprehensively failed, and has been a hand-maiden in plotting and execution of the plan to turn Hindus into hostages. 

We Hindus hold that governments are there to facilitate Responsible Self-governance. Such a system of governance must be based on the principle of Responsible Liberty. To elaborate a bit - Responsible Liberty in pursuit of Pleasure (Kama), Wealth (Artha), Ethical Standards (Dharma), and to seek their own Spiritual Liberation (Moksha). Governments (Rajya) must derive their just powers and sustainability only from the Truth and Laws that are coeval with Manifest Existence. 

Also, whenever any Form of Government or System of Governance, is destructive of these ends, it is not only the Right but also the Duty of the People to abolish it, and restore a new Form or System of Government which can protect the ethical principle of Responsible Liberty. 

We Hindus, therefore solemnly publish and declare:

That we are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent people; 

This domineering of Hindu Political Aspirations by the `State of India' using its `Constitution and Protocols', is completely illegitimate and ought to be totally dissolved;

We call upon Hindus in `the System' to openly oppose this anti-Hindu tyranny, by refusing to 'obey' the 'orders', and in stead of supporting `the system' by extending their support to the `Hindu Cause'.

As Free and Independent people, we have full Power to Design our Governance, and write a new Meta-Constitution for our ourselves.

This new Meta-Constitution outlining the Governing System will come out of the Debates and Discussions held in which Everyone has the freedom to participate and contribute. Surely, while drafting the final version, experts in Law will play their role. Without the Voluntary and Informed Consent of the Wise, such a task can hardly be complete. We solicit the enthusiasm, drive and participation of all of us. Let us make a beginning and take the first and the most important step: Let us make a Resolve to draft the new Meta-Constitution.

While preparing meta-Constitution might take time. Thus we may need an interim-Constitution. Since that too might take a few months, at the very least, we propose that a quick tweak of the "current system" be put in place for the intervening period. 

On each of these issues we invite readers' comments and suggestions.