New Delhi, May 13 (PTI) Nationalist leadership among Muslims has become a rare commodity now as the leaders get support only if they have separatist tendencies, top RSS functionary Dattatreya Hosable has said.
In an exclusive interview with PTI Videos, he acknowledged there were nationalist Muslim leaders during the freedom struggle and a few out there today do not get the support.
Hosabale was asked about the recent comments of AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi that the time has come for Muslims to form their own leadership in the sense that they should form their own party because they are not getting justice from what he described as the so-called secular parties.
“That is left to him and how people of his own religion are going to respond to that is yet to be seen,” he replied.
“But the thing is, the nationalist leadership among Muslims, which was there during the freedom struggle… has become a rare commodity” because after the creation of Pakistan, there were gradual political changes in India which led to pseudo-secular policies, Hosabale said.
“That is the problem. There are (some), but they are not supported. You have to be a separatist person. Then only the community supports,” he said.
Asked further whether he thinks that there was no need for Muslims to have their own leadership, the senior RSS functionary said, “Leadership is right. Every community can have its leadership. Political parties need not be on the basis of religion.” Hosabale said the Indian Constitution permits any combination, but if it is followed on the basis of religion, then all these things start.
“So there are many political parties that follow certain faiths. In Kerala, some Christian-oriented parties are there. There is a Sikhism-focussed party,” he said.
“As long as they follow certain things according to the Representation of the People Act, a political party can be formed. So, there is a Muslim League also. There was a Hindu Mahasabha also,” Hosabale said.
He further explained, “What is important is whether there can be a consensus on certain national issues about our nationality, about our nation’s foundational values, which even Jawaharlal Nehru or Sampurnanand ji or Mahatma Gandhi ji talked about.
“Those people were in the political field. I’m not speaking about Maharishi Arvind or Vivekananda who were in the spiritual field.” The top RSS functionary said these issues, therefore, need to be properly understood.
“So that’s why in the name of secularism, we have thought for long that discussing any of these things, including religion, is anathema. It is stigma. That should not be there,” Hosabale said.