Jammu, November 05: The debate on ‘intolerance’ in India has entered new phase with ‘tolerant’ brigade deciding to confront the ‘intolerant’ head on and reply them in the same manner to bring home the point that all was well in the country and it was only to derail Bihar elections that a sudden surge was witnessed among the ‘pseudo-secularists’.
The political observers believe that the next move by the award wapsi brigade would now enter in another phase as the ‘intolerant’ brigade as they are termed by the majority of the people will face the ‘tolerant’ brigade which ostensibly was waiting for the Bihar elections to end and initiate their offensive.
The first such major step will be taken by Anupam Kher the renowned film personality and a social activist who is leading the tolerance debate brigade to Rashtrapati Bhawan and meet the president to put their point of view regarding the intolerance in the country in order to bluff the congress lead intolerance march recently.
The march has got huge response from people from all walks of life who were seeking a platform to defend the government and expose the people out to malign the nation before international community.
Since people also link it with the Bihar elections they say that the government will also now come out forcefully to counter the propaganda of the intolerant brigade and rope in bigger personalities to prove its point besides countering the propaganda with facts and figures.
On the other hand roping in of Shahrukh Khan by the award wapsi gang has added more colour and power to the intolerance debate with even BJP playing cautious by reprimanding its cadre against blaming Shahrukh knowing well that it might backfire in view of his star power.
In fact SRK’s involvement has also forced the likes of Anupam Kher to rebuff the tolerant brigade to show restraint even as he has been mobilizing support for his march to Rashtrapati Bhawan on November 7 which would include artists, writers and painters.
With the debate now entering into direct confrontation between two warring sides the days to come will see more of the debate on intolerance with the exception that now onwards it will be intolerants versus tolerant and one personality will be pitted against another personality directly in TV debates.
Joining the row the writers in exile in Jammu have also put their weight behind the nation and slammed the ‘intolerant’ brigade for their sustained campaign against the nation with an ulterior motive asking them why they remained silent for 26 years on massacre and forced exile of Kashmiri Pandits from valley in 1989.
The writers said that they were shocked and dismayed over the manner the so called ‘intolerance’ campaign was launched in the country selectively adding the exile of Kashmiri Pandits which was termed as equivalent to genocide by National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in one of its judgments also failed to wake up the so called conscience of these writers who have suddenly felt pain for a couple of killings.
The writers said that at Nadimarg 27 bullets were pierced in the body of a small boy but for these writers his blood was not thicker than water. “Among the writers who returned awards some were from Kashmir and they are witness to our genocide but they remained mum. It is a conspiracy against the nation when big investors from abroad are coming to India for investment” they added.
Terming the killing of rationalists, and writers as condemnable the writers in exile said that it does not mean some people will use it for their petty political gains and to malign their political opponents.
With more people joining both the sides the debate is only going to generate more heat even as some believe that the ‘intolerant’ brigade would not show slowdown after the Bihar elections were over.