New Delhi, May 12: Minorities are "flourishing" in India and have been an equal partner in development without discrimination under the Modi government, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Tuesday, dismissing allegations of Islamophobia as an attempt to defame the country.
The "Narendra Modi phobia club” has been unable to digest the inclusive growth under the prime minister and is engaged in a "nefarious campaign" in India and abroad through fake propaganda alleging "intolerance, communalism and discrimination" against minorities in India, Naqvi said.
In a blog titled "Islamophobia -- Bogey of Bogus Bashing Brigade", the minority affairs minister argued that the "Modi phobia club" is playing the “Islamophobia card" to harm the pluralistic fabric of India, but will not succeed.
Naqvi's remarks come days after a wave of angry reactions on Twitter by citizens and rights activists from various Arab countries following allegations that Muslims are being blamed for spreading COVID-19 in parts of India.
Also, the 57-member prominent international Mulim grouping, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, recently accused India of "Islamophobia".
India has dismissed all such allegations.
"Minorities in India are flourishing equally with all the citizens with a sense of equality, security and prosperity. Misinformation against such a gracious and tolerant country and its effective leadership is nothing but the height of ignorance and mental bankruptcy," Naqvi said.
He claimed that no riot took place in last 5 years of the Modi government and it was after "nefarious preaching" by those who were irked by this that the Delhi riots happened.
Naqvi said the women who sat on protests at Shaheen Bagh cannot be termed "anti-nationals" but they had been "misguided by the bogus bashing brigade”.
This brigade pushed these women on a path which had an “entry gate” but no “exit gate”, the minister said.
This was a “calculated conspiracy” by the brigade that wants to defame and disgrace Modi and India, Naqvi said.
He also argued that for the "first time since Independence", India has forged close and strong ties with nearly all Islamic nations and countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Afghanistan, Russia, Palestine, Mauritius and the Maldives have conferred Modi with their highest civilian awards.
"The United Nations has also conferred Narendra Modi with the prestigious 'Champions of the Earth Award'. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's global acceptance and popularity doesn't need any certificate," Naqvi said.
The Modi government never planned development on the basis of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians or on region and caste, and its priority has been the poor and deprived, Naqvi said, adding that still some people with a “prejudiced mindset” are trying to defame India by raising the bogey of Islamophobia.
There is not a single incident of discrimination against any section of the society, including minorities under the Modi government, the minister asserted.
All sections, including minorities, are strongly moving forward on the path of “development with dignity” under the Modi government, he said.
When the challenges due to the coronavirus were in initial stages across the world in early January and several countries, including Pakistan, had not taken care of their people abroad, it was the Modi government that brought back thousands of Indians stranded in Wuhan (China), Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and other countries, Naqvi said, adding that a majority of these people were Muslims.
In the recent Vande Bharat Mission also, the Indian government is bringing back thousands of Indians from countries such as the Maldives, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar and other countries which include a large number of Muslims, he pointed out.
"Strong eternal commitment of my country will defeat and demolish the fake and fabricated Islamophobia card of the 'India bashing brigade'," Naqvi said in his blog.
Comments
Elite Indian nationalism defined: Every elite Indian can give his/her life for learning English if he/she needs to live in New York or London. But no elite Indian will sacrifice even a penny for learning Kannada if he/she needs to live in Bengaluru. Nationalism of jokers is always like that. (There are some rare exceptions to that, of course).
Look at how much useful English has been to India: India is one of the worst countries in education; the most starved country; suffers trade losses of more than 40 billion US dollars each year with China alone (I hope you know China doesn't teach in English); ranks 150th in per capita exports; administratively the most stupid one because administration is being carried out in language whish people don't understand; Also read this quotation from a worldwide study carried out by UNESCO, ‘What seems to be standing in our way is a set of myths about language and learning, and these myths must be revealed as such to open people’s eyes. One such myth is that the best way to learn a foreign language is to use it as a medium of instruction. (In fact, it is often more effective to learn additional languages as subjects of study.) Another is that to learn a foreign language you must start as early as possible. (Starting early might help learners to have a nice accent, but otherwise, the advantage goes to learners who have a well developed first language.) A third is that the home language gets in the way of learning a foreign language. (Building a strong foundation in the first language results in a better learning of additional languages.) Clearly, these myths are more false than true, yet they guide the way policymakers tend to think about how speakers of other languages must learn dominant or official languages.’ I will like to discuss with you further Mr. BigZero. If you agree, mail me at [email protected]
Can anything be more anti-national and educationally more stupid than what these 'Crazy' Board of Secondary Education people are saying? Kindly give your arguments if your answer is in Yes. Today itself, I stated in my TV interview that I don't find any education Board educationally as illiterate as the Indian 'Crazy' Board of Secondary Education. This is one more evidence of their illiteracy. I have mailed to the CBSE sataraps about their illiteracy on educational matters. But they never replied.
ಕರ್ನಾಟಕದ ಮಾತೃ ಭಾಷೆಯನ್ನು ಉಳಿಸುವತ್ತ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಹೆಜ್ಜೆ. ಸರ್ಕಾರಕ್ಕೆ ಅಭಿನಂದನೆಗಳು....
I find this interesting: "It is not a prestige not to learn Kannada...". Unfortunately,
many "elites" speak in other Languages - particularly in English - to show off.
There are problems with Kannadigaas too - we can't speak Kannada
without 80% English in it....
Court must be moved to knock out a ridiculous order. Language is correctly the choice of schools, parents and students. And students should not be burdened to learn languages that will have no use to them.
Karnataka govt. should close these schools if they refuse to comply.
When Hindi & English are mandatory and they did not make a hue and cry against these, what is their problem teaching Kannada in Karnataka?
UP-Bihar's Hindi language mandatory in Karnataka is OK, but not Kannada? What kind of nonsense is this?
@Ravi: Very correct and logical. Moreover, Karnataka and Kannada have been
taken for granted, by most of the people from outside.
People who don't want to learn Kannada in Karnataka and want to treat this place just as a safe haven for jobs, property and weather should leave the state. We have enough freeloaders here from all parts of the country resulting in the chaos in the city. Its time for the Govt. and Courts to tighten the strings.
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