Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan will rejoin India one day: Ramdev
Yoga guru Ramdev said Monday, August 17, that Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan would one day become part of India again and urged people to be patient, while asserting that India's honour and dignity, not any religion, were under threat in the country.
Speaking to reporters at Swami Vivekananda Airport here, Ramdev said neither Hinduism, Islam nor Christianity faced any threat in India.
Reacting to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's remarks on the condition of Hindus in Pakistan, he alleged that Hindus had suffered some of the gravest cruelties in human history in Pakistan and Bangladesh, and said those responsible should refrain from making such statements.
He added that a day would come when the three neighbouring countries would reintegrate into India.
On the issue of religious conversion and Chhattisgarh's anti-conversion law, Ramdev said claims of persecution of Hindus, Christians or Muslims were largely political rhetoric, and said the focus going forward should be on ensuring no community faces persecution.
He said his vision was for India to become the world's best democracy, with the rupee matching the value of the dollar and pound and the Indian passport strong enough that citizens would not need visas anywhere in the world. He said India deserved equal respect from every country, including the United States, China and Russia.
On Sanatan Dharma, Ramdev said there was no shortcoming in the religion that would justify conversion to Islam or Christianity, alleging that some Hindus had historically been converted through coercion, inducements and misinformation, a period during which he said Hindus had stayed silent.
He rejected allegations of caste-based discrimination and untouchability within Sanatan Dharma, attributing such practices to a few individuals with what he called "distorted mindsets”. He said being Sanatani meant embodying the dignity of Lord Ram, the actions of Lord Krishna and the purity of Lord Shiva, and that following these values would eliminate any reason for religious conversion.
Ramdev said the government bore a major responsibility for ensuring religious and social systems functioned properly and were free of irregularities, extending this to education, healthcare, the economy and agriculture, which he described as the true meaning of democracy. He said strengthening these systems was essential to building a developed India by 2047.
Asked about PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti's remark describing herself as a "Dimagi Naxal," Ramdev said he did not wish to comment on political statements but that such remarks amounted to spreading intellectual anarchy, which he called undemocratic.
He said people had the right to protest and express views, but that such freedoms must stay within democratic, constitutional, ethical and spiritual limits and should never be used to harm the country.
