Indian democracy is under threat from “pseudo-nationalism” and “right-wing fanaticism mas-querading as nationalism,” a column published in Renovacao, a Goa Church periodical, has said.
“Quo Vadis India?” by Father Savio Fernandes in the latest edition of the pastoral bulletin of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, also bemoans efforts to make India a Hindu Rashtra by 2020 and rues the “political rhetoric” which is triggering hate crimes against dalits and members of the minority community.
“Competition for political and economic power has encouraged pseudo-nationalism, which uses religion as a tool to gain accept-ance,” Fernandes said in the column.
He heads the Council for Social Justice and Peace, the social arm of Goa’s influential Roman Catholic Church, which is the religious and spiritual leader of more than 26 percent of the state’s Catholic population.
“This is an important turning point in India’s politics, because after being dominated for several decades by Left-leaning policies, the political space is now being rapidly cornered by Rightwing fanaticism masquerading as anationalism.”
“From the much talked about pluralism and diversity being the hallmark of the Indian nation, there are attempts to impose one culture, one religion, one langu-age ideology – a Hindu Rashtra by 2020 which marks the 75th anniversary of our nation’s inde-pendence,” the column stated.
