Extinguishing The Eternal Flame 2

Just as the BJP government extinguished the Eternal Flame at Amar Jawan Jyoti there is another eternal that they seek to extinguish - Sanatan Dharma. While voters remain caught up in their propaganda and razzle dazzle religious events, a militarist Hindutva is very, very far from the liberal Hinduism that we know and follow. They have even used the name Swami Vivekananda after a think tank trust to promote hardline Hindutva. Slowly Hindu religious leaders across India are waking up to this ugly face being presented by the BJP, and some have spoken up against the party. But to defeat their idea you have to defeat them at the polls. The opposition must get their acts together. And one upwomanship of Mamata and Mahua does not help.

Extinguishing The Eternal Flame

Extinguishing the eternal flame at India Gate, New Delhi, is an act of sacrilege. The Modi government has crossed the laxman rekha. The explanation that its being merged with the flame at the newly constructed war memorial is hardly convincing. Or that Modi government is so short of funds that they cannot maintain two flames. To maintain the two flames they could have taken the help of oil majors IOCL and BPCL. Or if they still needed more money they could have sold the two companies. Then the reasoning that India Gate represents the colonial era, but then the President should also move out from the Rashtrapati Bhawan Palace. That too is colonial. And Modi should stop giving his bhashan from atop the Red Fort, that's Mughal, it should be returned to the successors of the last mughal emperor. And retired Army officers writing nostalgia pieces about Amar Jawan Jyoti and at the same time supporting the act of the Modi government only shows how far they have come. History does not start today or even yesterday. Respecting elders and traditions is also a part of Indian sanatan culture.