Understanding the Controversy: Why Some Pakistanis Feel Insulted

Amalendu Upadhyaya
Posted By -
0
Discover the controversial statements by Justice Markandey Katju regarding Pakistan's legitimacy and the reactions from Pakistanis. Explore the historical context of Partition, the concept of reuniting India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, and the socio-political implications of these views. Dive into the debate on whether such statements are insulting or reflect genuine beliefs about the region's shared history and future. Read more about Justice Katju's perspective and the broader impact of these views on Indo-Pak relations.
Understanding the Controversy: Why Some Pakistanis Feel Insulted


Why do Pakistanis feel insulted when I say Pakistan is a fake country ?

By Justice arkandey Katju

Many Pakistanis feel insulted when I say Pakistan is a fake, artificial country.

However, I say it with no intention to insult or hurt anyone's feelings, but because I genuinely believe the statement to be true. Should I stop saying 2+2=4 just because it hurts someone ?

I regard India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as one country, which share the same culture, and were one for over 500 years since the time of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. We were only temporarily and artificially divided by a British swindle called Partition in 1947 on the basis of the bogus two nation theory, but are bound to reunite again one day under a secular government led by modern minded patriotic leaders. That however will take time, since those who divided us will not let us easily reunite.

The purpose of Partition and the creation of an Islamic state called Pakistan was to ensure that Hindus and Muslims keep fighting each other even after the Britishers leave, so that the people in the Indian subcontinent remain poor and backward, and united India does not emerge as a modern industrial giant ( for which it has all the potential, having a huge pool of technical talent and immense natural resources ), like China, and with its cheap labour becomes a big rival to Western industries. This has been explained in detail below :

Since I regard India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as one country, I regard all Pakistanis and Bangladeshis as Indians. So how can I insult my own countrymen, whom I love? I no doubt strongly criticise the backward, feudal thinking and practices among both Hindus ( e.g. caste system, looking down on dalits, and cow worship ) and Muslims ( e.g. sharia, burqa, madarsas and maulanas ). But that is not to denigrate them but to encourage them to give up their backwardness and modernise ( as was done by Mustafa Kemal in Turkey ) so that they become prosperous.

It is because I regard all Pakistanis as Indians that I stayed their deportation.

Even today, 77 years after Partition and the phoney 'Independence' that we got, the vast majority of our people suffer from abject poverty, record unemployment, appalling level of child malnutrition ( every second child in India is malnourished, according to Global Hunger Index ), skyrocketing prices of essential commodities like food, fuel and medicines, almost total lack of proper healthcare and good education for our masses, ( 57% Indian women are anaemic ), atrocities and discrimination against minorities, etc.

We will never be able to get rid of these great socio-economic evils, which have plagued us for centuries, unless we reunite, because as long as we are divided we waste much of our precious resources in mutual hostility and buying foreign arms at huge cost, as we regard our countries ( India and Pakistan ) as enemies.

Some Pakistanis say how can we reunite with India where Muslims are lynched, their houses bulldozed, and many ( like Umar Khalid ) arrested and imprisoned on flimsy charges for years. My reply is that it is because of Partition on the basis of the bogus two nation theory, and creation of an Islamic state, that these things have happened. It was easy for the BJP to spread the propaganda that since Pakistan is an Islamic state, India ( in which 80% people are Hindus ) should be a Hindu state. If India had remained united it is unlikely that this would have happened.

Also, as a result of the recent parliamentary elections in India, in which the BJP suffered a setback and lost its majority in the Lok Sabha, the nightmare for Indian Muslims is over

(Justice Katju is a retired judge of the Supreme Court of India. These are his personal views.)

Post a Comment

0Comments

Post a Comment (0)