Jamiat's Madani urges Bhagwat to act against those spreading religious hatred in India
Prominent Muslim organisation Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind on Sunday said that if RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat genuinely believes in the views on diversity that he expressed in the US, he should publicly distance RSS from people who spread hatred and take action against them.
Maulana Arshad Madani, who heads a faction of the Jamiat, referred to Bhagwat's remark that a Hindu who believes there should be no Muslims in Bharat would no longer remain a Hindu. Madani questioned why the RSS does not remove such people from its organisation if it holds these views.
During his events in the US, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Bhagwat said that unity in diversity is part of Bharat's DNA and should be celebrated, respected and accepted. He also said that if any Hindu believes that there should be no Muslims in Bharat, he will not remain a Hindu.
Responding to Bhagwat's remarks in a Hindi post on X, Madani asked who the people were who allegedly spread hatred against Muslims and Christians, support mob lynchings and violence, call for economic and social boycotts, target mosques, madrasas and educational institutions, and question the citizenship and constitutional rights of Muslims.
“What action has the RSS taken against them so far?” Madani asked.
Madani said Bhagwat's message about unity, brotherhood and respect for all religions in America was commendable, but argued that the message was more urgently needed in India.
He said that if Bhagwat genuinely wanted to put these views into practice, he should publicly distance himself from those who spread hatred and take effective action against them. This, he said, would show that the message was not limited to statements made abroad.
“India does not belong to any one religion; it is the shared homeland of those who follow all religions. The truth of any idea is not proven by speeches, but by its implementation,” Madani said.
Madani said the question was when action would be taken against people who spread hatred and when the Constitution's guarantee of equal rights would be visible on the ground.
Meanwhile, the opposition on Sunday accused Bhagwat of double standards over his remarks on diversity in the US. The BJP, however, praised him and said he had shown the world what Hinduism actually means.
The Congress, Trinamool Congress, Aam Aadmi Party and other opposition parties said Bhagwat should convey the same message to BJP leaders and organisations that they accused of “spreading hatred between Hindus and Muslims”.
