A slaughtered cow that has had its throat slit during prayers

Kerala, India (CHAKRA) - Kunnathunadu, Kothamangalam and Muvattupuzha, three taluks of Ernakulam district experienced a shutdown on January 18th, as a result of the inhumane slaughtering of an innocent and pregnant cow. Three individuals belonging to the local Muslim community slit the cow’s throat inside the compound of the Sree Dharma Sastha.

The shutdown began after local Hindu organizations protested against the merciless act of the cow slaughtering.

After the incident, police managed to get hold of the three culprits, Muhammad 49, his son Anas 23 and another male by the name of Razid 18. Of the three one person managed to escape from police custody.

A member of the Sree Dharma Sastha Temple believes that the slaughter was performed to create tension and trouble amongst the nearby residing community rather than for meat. According to him, had the culprits wanted meat they would have simply stolen the cow rather than slaughter it in such a painful manner right in the temple premise. Based on this information, the individual believes that it was a hate crime against Hindus to stir up chaos.

As per previous police reports, the surrounding area has been subject to a rise in Islamist activity lately. Just 25 km away from the area, on July 4, 2010, activists of an extremist Muslim organization had cut off the arm of a Christian university professor alleging that he had blasphemed Prophet Muhammad in a test paper question.

The three men had approached the Hindu temple in disguise of men who had medication for the cow. Once getting into the temple where the cow was, the men barricaded the area with plastic wrap before slitting the cow’s throat and finding a Moulvi from a nearby village to chant prayers that were mandatory after the slitting of throat according to common Islamic practices.

As news spread of the atrocious act, members from nearby Hindu activist groups as well as from the Sangh Pariwar were outraged and rushed to the temple. At the same time, Muslim supporters of the killing of the cow also gathered near the Hindu temple creating a scene of tension, which could escalate to greater trouble.

Protesters gathered and the tension lasted for several hours because protestors were not allowing police to take the culprits and cow carcass away. Once the police, carcass and three individuals were out of the scene, several demonstrations were held thereafter with clashes between Hindu supporters disapproval of the slaughter and Muslim supporters justification for killing the cow in the Hindu temple premise.

It is not sure for what crimes the accused culprits will be charged for in India, but in many western nations this would constitute as a hate crime with very heavy penalties.

You can view a video segment about this incident from local news here:

Tamil Nadu is home to some of the richest Hindu temples

The Tamil Nadu government claims to be secular but has been treating Hindu institutions and temples differently compared to institutions of other religions.  The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Department administers 36,425 temples, 56 mutts, 47 temples belonging to mutts, 1721 specific endowments and 189 trusts.  The department claims to be watching over all religious institutions to maintain secularism but it has only been looking over the Hindu religious institutions and this policy is not being applied to any other religions like Christian or Islamic institutions.

The indifference and lack of stance against such an issue by Hindus along with the pushy missionaries being let into the region are the two main causes of such an injustice.  This has allowed the Tamil Nadu government to process the way it does, assuming such a level of control.

Prominent mutts of the 1840’s—when the British ruled—were asked to take over certain temples and endowments.  The heads of these mutts made sure to get written documents from the British Government assuring the mutts that the temples would not be taken into repossession by the government.

The mutts ran the temples well and efficiently using funds provided where they should  have been used—to perform important rituals and for renovations in the temple.  Overall, the funds were used for the primary purpose of the temple—supporting worship.  However, contrary to this, thousands of other religious institutions were simply handed over to the trustees with the government providing little or no supervision at all with what was being done with the funding and whether it was being utilized for the purpose of which it was given for.

The Madras Hindu Religious Endowment Act of 1925, was passed by the local Legislature for the purpose of providing better governance and administration of Hindu temples.  This act was widely changed and adapted several times to consolidate the government’s power over the Hindu institutions, both before and after Independence. After independence, the act was widely expanded.

What Hindus must remember is that it is not the job of a government body to rule over and administer what is going on with Hindu temples, especially when the same body is not doing the same for churches and mosques in the same region.  There must be something wrong if policies that were originated, to be applied to all religions, are only being applied to one religion continuously.  Hindus should group together and petition against such government bodies, bringing outside agencies to help and audit the HR and CE Department and its activities related to this issue.  Hindus should work together to gain back access to the temples so that they are handed over to their respective trustees or appropriate Hindu associations.

