Attack on secular fabric of Indian Constitution continuing, upsurge in religious attacks dangerous for democracy and harmony

Counterview Desk
National Alliance of People's Movement's statement condemning the attack by Hindutva groups on Christians in Madhya Pradesh:
National Alliance of People’s Movements expresses deep shock at the unprovoked violence against Christian priests and seminarians in Satna in the Central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on the night of December 14, 2017. A group of people hailing from Bajrang Dal attacked a group of 30 Seminarians and two Priests of St. Ephrem’s Theological College as they were conducting a routine Christmas carol singing programme which has been the practice during the Christmas season for the last 30 years.
The group came with lathis and started threatening the Priests and Seminarians. Just then they called the police, who arrived in just 15 minutes and taken all Priests and Seminarians to the police station. It is very shameful that during the celebrations, not even the police restricted them of their freedom of religious celebrations but also tortured them by putting all of them in a room which cannot accommodate even half of them.

Later when other priests from nearby villages came to enquire, the police allegedly beaten them up and shamelessly acted against the spirit of constitution, leaving Bajrang Dal people untouched and free to do violence inside and outside the police station. They even torched vehicles of priests and beaten up in front of police officials which only proves their involvement in the alleged planned attack and harassment of religious minorities in the garb of prevention from religious conversions.
This is not standalone case but we are seeing this as a trend under the rule of current Government.

In most of the BJP ruled states, it has seen a rise in the last three years. Only in Madhya Pradesh, a dozen of incidents happened in the past giving a strong indication of religious attacks by Hindutva groups maligning the secular fabric of the country and constitutional rights of citizens of India.
It is worrying that this incident of mobocracy occurs among a host of other incidents around the country.

The video clipping of the gruesome murder of Mohammad Afrazul, a migrant worker from West Bengal who was hacked with a cleaver and then set on fire by a man in Rajasmand, Rajasthan on the suspicion of being in a relationship with a woman from another religious faith has gone viral and many Hindutva groups are being proud of the act and also unfurled the flag on Udaipur session court.

Lynchings of more than 32 persons over the last two years almost all from one minority community on the suspicion of killing a cow or possessing beef is creating a fear psychosis among the minorities. These acts of Cow vigilantes do not being credit to our democratic nation with its long tradition of being the model of civilized living and harmonious existence in comparison to some other countries in neighbourhood.
The incident in Satna just a few days before Christmas is shameful and deplorable. Even worse, lynchings, mob attacks and brutal killings of innocent people with culprits often not being found or going unpunished for months are largely blots on our democracy and judiciary.
We condemn the inaction of government and connivance of police forces with the Hindutva groups in this incident. We are deeply concerned and hurt at this religious terrorism. We demand the political leadership at Centre and States to follow the rule of law, respect the Indian Constitution, and to immediately arrest and notify the groups those are continuously acting on the behest of saffron terror groups spreading hatred among different communities. Hate politics cannot take India forward and will only create divisions in the society.
---

Statement signed by:
Medha Patkar, Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA); Aruna Roy, Nikhil Dey and Shankar Singh, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS); Prafulla Samantara, Lok Shakti Abhiyan; P Chennaiah, Andhra Pradesh Vyavasaya Vruthidarula Union-APVVU and National Centre For Labour; Binayak Sen and Kavita Srivastava, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL); Gabriele Dietrich, Penn Urimay Iyakkam, Madurai; Geetha Ramakrishnan, Unorganised Sector Workers Federation; Sandeep Pandey, Socialist Party; Sister Celia, Domestic Workers Union; others

Comments

Former civil servants raise alarm over conflict of interest in Supreme Court's forest advisory panel

By A Representative In a strongly worded open letter to the Chief Justice of India, 60 retired senior civil servants from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), and other central services have raised serious concerns over what they term a “conflict of interest” in the current composition of the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC), tasked with advising the Court in forest and environmental matters. The signatories, all part of the Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG), expressed grave apprehension that the CEC—now comprising entirely of recently retired officials from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC)—may lack impartiality in ongoing litigation, particularly those challenging the Forest Conservation Amendment Act (FCAA), 2023.

