The transition of India’s depiction, as a ‘Secular country’ to a ‘Hindu majoritarian country’, in the perspectives of International community in recent years, since the ascension of BJP, has given the required leverage for Pakistan to counter India’s narrative of Islamophobia with Hindutva-phobia. Though Imran Khan exhibited his statesmanship during the fallout of Pulwama attack with de-escalation initiatives, the Oxford graduate has branded Tamils’ National freedom struggle by LTTE against Sinhala government of Sri Lanka as an Armed struggle of Hindus, during his speeches at Pakistan’s parliament and later at United Nations General assembly. He quoted Tamils as Hindus in a contrived attempt to advance the political momentum gained by him in de-coupling Islam from terrorism in South Asian context. Despite the erudite nature of his explication about the emergence of Suicide as a strategy in multiple socio-political struggles, his reference to Tamils as religious Hindus demands denunciation. Politically informed Tamils had deprecated his expedient use of their freedom struggle in UN. As expected, their apprehensions were vindicated by the “exclusion” of Eelam Tamils in the recent Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) passed by the union government of India, which declares Hindu immigrants to India are eligible for its citizenship.
Culturally, Tamils are “Saivites” and are prone to subjugation by Delhi government through its continued efforts in depriving their ethnic and cultural identities, ever since British united Tamil homeland and rest of this subcontinent without a referendum. Hence, Saivism is seen as a threat by the Hindutva project conceived and nurtured by RSS, which is involved in multiple attempts to dissolve the Saivite culture through various strategies that includes implantation of Corporate backed Spiritual Personalities -such as Ravishankar, Jaggi Vasudev- in Tamil Nadu who articulate Anti Saivite opinions to demean Saivism and vitiate Tamil society. Consequently, Saivite institutions and preachers are being constantly persecuted by these people.
Eelam Tamils, majority of whom are Saivites, faced destruction of their aspirations for freedom from Sinhala country. The hostilities against Eelam Tamils have remained immutable, since the 1940s, because of India’s futile foreign policy. India has supported the genocide of Tamils during the phase of Armed struggle and helped the perpetrators of genocide to remain in power in Sri Lanka after the end of the war. The foreign policy of India has always remained hostile towards Saivite tradition. This stems from the fact that, cultural soft power exerted by the rulers in Delhi, on south and south East Asian countries have their roots in the Chola empire which is regarded as a Golden era of Tamil culture and Saivism. Cholas played a pivotal role in the spread of Saivism across Indian ocean littoral region.
Hindus from other states of this country, who find vanity in the majoritarian projects undertaken by Delhi government, should understand that the government which pretends to worry about the declining Hindu population is the same government that is constantly tilting the demographics of every ethnic group in their own states to their disadvantage, by sponsoring interstate migration that originates from Hindi belt. Religious and caste animosities are just a pretence that conceals the ulterior motives of the rulers in Delhi.
Considering Imran Khan’s difficulty to discern the difference between Hinduism and Saivism, it becomes imperative for him to pay heed towards his defence department officers’ opinions on this issue.
