Dinesh Kamath's news 'Aamir, India is over-secular' that was published in Newsband

Aamir, India is over-secular

Aamir Khan joined forces with writers, actors and scientists and re-opened the debate on intolerance in the country by voicing his own concern and his wife’s anxiety and thoughts, perhaps fleeting, of relocating elsewhere. It was not long before that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre had made him the brand ambassador of Swachh Bharat while continuing with him as the face of Incredible India. The Narendra Modi government had been gracious to the actor.

Bollywood, of which Khan is an integral part, has never traded on religious identities. Aamir Khan has the wealth, celebrity status and may be umpteen fans and friends. He should be thankful to India. India has allowed many Muslims to rise to the top. At least India doesn’t tell the world that it needs Hindu communalism the way Pakistan shamelessly admits that it needs Islamic communalism in order to survive as a 'nation'. Instead the Indian government and many Hindus go out of the way to practise secularism by being over generous to Muslims and unjust to their own fellow Hindus.

The job of the Opposition - especially Congress - is to catch any rag-tag event like "intolerance" which had happened several times during its 50 year regime and shout at the top of their voice. It is evident that all the 'intellectuals' who had complained are pro-Congress if not stooges whom Congress had patronised during its long innings in power. It is become a habit for influential sections in India to keep the heat on by raising intolerance as an issue. In this era of competitive journalism, sections of media see the issue as factual and engage in continuous discourses on the perceived atmosphere of intolerance, sacrificing neutrality. The silent observers are conscious of the fact that India as a nation is tolerant, accommodative and moving in the direction of growth with equity, and that the results will speak for themselves in due course.

Uproar over Aamir Khan’s comment is appropriate because a person who earns name and fame in this country and whom people of this country has made a superstar and still he sees intolerance in their love. If approaches of people in India was sectarian a Muslim would not be a superstar in Hindu majority nation. The free speech given by India to its people is nowhere in the world. That is why Aamir Khan could air his views so openly. Would any Hindu dare to speak out like this in Pakistan? Khan should make his comment carefully because masses follows such stardom. Did Aamir Khan or any Muslim care to condemn Pakistan when bomb was blasted on Indian soil or when bomb blast claimed the lives of several, including high profile, people from Taj Hotel? Is Aamir Khan looking at recent incidents through a religious prism?

Raising a question on plurality of India is unacceptable. In 2014, in US, a black 17 year old teenage boy was shot by a white policeman. Does that make US intolerant? In France, Muslims were prohibited from wearing hijab. Does that make France intolerant? The kind of communal incidents which happen in India happen everywhere in the world but does that mean Americans or others start questioning their countries? India is the most liberal country. Here we can say anything about anyone.