CasteWatch UK - Davinder Prasad (aka David Prasad) and Sinna Mani

By Ranbir Singh (HHR)

On 2 July 2011 Castewatch held another of its typical hatefests in Coventry . Ostensibly designed as always to discuss caste discrimination in Britain , it once again degenerated into the usual fulminations against the evils of Hinduism and Hindus. This is why Hindus are only welcome at such events if they “know their place” and avoid indulging in the twin evils of talking and speaking too much. It is therefore fortunate that Castewatch have had the stupidity to brazenly advertise the anti-Hindu views of this very Neo nazi skinhead rally style conference on their own website at: http://www.castewatchuk.org/CasteWatchUK-Conference-Report-2nd-July-2011.pdf

Sinna Mani (President of BOPIO and ex-Mayor of Lewisham) stated the following in his speech at the CasteWatchUK Conference July 2nd, 2011.

“We do not have to follow the bogus gurus. Most of the Hindu Gurus are bogus charlatans and they have no spirituality. Hinduism cannot provide the kind of spirituality required by equality of opportunities. Hinduism is a religion of inequality. Everything you do is Dharma or Karma, it is all bullshit. This is no disrespect to my Hindu friends sitting here.

I am a Hindu myself & I read Bhagwad Gita. Hindu literature is full of wisdom and it is the oldest religion in the world. But our brothers and sisters who departed from Hinduism, be they Sikhs, Muslims, Christians or Buddhists, they did for a good reason.

Perhaps by the time you read this they would have taken it down or removed the offending portions, as is the case when hate groups get exposed. Now one first gets an indication of how things are going when Baroness Flather blames Hindu Forum and Hindu Council as being organisations formed by upper caste Hindus. This is normal in a discourse which seeks to rubbish the Hindu voice in order to suffocate it at source, and is commonly done by Indians who are only Hindu name but use the Hindu label when it suits them. We find this even more with the speech by Sinna Mani, president of the BOPIO (British Organisation of People of Indian Origin). In an utterly racist diatribe Mani said caste was embedded in the DNA of every single Indian. His eugenics was complimented by a crass racial mythology in which he claimed Brahmins had pleaded with Alexander the Great no to dismantle the caste system when he conquered India . But the Macedonian conqueror had never actually done any of this and historical records are clear that he was actually defeated in his attempts to subdue the entire subcontinent.

Yet this is of little concern to Mr. Mani who fulminates against “Hindu Right Wing organisations” and the “stupidity of the Brahmin caste”. If Castewatch and its minions in the anti-Hindu Axis of Hate are so adamant that caste is equivalent or parallel to race, then surely Mr. Mani is himself guilty of the most disgusting racist comments? Would his anti-Brahmin rhetoric not itself fall foul of the very casteist legislation which Castewatch is trying to get enacted in Britain ? After all white people have every right to take action under laws prohibiting racial discrimination and many do. Race hatred is race hatred. Caste hatred is caste hatred, something which Castewatch appears to have conveniently forgotten. But then as Orwell reminded us in Animal Farm some animals are more equal than others in a totalitarian system which stifles free discussion, liberty of conscience and respect for the rights of the individual.

Mani claims no disrespect for his Hindu so-called friends .Now Mr. Mani brazenly argues that “Hinduism is a religion of inequality” and indeed “it is all bullshit”. The language of the gutter has now reached seemingly respectful organisations. But here we have it. The problem is not caste discrimination. The problem is Hinduism. Mani’s confession that he himself is a Hindu parallels the anti-Semitism harboured by nineteenth century Germans of Jewish origin such as Marx and Lasalle, a self-hatred of the most destructive type. For Mani, Hinduism is full of fake gurus who mislead the people. On the other hand Sikhism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism offer equality and for that reason whole sections of Hindus have gone over to those faiths.

Of course we are confronted here with the rather inconvenient fact that actual equality does not exist in those faiths in practice. It also does not exist in theory of one looks at the respective sacred texts and the cultural milieu from which they emerged, rather than just taking selective verses at random to harmonise with political correctness. Mani deal with this by denouncing the genocide by the Sri Lankan government against Tamils as being perpetrated by Sinhalese who were not real Buddhists. This again is part of the anti-Hindu discourse. When atrocities are done by Hindus, notably caste discrimination, the blame if firmly laid at the feet of Hinduism. But when Buddhists or others act in like manner, the blame is laid at human frailties and failings, not the supposedly perfect religion.

