There does not seem to be a safe place in India, as hatred is stifling every aspect of life, and a neighbor alerted me early Sunday morning, October 18, to a WhatsApp message sent by the security guard of the building in which I live for everyone celebrating the murderer of Mahatma Gandhi. She urges people to take up arms to protect the idea of Hindu sovereignty.
With this introduction, the Indian journalist, Rana Ayyub, began an article in the American Washington Post under the title “Hate Poisons Indian Society, but Many Refuse to See This.” In it, she sheds light on hate speech and incitement to violence and discrimination promoted by supporters of the current Indian government, which It is dominated by the Hindu right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party, in social media and adopted by the state media.
Ayoub noted that this type of hatred and incitement message is very popular among Hindu nationalists and right-wing supporters of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The irony, however, is that when the author posted the aforementioned hate and incitement to violence message on her social media accounts, many unabashedly supported the hate and threat contained in the letter.
An advertisement recently published by a major commercial jewelry company that celebrates cultural diversity and religious tolerance between Hindus and Muslims in India was met with a violent reaction on social media by the Hindu right, forcing the company to withdraw the ad, in light of the wave of anger and threats of physical violence against its employees.
The author pointed out that the compulsion of a major commercial company that is more than 150 years old and is part of a trading group previously run by one of the richest and most powerful men in India, to withdraw a promotional advertisement that does not exceed 45 seconds to protect its employees, is a stark example of the alarming situation that India has reached. Under the leadership of the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Ayoub said that these hate campaigns are launched, generalized and amplified by government supporters, senior officials and prominent news channels alike, and that the aforementioned advertisement that promotes tolerance and celebrates religious diversity cannot stand up to well-funded media companies charged with fanning the fires of division and division for political gain. .