Shillong, Sept 28: The Voice of the People Party (VPP) in Meghalaya on Tuesday asserted the need to oppose any attempt to create division in society in the name of religion.
“Let us oppose any attempt to create division in the society, in the name of religion. Let us not look at each other through the prism of religion, and instead strive to maintain the unity of this great country,” VPP chief and former Nongkrem legislator Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit said in a statement.
He was reacting to the alleged statement reportedly made by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat that all people living in India are Hindus.
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“The statement made by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat that we are all Hindus since we are together in Bharat is more than meets the eye. One should be able to read between the lines what this statement actually means? If one tries to properly analyse the statement, one would conclude that his statement is directed at Christianity,” Basaiawmiot said.
Stating that Bhagwat’s statement cannot be taken lightly, the former MLA said, “It is incumbent upon the indigenous people to be very careful and alert, and not to be misled by such baseless and unfounded statements.”
He said it must be remembered that even before the advent of Christianity, the indigenous people practised their traditional faith which is very different from the Hindu religion.
The indigenous tribes worship a living God and are not idol worshippers. Therefore, indigenous tribal religion cannot be compared to Hinduism by any stretch of the imagination.
“As a Christian myself, I never claimed that Meghalaya is a Christian State, because faith or religion is personal, and had nothing to do with the State or a community,” he said while adding that it is also unconstitutional to state that Meghalaya is a Christian State or that India is a Hindu country. (NNN)