Later on Sinna Mani elaborates further on his anti-Hindu thesis. He claims that Hindus in Britain are trying to scare the whites and also makes sinister ideas of how it is perfectly legitimate to discriminate against Hindus if they belong to the ‘wrong’ caste. Only those deemed Dalits should be protected by anti-caste legislation. This is not equality at all. In fact is not discrimination itself? When the Race Discrimination Act was passed in 1968 it was to outlaw discrimination. In America civil rights was exactly that, civil rights for all. These were not measures taken against or to punish white people but to offer the same equality to everyone, irrespective of racial background as it should be in a civilised and democratic society. But Mani is so infected with anti-Hindu hatred that he openly boasts how he does not want equality but instead the very same special privileges he purports to be denied at present. And he wants the British government to help him do this! In fighting caste discrimination surely the last thing needed is inverted racism, casteism and the noxious fumes of those determined to introduce Third World politics and nepotism into a developed country.

Mani’s anti-Hindu hatred and racism is of course enhanced by others present. Nelam Khamba a “Hindu delegate” who appeared to play a role similar to A South African black homeland leader under apartheid, said that caste events were racist, equivalent to whites only events. Would she therefore also agree that Mr. Mani’s anti-Brahmin poison coated rhetoric was racist? Reena Jessiah disgustingly links the whole Hindu ethos to anti-Semitism in her poem which is an almost exact replica of that by Pastor Martin Niemoller who was incarcerated by the Nazis for speaking out against them – even though he initially hailed Hitler as a German messiah and felt Jews had too much power. Rena Annobil then recites a poem in which she claims the existence of the barbaric “Aryan” race.

It is not as if Castewatch’s own petty fascist leader is unaware of all this. It happened under his very nose. Indeed Davinder (David) Prasad himself then goes on record to fulminate against the “Hindu Lobby” and “right wing Hindu groups” that are meddling with the government. With all the ignorance and bigotry demonstrated it is amazing how much an organisation such as Castewatch, which we must remember claims to be actually fighting discrimination and prejudice, has in common with backward thinking communities in America who to this day cannot accept a black president and take refuge in the defeated civil war flag of the Confederacy.

Indeed how long is before Castewatch decide to hold their rallies in a cow pasture in front of a gigantic burning wooden cross? After all by excluding Hindus from even having a voice at their meetings, to which everyone else is welcomed with open arms and sinister grins, they have certainly covered up the reality of caste discrimination in Britain with white sheets, reserving for themselves two poked eye holes through which they can spy on the reality and keep the truth to themselves while denying it to others. That is the nature of the Castewatch Klan.

For Britain the ramifications for listening to such hate groups is more disturbing. While hatred by any other community is at least acknowledged , with regard to Hindus it is ignored or even encouraged. It is strange that while HHR has always offered to openly discuss the issues of caste, Davinder (David) Prasad has constantly fumbled and made excuses to escape from this while inviting every other faith community to put their ideas forward and fanning the flames of anti-Hindu hatred, just as he fans the flames of the cross which he burns in his front garden. Indeed he even called HHR “the opposition” at his Klan meeting in 2009, just because we are Hindus. And that is the crux of the matter. There is no Hindu Lobby in the UK enforcing caste. Indeed it is groups like Castewatch which are foisting and entrenching a caste identity onto others. That explains their constant reluctance to discuss the matter openly and constantly shift positions, with the only constant in this being a virulent hatred of anything Hindu.

By contrast Hindu organisations feel it best to keep their heads down and emphasise exhaustively how law abiding they are, how much contribution they have made to the economy, and their preponderance in the professions. They do not realise the danger posed by extremist groups such as Castewatch inciting hatred against Hindus and Hinduism by stereotyping them.

The international ramifications of extremist groups such as Castewatch is even more ominous. Backed by powerful and incredibly intolerant Christian fundamentalist groups the UK Caste Lobby has proven to be a useful tool in missionary machinations keen to spread their failed beliefs in India , while simultaneously squeezing Hindus out of the public space in Britain especially on discussions involving caste. If Mr. Mani claims people leave Hinduism for other faiths because of inherent inequality in that religion how would he explain the massive decline in church attendance and membership until what was once a Christian continent? This is not even at its worst in Britain where Christianity is increasingly the faith of a dying off elderly population.

