Rashmi Samant takes on her rivals head on through a scintillating narrative of a small town Indian girl fighting against all odds at Oxford to survive and expose the ugly face of self-styled secularists and their anti-India rants, says KUMAR CHELLAPPAN
The year 2016 saw US based Indologist Rajiv Malhotra come out with Academic Hinduphobia, a sequel to his celebrated work Breaking India (Co-authored with Aravindan Neelakantan). This was published in 2011 and observations made by the author in the book actually came true in 2015 when anti-India forces held demonstrations in New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University raising the infamous slogan "Bharat teri tukde honge." (India will be severed into pieces). Following this, there was no going back for anti-India forces to propagate their one-point agenda to balkanise India.
However, this anti-India call exposed these forces, underlining the fact that despite their attempts to conceal their real intent, the truth would eventually be out. I remember a conversation I had with a US security expert at IIT Madras in 2009 wherein he pointed out that the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid was an act of terrorism. That abruptly ended our chat. Back then, the term Hinduphobia was yet to find space in the national narrative.
In 2016, Malhotra, through his book, guided readers to the glaring realities of the times with his scholarly and erudite research, at a time when our own citizens promoted anti-Hindu feelings across the world with writers of eminence, and self-styled historians and sociologists para-dropping into India. Gradually, a bunch of disgruntled and discontented judges as well as academics joined the chorus, churning out half truths and outright lies against Sanatan Dharma.
Their interpretation of Sanatan Dharma was more lethal than the deadly Covid-19, widely spread by the DMK through a relentless campaign by a select group of so-called "intellectuals". It is at this juncture that a young graduate from Oxford University decided to chronicle her bitter experiences in the Holy Grail of modern education. Rashmi Samant, an Udupi-born engineering graduate, got admission for her a post-graduation programme at Oxford University purely based on merit. This young lady, through her book A Hindu in Oxford, decided to tells us about her trials and tribulations at the reputed University when she became the president of the Oxford Students Union.
One must admire this young lady's courage and determination to awaken the world to the "real" Oxford which, as I understand, today survives only on a historical past. The British excelled in marketing their educational institutions, giving Indians an academic inferiority complex vis-a-vis their British counterparts that unfortunately pushed them to pursue their higher studies study in these very institutions. I do not include author Samant in this category. But for her intellectual honesty, she would not have penned this path-breaking book.
Rashmi Samant, a young girl from the small time temple town of Udupi in Karnataka went on to create a tremendous impact on the international community as the first Hindu woman to occupy the post of Oxford's students' union as its president. This has served as a major morale booster for Hindus across the world. However, forces inimical to India in general and Sanatan Dharma in particular, found Sawant's views unpalatable and thus began the author's sufferings.
As mentioned earlier, there is a media blitzkrieg across the globe tarnishing Sanatan Dharma and questioning the heritage of Indian tradition. Ramayana and Mahabharata, two great Indian epics are portrayed as myth and fiction by this section of people. The sustained campaign against Sanatan Dharma was successful in creating a negative impact in western countries even as Indians themselves were too diffident to fight the baseless charges and allegations.
To begin with, Samant too was a victim of Hinduphobia. Her troubles began when she decided to run for the presidency of Oxford Students Union. The list of Asians who have occupied the presidency of OSU include Lalith Athulathmudali , a former Sri Lankan minister for internal security, and Benazir Bhutto, the assassinated former Prime Minister of Pakistan, who was also the president of the Oxford Debating Union.
The main weapon in the hands of anti-India forces operating primarily in Europe and the US are our very own citizens whose round-the-trip airfare and accommodation in deluxe hotels and hefty pay packets are bank-rolled by the West in return for their tirade against India. Unfortunately, a news-starved western media is only too willing to report whatever anti-India statements come from these Indian quarters.
Our desi (local) intellectuals label Sanatan Dharma as the embodiment of all that is evil and bad. The present generation of Europeans and Americans have grown up absorbing these lies unthinkingly. Several Indian so-called activists have been detained and arrested by the police in connection with charges of conspiracies; they continue to toil behind bars. This, not because of a weak Indian judiciary that cannot grant them bail but the fact the charges filed against them are grave and true.
India is ridiculed and criticised for legislations enacted by the Central Government which are only measures to strengthen the country's internal security, not an attempt to discriminate against people based on their religion and community. When the Citizens Amendment Act (CAA) was passed by the Indian Parliament, opposition to the same by a particular religious community came down like an avalanche. Instead of reading and understanding the legislation, sectarian groups took to the streets, holding the citizenry to ransom. India perhaps is the only country which allows roads and public places for people to offer their Friday prayers. Any attempt or enactment of any law to restrict anti-nationals is therefore termed by the Government's critics as saffronisation. For this "intellectual" group it is almost a sin to learn Sanskrit. This group and even our modern generation are unaware of the fact that the world's greatest literary works have been penned in Sanskrit. So much so that learning Hindi and Sanskrit is a taboo in Dravida Nadu.
The world needs to know about these ground realities, as also the fact that the protagonists of Hinduphobia have amassed untold and undisclosed wealth in India and abroad. Even as I write this review, a social media message reports about Communist leader Binoy Viswam's opposition to allow foreign universities to open their campuses in India. His aversion is inexplicable considering his wife, daughter and son-in-law have all been educated in foreign universities. Viswam is the leader of a cynical political outfit which continues to deny that India's Chandrayaan mission was indeed a success. In this anarchist world peopled by the likes of Viswam, anything against Hinduism "will sell, sell well".
Rashmi Samant has taken on her rivals head on through a scintillating narrative of how a small town Indian girl fought against all odds in the civilised world of Oxford, where there were countless people baying for her blood. For this grit and determination Samant deserves a salute for pouring out her heart in the public domain. A Hindu In Oxford is a wonderful work and a beacon of hope that truth alone shall prevail in the end. Udupi is well-known for its Lord Krishna Temple and the delicacies served by the master chefs from this coastal area. In a nutshell, Samant has immortalised Udupi and her personal journey in her book, making it an absolute must read.
