Voice of India Features Newsletter - 08 November 2009

nov 9th, 2009

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From: VOI Features <voi.features@vhs-net.com>
Date: Mon, Nov 9, 2009 at 6:56 PM
Subject: Voice of India Features Newsletter - 08 November 2009
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Editorial: Vande Mataram Fatwa is Unacceptable The Editorial Team Jamiat-Ulema-i-Hind has endorsed a fatwa issued by Darul Uloom seminary at Deoband decreeing singing of Vande Mataram un-Islamic. It clearly implies that a Muslim is forbidden to sing Vande Mataram, the national song of India. Vande Mataram which is one of the most popular songs in the world (BBC World Service in 2003 declared it second in top 10 out of 7,000 songs selected from all over the world) is being targeted consciously to challenge nationalistic spirit that it represents. Read more... Also Assuage Hurt Hindu Sentiments Amba Charan Vashishtha Mr. Rajeev Dhavan's article, "End Hussain's agony now" (November 2) is an eloquent defence of the offence Mr. M. F. Hussain has committed. Like an eminent lawyer, Mr. Dhavan has done justice to his brief, trying to make the guilt of his client appear as innocence on the strength of loopholes in law, evidence, and the force of arguments. He has dexterously tried only to weave, as a lawyer should, a myth of Hussain's innocence hiding the reality of his guilt. At the start, it needs to be made clear that it is not a conflict or controversy between Hindus or Muslims but a dispute between a painter who hurt the Hindu sentiments by painting their goddesses in the nude and who, incidentally, happens to be a Muslim. No Indian worth his salt will ever rejoice at the sentiments of anybody being hurt. Read more... Doctor Hedgewar and Weaning Muslim Youth Towards Peace and Hindusm Lt. Col. (Retd.) Mahendra Mathur Dr Hedgewar, the founder of the RSS was born on Ugadi day [New Year's Day] in 1889 at Nagpur. He was a born patriot. Even when he was studying in primary school, he refused to eat sweets distributed on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Victoria on June 22, 1897. When he was studying in Neel City High School, Nagpur, he was rusticated for singing "Vande Mataram" in violation of the circular issued by the then British government.  He participated in the freedom struggle under the leadership of the Indian National Congress and participated in the Non-cooperation Movement of 1921 and was jailed. He was released on July 12, 1922. After making an in-depth study of our history, he came to the conclusion that lack of patriotism and disunity among the Hindus was the reason for our defeat at the hands of foreign invaders and enslavement under foreign rule. Read more... How Javed Anand's Ancestors Became Muslims Vinod Kumar Berating Rashtriya Swyamsevak Sangh, its Chief Mohan Bhagwat and then Hinduism, Javed Anand in RSS, Here I Come  (Asian Age, Oct 14, 2009) wrote:"Even otherwise, I have no difficulty in accepting the obvious---my Hindu past---for I doubt if my forefathers were Sikhs , Jains or Buddhists. The former are easily discounted for they arrived too late on the scene. Jains? No way , they are not interested in Mughlai cousin . As far Buddhists, I am unable to see what possible incentive there was for them to abandon their faith.""But converting from Hinduism is conceivable . I have been told since childhood that we are Saddiquis. That's big if you are talking hierachy ---being part of the extended parivar of none else than the closest companion of Prophet Mohammed and the first Caliph of Islam Abu Bakr. But this Arabisation drive Bhagwat Ji I suspect is quite like Sansakritisation ---in search of respectability, status and imagination at work. Read more... Hindus Can't Write Own Obituary Animitra Chakraborty Lots of things can be said of the gradual yet unfortunate (expected?) decline of BJP and SANGH PARIVAR, though I simply despise to write the obituary of this specific school of thought so early. What have been the real causes of its downfall and slow but steady move to the oblivion can be both discussed and debated; but, without a doubt, what has happened and is also going on still is neither coveted nor was a nightmare even a few months back. Well, it seems to be a grim reality and also intricate. What conclusion can be drawn then? We, again, are at a loss! What can be the destiny of Political Hinduism then? What shall be the next courses of action? It appears that this is the high time to introspect meticulously; we are not in a position to repeat the past mistakes simply. There have been humongous failures at almost all fields, be it social or political or even academic pursuits. Read more...