The demographic implosion is even more pronounced on the continent. For example in Finland the established Lutheran church holds sway over a mere two percent of the population. In Estonia people have left Christianity in droves to seek spiritual solace in ancient pagan beliefs.

Yet India is a prime target with a conversion policy that uses all its financial muscle power to equate that country with having servitude equivalent to the very trans-Atlantic slavery which Bible believing Christians so eagerly participated in. Caste is said to be modern slavery and only the mass conversion of India to Christianity and annihilation of Hindu beliefs (and sometimes people, a blind eye being turned to Hindus exterminated and ethnically cleaned by Baptist terrorists in Nagaland and Mizoram) will solve India ’s backwardness. India is said to have apartheid and hence the missionary lobby and its useful idiots like Castewatch have in their ranks people who openly say that the rising

Asian power should be boycotted, as was South Africa under minority rule.

This does not bode well for either India or Britain . For India it will mean lack of investment and hence development which will lift that country’s millions out of dire poverty through job creation, literacy and expansion of the economy. For Britain the consequences are perhaps more severe. Castewatch and its missionary backers can only temporarily delay the rise of the new India . Britain can either listen to such hate groups and stay on the sidelines or play a proactive role in not just being part of India ’s rise but helping with the mutual exchange of knowledge, ideas, and trade. As the recent economic crises in western economies have shown Britain cannot rely on the near bankruptcy of its important trading partners in the form of Europe and America : and it is only a matter of time before China ’s debt levels mean it can no longer be the world’s supreme creditor. Therefore if Britain ’s government listens to the Axis of Anti-Hindu Hate, it remain blissfully ignorant as other nations help themselves handsomely to the opportunities awarded to them in India . In the long-term it is British jobs, living standards and influence in the world that will suffer.

We therefore ignore hate groups such as Castewatch to our peril. While Hindus may be their primary target the hatred they unleash cannot be contained and will ultimately destroy the very democratic and pluralist values from which all communities in Britain benefit. It would be naïve then to simply assume that individual rights, liberty, conscience and mutual respect are treasures valued by all. As long as even a vocal minority yearn for Caesars and Napoleons, these demagogues of hate will always arise to lead them.

Lahore, Pakistan (CHAKRA) – A Hindu couple, Mukesh and Padma in Hyderabad Pakistan, tied the knot with a traditional Hindu ceremony but in a fashion different from the rest. The wedding, while having the seven pheras (seven circles around the holy fire) was held on the streets for two purposes. The start of a new relationship for the couple as well as to publicize a stance against the complete disregard of Hindu couples existence.

Since 1947, the Muslim-backed Pakistani government has not recognized Hindu married couples as legally married. Due to this ignorance and disregard for Hindu individuals, many families have had to deal with social, psychological and even domestic problems including domestic violence against women, says Guru Sukh Dev, the pandit who solemnized the Hindu ceremony with Vedic verses.

Ramesh Mal, a local leader organized the demonstration for the couple and he said that ever since the creation of the Islamic State of Pakistan, they have not yet accepted Hindu marriage in order to enact laws that formalize it in a majority-based Muslim society. Mal further stated his opinion that the Pakistani government should follow suit from India and take steps to introduce laws that protect Hindu marriages.

According to Mal, not only do Hindu marriages cause hardships for Hindus in Pakistan but the community also has problems obtaining passports, registering married women, and conducting property transfers. Due to these issues even traveling within Pakistan becomes difficult if not impossible for Hindu individuals.

During the marriage the protesters chanted slogans to convince President Zardari to take further steps towards legalizing Hindu marriages.

Sapna Devi, one of the protesters revealed her union of marriage of 17 years yet she had no legal proof of it. In her case if her husband were to pass away she would not even be able to claim property that rightly belongs to her because there are no legal terms stating they are a union.

The newly wedded couple shared that although their wedding may have been seen as strange or chaotic, they still saw it as a start of a new life for them because they were fighting for change that was very important to their union–something the marriage ceremony itself stood for. So they think it was worth every minute, if it got a point across to the government and media. Padma said that everyone deserved to have such a basic right and they will not stop fighting until they get what they deserve.

