Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Displaying patriotism towards one’s country is compulsory' that was published in Newsband

Displaying patriotism towards one’s country is compulsory

There is a debate going on whether citizens must chant the slogan ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’. Yoga guru and businessman Baba Ramdev’s remark that chanting the slogan should be made compulsory has provoked some people. He also suggested beheading of people who refused to chant the slogan. He said this when All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader Asaduddin Owaisi said he would not utter the words in question.  

What really matters is government policy and not individual opinion. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was alleged as saying that those who do not proclaim ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ have no right to live in the country. He later confirmed that he meant that those who refused to chant the slogan had mala fide intentions.

Patriotism comes from the hearts of the people and chanting slogan such as Bharat Mata Ki Jai is expression of that feeling. Not only uttering these words but also uniting and working together to build a new INDIA, that is the real salute to BHARAT MATA'. Merely tomtomming that we love India without genuine love in the heart for motherland is empty talk to mislead and fool people. People who have no authority to make laws or issue fatwas in a country where the Constitution is supreme should have sense to appreciate the sensitivity of majority community.

While Mr Owaisi's language of "knife" bristles with the spirit of martyrdom, "Baba" Ramdev's "beheading" language invokes the bloody legacy of Parashurama. Let’s go back to know how this whole matter of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" came into mainstream. It was when anti-national slogan in JNU to break india was raised and so-called liberals came to their defense by calling it freedom of expression, RSS head Mohan Bhagwat made a statement "These days youth should be taught to chant Bharat Mata ki jai". And he was not wrong. Till here everything was all ok. But it was only after so-called secular leader Owaisi made a communal speech putting his religion at pivot and not nation, things turned out political as Congress, RJD-JDU & Left etc came to his support. But the blame is being put on BJP as if BJP is all responsible.

Baba Ramdev by what he said was not communal unlike Owaisi who was both communal and anti-national by his expression. When Mr Asaduddin Owaisi refused to chant that particular slogan he did not take recourse to the tenets of his faith but pointed out to the fact that the Constitution of India does not have such a ruling. Furthermore, Mr Waris Pathan, the AIMIM Legislator in Maharashtra who was suspended or not accepting that slogan did say "Jai Hind", "Jai Bharat" and "Jai Maharashtra". So that proves that not all folks of the AIMIM are "anti-national".

There are many slogans to praise our nation. Let the people decide which they want to chant. But people should stop calling certain violent expression as freedom of speech and something similar said by another person as one inciting violence.
(Please visit Dinesh Kamath's Blog: dkamath.blogspot.in)