Rising menace -soter

Letter To Editor, Herald, 16/10/2013 Rising menace The recent observations of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court which states that “ India is not a Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist or Christian India. It is India which is born from the bosom of unrelenting struggle of millions of people,” could not have come at a better time. Religious fascism in this country is menacingly on the rise. Religious sentiments seem to be mischievously used to capture power and deny constitutional rights to certain communities. For instance, the chorus for a ban on cow slaughter in Goa, which seems to have the tacit support from so- claimed secular activists, seems more intended to deny livelihood and the food choices of particular communities rather than to actually save the cow. The ill- treatment of cattle by the cattle owners does not seem to attract the attention of these bovine lovers, but banning cow slaughter to harass particular communities seems more exciting. -Soter D'Souza