Religious Minorities are constantly ignored and targeted by the Muslim Majority

PAKISTAN – Veerji Kohli, a Hindu activist in Pakistan has been accused of murder after trying to stand up for Hindu rights in Islamabad Pakistan.

Veerji is a well-known human rights activist who particulary focuses on the issues related to bonded labour. Recently, he helped to release a number of children, women and men from the hands of feudal lords in a community where many Kohli families live. He helped to release the men, women and children from a brutal environment where they were being treated unfairly by feudal lords, to do work in unlivable conditions for a next to nothing pay. He has been successful in getting many individuals out of such trouble while helping them to find better positions that are more suitable to their needs.

By taking a stand against the biased attitude of Pakistani police in a rape case of a Hindu girl by the name of Kastoori Kohli, Veerji Kohli has gotten into trouble. He has realized from this incident that taking a stance against a case involving feudal lords has its share of consequences. After being held in custody wrongfully for a few weeks, a high-level inquiry proved Veerji Kohli to be innocent while proving the police officers to be biased thus losing their jobs.

The feudal lords that are involved in the case are members of the local Muslim majority community, Raees Ghani Khan Khosa, and Bachal Khan Khosa who retaliated against Kohli by kidnapping him and keeping him in a dungeon for over four days. After serious pressure from some community members including prominent politicians, senior police officers, journalists and human rights activists, Kohli was released by the feudal lords. However, this did not mean their grudge had repealed.

The feudal lords set Kohli’s car on fire followed by framing him for a murder case that took place in Nagarparkar although Kohli was in Hyderabad at the time of the murder. Using their power and political ties, the Khan Khosa’s pressured the police to issue punishment under section 302 of the Pakistan Penal Code. Kohli, was once again in trouble–but now for killing something who he knew nothing about. All this followed from the night he decided to help his fellow community members from working under feudal lords who mistreated them and enslaved them like animals.

Kohli, since has asked his supporters and everyone in Islamabad to support his cause and case, after releasing a report to the public. He has told people to stay strong and continue to fight for human rights and injustices that victimize people in a way they should not be victimized. Regardless of consequences, Kohli still stands by all his decision made and is encouraging others to do what is right.

Dhaka, Bangladesh (CHAKRA) — Nine idols have been vandalized at a Kali Temple in Bangladesh by Islamists which has been standing for 200 years.

According to temple committee president, Harendranath Barman, four of the nine damaged idols were found beheaded in Sudrahabi village of Kaliganj sub-district. He is demanding the police to find the culprits and punish they as deserved for such a hate crime.

Prajit Kumar Roy, the sub-district officer in charge said that his team is out looking to arrest the culprits.

Similar incidents have taken place in the past. An ancient temple in a village near the Bangladesh capital was vandalized by Islamists a few months ago. Not only were six idols vandalized but in addition 35 people were attacked. The Sri Sri Rahshakali temple in the Ashrafdi village in Naranaganj was wrecked on February 7, during which four adjacent houses were damaged and five people were injured.

Bangladesh is a mostly muslim country with a minority hindu population.

Panaji, Goa (CHAKRA) — Gomantak Mandir and Dharmik Sanstha is the new name of approximately 300 temple boards that have come together from all eleven talukas in the state of Goa, to deal with cases of thefts and desecrations in Hindu temples across the state.
 
The manner in which the Goa state goverment is dealing with the damage to the sacred shrines is being compared to the way in which the Portugese regime handled similar issues during colonial rule.  Representatives of the temple associations are not happy and have emerged together to try their best to make a difference.
 
Jayesh Thali, co-coordinator of the Mahasangh stated that in the past six years, over 250 temples have been ransacked in addition to 50 desecrations of Hindu idols.  He further stated that the government has displayed indifference to these constant incidents one after the other and have not come up with any solution or ideas to stop the abuse to the temples.
 
From a temple located in Porvorim, Rajkumar Dessai, bluntly stated that Portugese laws, as existent in the past are still present in the state of Goa, with only name changes to seemingly portray that laws were changed to revolutionize the state handlings of Hindu temples.  Nothing but the name of the act has been changed.  According to Dessai, the laws made for a cupboard being damaged are equivalent to the laws that exist for the damaging of idols in temples.  He strongly believes the laws are outdated and must be revolutionized to make a greater difference for the Hindu community in Goa.
 
