India will not divide

India has been a soil that has welcomed all. It is perhaps the only country in the world with such rich cultural and religious diversity. Yes, we have had our share of problems and differences in the past. Who hasn’t? But the important thing is, when it comes to the cause of the nation, we are all one single undivided community that loves the country.

As probably one of the best symbols of communal harmony in the recent times, two Muslim couples tied knot in a Hindu temple in Gujarat yesterday. For those who still think of people of Gujarat as a violent mob, this is our answer to them.

The text below is quoted from The Times of India –

In perhaps the first-of-its-kind nikah solemnised before Lord Ram in the communally sensitive Gujarat, two Muslim couples tied the knot in a

Junagadh temple with a maulvi reciting Koranic verses in the backdrop of Ram dhun. Members of both communities joined the ceremony and dined together.
Abdul Sheikh (48), who works at Junagadh Civil Hospital approached Satyam Seva Mandal, a local NGO, seeking financial help for the weddings of his son Asif and daughter, Najma. "We were ready to help. But we told the family that the wedding ceremony has to take place in our building which houses a Ram mandir. They happily agreed," said Mansukh Vaja, a local activist.
"We saw this as an opportunity to set an example. I discussed the issue with my relatives and our maulavi saheb readily approved the idea," said Sheikh.

The article is available here.

Show your support

We are all devastated with the recent terrorist attacks on Mumbai. Many lost their lives. The number of dead are still being counted. May all the departed souls rest in peace and may God give strength to the families that lost their loved ones. This is not just an attack on financial capital of India, but it is an attack on our democracy and on the core values that this nation stands for. Thankfully, our security agencies have been able to curb the terror.

While our brave soldiers were fighting against the maniacs, the politicians in our country were busy playing blame game and trying to grab media attention. More than the terror attacks, I think the attitude of our politicians is more condemnable.

While the battle is over, the war has just begun. And this brings upon us some great challenges that we will have to face. Given the situation, the politicians will try the following things

· Blame other countries and try to deviate focus from the need to strengthen intelligence gathering and the social reforms that are required in order to curb terror attacks

· Try to gain political mileage by fueling hatred and possibly even violence amongst communities

We, the citizens of India, have a great responsibility to ensure that we DO NOT let our politicians take advantage of the situation and mislead us.

Through these tough times, we all must stay united, stay focused; on spreading a message of peace and harmony and ensure that the situation comes under control.

To begin with, we request everyone across the world to tie a WHITE BAND on their arms on Wednesday December 3^rd 2008. Usually, we see black bands to express protest. We chose a white band because we want to convey a message to the terrorists and to the politicians. We want them to know that we will not bow down. We will not fall prey to their tactics of dividing us on the basis of our religion.

No matter what they do, WE ALL STAND UNITED.

 

Please forward this message to as many people as you can. Be it an Indian, a Pakistani, a Briton, an American or just anyone. We all must stand together against terrorism and petty politics. You can express your opinions on our “Show your support” blog-post. If you want to know how else you can help this cause, please visit our “Spread the word” page.

 

Note: We are planning a lot of other things on the ground level. Getting involved in mainstream problem solving is one of them. This “White Band” initiative is just a symbolic gesture and a way to bring people together for a single cause. If you wish to remain informed of all the activities that we are planning, please join the group mentioned below.

On Behalf of Revolutionaries for Democracy.