Sue BJP for treachery, Shiv Sena tells Hindus

Mumbai, May 8 (IANS) The Shiv Sena on Monday asked "all the 100 crore Hindus" of India to sue the ruling BJP for "treachery and character assassination" for declaring the country "secular" at an international forum.

"India is now a Hindu nation. People have elected the Bharatiya Janata Party on this premise. Then how come we have suddenly become a 'secular' nation? Are the Hindus not entitled to even an inch of land on earth?" it asked in an edit in its mouthpieces 'Saamana' and 'Dopahar Ka Saamana'.

The Sena, the BJP's ally in Maharashtra and the Centre, said when Narendra Modi was elected, Hindus all over the world had celebrated that a 'Hindutva' government had taken office.

But recently, it said, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the UN Human Rights convention in Geneva that "India is secular, without any official/state religion".

"This is shocking and nothing short of backstabbing the Hindus. The BJP notched success across India and especially in Uttar Pradesh on the Hindutva plank," the Sena pointed out.

"All the promises to build a Ram Temple or cow protection shall prove to be mere political stunts to catch the Hindu votes and nothing more," the editorial warned.

The Sena said that until now Jawaharlal Nehru was blamed for all the ills plaguing India due to his 'secular' policies.

"The word 'secularism' had become an invective, it was used as a weapon to defeat the Hindutva forces. Hence, when the 'Hindutva' government came to power, it was expected that 'secularism' would be buried forever."

But that has not happened, it lamented.

"We don't feel proud to proclaim from the rooftops that India is a 'Hindu' nation - there are 56 Islamic nations in the world, many like the US and Russia are Christian countries, others like China, Japan, Sri Lanka or Myanmar are Buddhista. But there is not a single 'Hindu' nation on earth," said the Sena.

However, the party clarified that its concept of 'Hindutva' would not be totalitarian like Khomeini's Iran, Taliban's Afghanistan or ISIS' Iraq-Pakistan "but a unanimous acceptance of Hindu ethos and its culture by all the people living here.

"It does not mean that people, including Muslims, should adopt a saffron attire, sport a 'choti'. No. It just means everybody must bow before this country, its uniform laws and sing 'Vande Mataram'. They can pursue their religions in their homes or in mosques and churches." it said.