A meeting was to be held by the Mahasangh to mobilize the faithful from across the state in order to unite and share similar viewpoints and ideas to create change.
 
Legal assistance, free of cost was to be given at the meeting relating to cases of thefts and desecrations.  The purpose of the meeting was to mobilize individuals so that they are better able to take control and report complaints about desecrations and damage to their temples.
 
In addition, the Mahasangh, is strongly against the demolitions of Hindu temples that already exist on government property or land.
 
Ramesh Shinde, head of the Hindu Janjagruti Samiti for the regions of Goa , Gujarat and Maharashtra strongly condemned the inaction taken by the Goa government to put a stop to the damage and looting of sacred Hindu temples.  He thinks the Goa government should create a clear plan to stop the attacks on temples.  He has concluded that there is no fear of laws in the state of Goa, especially since there have been repeated cases to the same shrines over and over again.  The Sateri temple in Curchorem has been looted 5 times as stated by Shinde and just in the last year there have been 13 successful temple theft cases in Mapusa.  When the same damage happens to the same temple over a number of times resulting in laws being discounted continuously, a state of chaos is near if not in existence already.

By Arun Shanghvi

 
Mohan Gowda, Hindu Jana Jagruti Vedike spokesperson stated that the government has decided to go ahead with demolishing this large number of religious structures. 

The verdict of the Supreme Court clearly states that all religious structures that are built after December 7, 2009 must be demolished and most of these religious structures are Hindu temples across Mangalore.  With regards to those places of worship built before December 7, 2009–they will be examined case by case before a decision is made for whether they will become regularized structures, relocated or demolished. 
 
A very short notice has been given with no opportunity for appeal and the state government in its affidavit to the Supreme Court has agreed to clear all illegal religious structures by the end of this month. 

Gowda further stated that although the Supreme Court has allowed for temples that are over 30 years old to be regularized, the Karnataka government is simply seeking to demolish because the process of regularizing will be time consuming and not worth their time. It’s unfortunate according to him, that temples over 300 years old are at risk of demolition. 
 

Some temples that have received demolition notices are over 100 year old including the Kateel Temple in Dwara and the Mukhya Prana temple in Mangalore. 
The same government that had promised to protect the Hindu temples is not supporting and acting towards a demolition drive.  

Three hundred temples have now been given orders to relocate but there are many problems finding a place to relocate such a high number of temples and with so many restricted areas for religious structures present.

A few local shops in Rampurhat

(CHAKRA) On December 17th a Muharram Tazia parade was organized in Rampurhat by local Muslim groups. Since a permit is needed for all public parades and wasn’t present the police requested the organizers to follow certain routes so that local people do not face any hassle or delay in their daily commute as there was no notification of such a parade.  When SDPO intervened and tried to direct the marchers in routes the police approved, the mob turned violent and threatened to kill him. The police force retreated and continued to watch the marchers from a distance.

Participants from the parade began vandalizing Hindu owned stops between Lotus Press Lane and Kamarpatti More. At least 25 shops were looted and several Hindu women molested based on witnesses and police reports. The marchers also destroyed couple of govt owned buses. The procession then advanced to Shangata More where the marchers attacked the Dakshina Kali Mandir. Police witnessed the looting and mayhem from a distance. However, they took no action against the perpetrators.

On December 18th 2010, the local Hindu group known as Rampurhat Babosayi Samiti conducted a protest rally and blocked the state highway between Lotus Press Lane and Kamarpatti More from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. They demanded the culprits be apprehended and police prevent such incidents in future as this was the second large incident in the last 12 months. They also brought up the fact that many Hindus in the area have been attacked multiple times over the last few months by Muslim extremists from Bagtui village. In 2009, they attacked the Durga puja immersion procession near Mahajanpatti. A few witnesses we interviewed stated that they have been living in constant fear and refrain from wearing religious Hindu symbols in public such as a ‘bindi’ (a red dot worn by many Hindu women on their forehead).

As a result of continuing attacks and harassments, a large number of Hindu families have already left the area. Some local community leader’s estimate that 500 Hindus or 1% of the city’s population have moved to neighbouring villages over the last 12 months.