‘India should have been declared a Hindu country too’ says Meghalaya HC
   13-Dec-2018

 
 
While considering the petition related to refusal of Domicile Certificate to an army recruit, the Meghalaya High Court, on Monday, traced the events leading up to India’s partition and observed “It is an undisputed fact that at the time of partition, lakhs and lakhs of Sikhs and Hindus were killed, tortured and raped and forced them to leave their forefather’s property and compelled them to enter India to save their lives and dignity.” Justice Sen began his judgment by tracing India’s partition and asserting that since the division was on the basis of religion, India should have been declared a Hindu country too. He added that “…Pakistan declared themselves as an Islamic country and India since was divided on the basis of religion should have also been declared as a Hindu country but it remained as a secular country.” The recent judgment of the Meghalaya High Court created furor among many people.
 
 
Though the judgment should have been seen in right perspective yet the opposition of it was started on flimsy ground. It laid emphasis that the laws are made for the people and people are not made for laws to give clear indication that law should be made for the betterment of the society and not to create an untoward situation for the people. Especially if one sees the condition of Hindus and other minorities in J&K, who have been facing persecution since last more than 70 years, the current judgment of Meghalaya HC is important. The class of victims that are facing persecution are Valmikis (Dalits), Gorkhas, West Pakistan Refugees (WPR), Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) Displaced Persons and Kashmiri Pandits. Unfortunately, their discrimination and persecution continued unabatedly because neither the central government nor the J&K state wanted to do anything for them. Even the political parties and right based organizations (national and international) were ignorant about their plight because they were non-Muslims.
 
 
The judge lamented the treatment that has since been meted out to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Christians, Parsis, Khasis, Jaintias and Garos in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, observing, “Even today, in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, the Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Christians, Parsis, Khasis, Jaintias and Garos are tortured and they have no place to go and those Hindus who entered India during partition are still considered as foreigners, which in my understanding is highly illogical, illegal and against the principle of natural justice.” This is the most important observation of the court and if one see the plight of these in J&K, one can easily relate the judgment with reality.
 
 
 
 
 
Gorkhas and WPR are approximately 3 to 4 lakh in number and all of them are Hindus and most of the people belong to SC and OBC categories. They are not given the Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC); as a result they are not entitled for admission in government schools and higher education institution, avail scholarships and any other facilities of the government, vote in state, district and village level elections, government job and social welfare benefits in J&K. Gorkhas were living in the state for last 200 years whereas the WPR migrated to J&K during 1947.
 
 
Valmikis (Dalits), were brought from Punjab in 1957 on the promise that the PRC clause will be relaxed for them but this clause relaxed for making them and their later generation eligible only for the post of sweeper. This provision institutionalised the discriminatory system wherein the birth decides the profession of the individual. Again they are Hindus and no one is ready to speak about them.
 
 
Lakhs of Hindus and Sikhs were killed in the Pakistan Army attack in 1947 and they were forced to flee their place of abode. They were approximately 10 lakh in number but they were not provided much support because they are Hindus and our secular credentials see them with antagonism. Around 24 seats are kept vacant in J&K against the areas under the illegal control of Pakistan and China. Surprisingly, these people constitute around 1/3 of the entire population of the areas presently under illegal occupation of Pakistan and China but the leaders of these people cannot contest in J&K state elections. The Government of India (GoI) has been giving false hope to them that the Government would vacate the areas soon but more than 70 years has gone neither the areas got vacated nor they were compensated for the loss and trauma they had gone through. Because they are Hindus and Sikhs, no one bothers about them. Kashmiri Pandits were brutally murder and they were thrown out the Kashmir Valley, which they once called home. Unfortunately, no successive government has taken any concrete steps to rehabilitate them because they were Hindu.
 
The Meghalaya HC went on to asserted that “laws are made for the people and people are not made for laws and it is also a fact that now laws can be effective until and unless the history and real ground reality is taken into consideration”. The court clarified that it is not against the Muslims, who are residing in India and they should be allowed to live peacefully.
 
India that has projected itself a secular and democratic country but the double speaking media, Human Rights activists and Organisations and political parties remain oblivion to the sufferings of Hindus lest they would lose their secular credentials. The discussion on Article 35A, POJK displaced person and Kashmiri Pandits never take place because they Hindus and Sikhs. It is essential that draconian provisions like 35A must be abolished that victimize only the religious minority in J&K and restoration of human values must be given prominence. The present judgment of the Meghalaya HC must be appreciated that at least any court acknowledges that Hindus and the other minority communities must be protected and respected.