This article is related to the attitude we have towards Muslims but I have reached the conclusions stated herein from what I have experienced living in India.
As I had stated in my earlier article I have subjected to harsh harassment about 30 years ago. Link to that article is below this paragraph. I had at that time made no bones that I would extract my pound of flesh when given the chance. I was filled with hatred and to the extent that I doubted my sanity. I thought I would become sane when I received justice and had my vengeance.
My high society tormentors wanted to have nothing to do with me. That is understandable. But they also wanted me out of the country or at least out of Mumbai. I think that they approached the police to see if I could be sent packing. Because India is a democracy and I was an Indian citizen the police could not take any action. I had not committed any serious crime and even if I had that is no reason for my being hounded out of wherever I choose to live in India. In a democracy even the Nirbhaya rapists have rights.
And in fact it was my high society tormentors who had committed serious crimes ranging from criminal defamation to illegal surveillance to harassment.
But as I admit readily I had behaved very badly at that time (prior to the harassment). And that is where the connection to the Muslims comes in.
The Muslim community is known to not be ideal citizens of India. I do suppose they deserve this reputation. There is the risk of communal violence regarding them and it is possible that a good number of them are unethical and indulge in criminal activities. I suppose, since they are not trusted or educated, they find that many avenues to earn are closed to them.
But trying to hound them out of the country is no solution. Obviously the law stands in the way of the people who want to send the Muslims packing (otherwise the police could have acted against me, a solitary person with no political connections). And we not need fanatics who think that they are above the law and have the right to decide who can live in India and who cannot.
As I informed my tormentors, some 15 years ago, if they wanted me to leave the country then they will have to do what is necessary to get what they want. One of the main reasons I stayed on in India was that India is a low cost of living country and I did not have any prospects to earn abroad. Even if I had had prospects I was lazy, suffering from a mental ailment and did not want to work at a job. Also getting a visa to go to the country of my choice would have been impossible under the circumstances.
So I told my tormentors that if they wanted me to leave they would have to do what is necessary to induce me to go. I asked them to arrange for a passport (and citizenship) to France and also give me enough money to enjoy the standard of living that I had here (I think 10 million euros was the sum I mentioned). And I told them that after doing that they could also treat the Muslims the same way. Get them to leave the country by getting them citizenship and ensuring their livelihood in the country of their choice.
Obviously my tormentors had no choice but to live with the fact that I had all the rights to live in India and there was no way they could force me out.
I think that we need to respect the right of people of the Muslim community to live in India. We don’t have a choice. Firstly the Muslim community has political clout. Next the laws demand that we respect their rights. Thirdly God is running the Universe and there is an elected government that is running the country. Nobody has the right to put themselves above the law. If you don’t like the laws then join politics and work to make the required changes in whatever laws you dislike. And not just the laws, you will have to make the necessary changes in the Constitution also.
This is clearly impossible unless India becomes a dictatorship.
If persons from the Muslim community commit crimes then prosecute them legally. If the criminal justice system is broken then work to fix it by joining politics. But judging from the way I was treated it is possible that in certain situations the Muslims are more sinned against than sinning. Taking the law into your hands and trying to hound the Muslims out is unlawful and for the reasons stated above completely impossible.
It is necessary to learn toleration. We have a police force that is trained to do their job according to the Constitution and the applicable laws. Let them get on with it. Nobody has the right to appoint himself judge, jury and executioner and put himself above the law.
I’ll end here. This is a very controversial article and I am expecting many comments. Feedback from my readers keeps me going.
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