Prof. Vidyut Joshi: Gujarat’s knowledge institutions have lost their soul, urgent reorientation needed

By A Representative In a thought-provoking column published in Sandesh , eminent sociologist and former Vice-Chancellor Prof. Vidyut Joshi has raised urgent concerns over the erosion of intellectual autonomy and social relevance in Gujarat’s leading research and academic institutions. Building on insights from the recent paper Secret of Creating High Performing Knowledge Institutions by development economist Prof. Tushaar Shah, Joshi paints a stark picture of institutions that have strayed far from their foundational vision.

Remembering Vasant and Rajab: The forgotten martyrs who died to protect India’s soul from communal hatred

By Hidayat Parmar How much do we truly know about the real history of Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s royal city? July 1st marks a date that shines a light on two of its noblest sons—Vasant and Rajab—whose legacy lives on as a powerful reminder of secular unity and fearless sacrifice.

Top civil rights leader announces plan to lead delegation to Pakistan amidst post-war tensions

By A Representative In a significant move, well-known academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey has announced the plan to send a 22-member delegation to Pakistan to engage in dialogue with its government and civil society. The delegation proposed to go to Pakistan under the banner of Socialist Party (India) as a fact-finding mission to help seek solution to continuing tensions between the two countries over the fallout of the Pahalgam terror attack.

Global recognition at UNHRC: A breakthrough for communities discriminated on work and descent

By Amit Kumar, Naveen Gautam* In a historic moment for global human rights, the 59th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council opened with a powerful acknowledgment of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD)—groups affected by caste-like systems of exclusion, marginalization, and inherited inequality. This recognition was delivered by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk during his global human rights update, signaling a major shift in international discourse.

Climate action in rural India can go hand in hand with sustainable livelihoods: NGO shows the way

By Bharat Dogra Mobilizing an adequate response to climate change is often seen as an expensive task and then there is a lot of talk about who’ll bear the burden. However in rural areas both climate mitigation and adaptation can be integrated well with the promotion of sustainable rural livelihoods and in such conditions people become very supportive towards it. In such conditions climate response can progress much more smoothly without becoming burdensome.

J&K's Mallabuchan villagers symbolically cut Off pipeline in protest against ‘water injustice’

By A Representative In a striking act of peaceful protest, residents of Mallabuchan village in Jammu and Kashmir's Budgam district symbolically disconnected the Ahmadpora-Tangmarg water pipeline on Thursday, denouncing decades of official neglect and violation of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) norms.

Organic food stakeholders oppose FSSAI's proposed regulatory changes, warn against undermining small farmers, safe food movement

By A Representative Over 130 signatories representing India’s organic farming community have submitted a strongly worded letter to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), objecting to key proposals discussed at a hybrid meeting held by the authority on May 7, 2025. The meeting, convened to review the Food Safety and Standards (Organic Foods) Regulations 2017, reportedly considered drastic amendments that stakeholders claim will harm small producers and the broader movement for agroecological food systems.

Few Bollywood actors possessed Sanjeev Kumar's subtle detachment and sensitivity

By Harsh Thakor On 9th July, we celebrated the 85th birthday of legendary Hindi film actor, Sanjeev Kumar., known as Haribhai Jariwala. Sanjeev Kumar penetrated zones of versatility or acting craft, almost unparalleled in Hindi cinema. He was one one the very few who touched horizons of true genius, transcending regions in acting virtually unexplored. Rarely did any artist get stuck as thickly into the skin of the character. The diversity of expressions in his moves reminded one of the different water colours of a painting. Sanjeev manifested the ventures of an artist to tap the regions unexplored. He simply defied all conventions of Bollywood, making path breaking experiments. His acting had a subtle degree detachment and sensitivity, which few Bollywood actors ever possessed. He may not have possessed the drop dead looks of a Dev Anand, Dharmendra or Sashi Kapoor or the professionalism or star charisma of an Amitabh Bachan, Rajesh Khanna or Shah Rukh Khan. However in pure acting...

Search This Blog