Save Bharat | Growing intolerance in India

When a few Indians hear the following phrases;

Growing intolerance,  

Modi has failed India, 

RSS is emboldened with extremism

Hindutva...

They go ballistic and busy themselves with hating, cursing and throwing insults, at Muslims and moderate majority of Hindus with common sense.

 I know for sure they are not getting this from Hinduism, but they may be getting it from the RSS ideology of Hindutva, which has nothing to do with Hinduism just as the Islamists have nothing to do with Islam; Neocons to Christianity or Violent Zionism to Judaism.

As Indians of all faiths, traditions and political affiliations, we need to come together and discourage what is divisive and encourage what is inclusive.

The attacks on Aamir Khan, Girish Karnad and other intellectuals show the growing intolerance among a few fellow Indians.  What hurts us is the Indian Americans, a few of whom are more intolerant than the ones in India. I read comments that make me puke at some of them, they have lived in America for a long time, and yet they have not grown up to accept the inclusivism of America. What did they learn here?  Hamare Bhai waisay ke waisay he Rahe!

These very men criticized the UPA government to the hilt, and now they cannot tolerate criticism of Modi’s government, does not amount to criticizing India. It's pathetic that they equate India with Modi, it does not enter their minds that Modi's come and go, but India remains an eternal society. 

We cannot let a few among us tear apart our motherland and hurt her togetherness.  We cannot become a divisive crazy nation like some of the nations we don't appreciate.

I seek your help in writing a white paper, and compile all the intolerant statements made by our leaders and public leaders, as well as the Indian Americans.  

Pull the statements made by Girish Karnad, Amir Khan, Arundhati Roy, and the intellectuals across the spectrum. 

Let this be a document for us to refer to,  and our next generation to see what we have done in preventing destruction of our motherland. We owe it to our motherland to protect her pluralistic ethos.

Please send the links with precise comments and quotes to : MikeGhouseforIndia@gmail.com  

Thank you,

Mike Ghouse, 

(214) 325-1916

Dallas, TX | Washington, DC 

http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com

Dr. Mike Ghouse is a community consultant, social scientist, thinker, writer, newsmaker and a professional speaker on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam,  politics, human rights, and foreign policy.  Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. More about him in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at TheGhousediary.com 

Narendra Modi’s Bubble and the Chumcha Culture

Prime Minister Modi is making all the classic mistakes of a man sitting inside the bubble, oblivious of the chaos outside the thin veil of the bubble. The men who keep him in euphoric status are called “Chumchas” – the “Yes men” of India who will ultimately let their bosses fall from grace.  

Their usual line is “Yes sir, your programs are working beautifully, there is no need to worry, everything is perfect, my hoon Na! (I am here to take care of you). Mr. Modi is so self absorbed, that he does not even question the veracity of the reports or may not even see the reports. His eerie silence does not bode well for India. 

The Chamchas bring the downfall of the leaders and kingdoms. Way back in 1799 the two chamchas of Tipu Sultan Poornayya and Mir Sadiq were telling him everything is alright, but they weren’t.  Girish Karnad writes in the dreams of Tipu Sultan that Tipu was aware of these men making deals with Lord Cornwallis behind his back, and that he was going to deal with them, alas he had done that.
 

George W Bush had his own reverend chumcha Cheney, who kept telling him, “Sir, everything is alright” and brought destruction to America and the world. Alas, God had gifted a brain to this dolt.

Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, has a much thicker bubble around her, she had no idea what was going on, the chamchas including Siddhartha Shankar Roy  kept saying, “Madam, everything is going good, as you had wanted” and she almost turned India into the dictatorship through her emergency rule, I shudder at the thought of what would have happened to India – it would have spun us off the orbit of democracy. Thanks to the Journalists and the media persons who went to Jail to protect our freedom, and now we have many such heroes amidst us to protect us from Modi going the wrong way.

A powerful leader is the most dangerous person for a democracy, and a powerful media is a blessing to a democracy and guarding the rights of the people.

George Bush was a powerful leader, in the wake of 9/11; he frightened everyone including the gutless Senators, Congress persons and even the Journalists to question him. The destruction he brought upon us and upon Iraq, Afghanistan and the world could have been prevented, had the American Media asked the right questions. 

Here comes Modi – a partial replica of George Bush. Bush ruined it by his frightening talk, and Modi is doing it by his silence.  Both leaders were elected with huge mandate.

Shamefully, the Indian Media is flooded with the chumchas, who are ready to praise Lord Modi at every instance.  Here is Jefferson’s wisdom for them, "The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter…."  Thomas Jefferson.

Describing the role of the press, George A. Krimsky, the former head of news for the Associated Press’ and co-author of Hold the Press, writes, “In the wake of America’s successful revolution, it was decided there should indeed be government, but only if it were accountable to the people. The people, in turn, could only hold the government accountable if they knew what it was doing and could intercede as necessary, using their ballot, for example. This role of public ‘watchdog’ was thus assumed by a citizen press, and as a consequence, the government in the United States has been kept out of the news business.”   Indeed, a true journalist is someone who is not a chumcha of the government, and we the people should be skeptical of all the journalists who praise the government.

Modi lives in a bubble, there was a time he cried and was true to himself, shame on his chumchas, and he is not true to himself any more. His bubble is becoming translucent; he cannot see what is going on outside of it.

President Reagan advise to Modi would be, “Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don't interfere as long as the policy you've decided upon is being carried out.” And he would add, “Trust but verify”. Ronald Reagan.

Indeed, his dream is being jeopardized by his own chumchas and may bring his downfall, if he skip the verify part.

 Sab ka saath sab ka vikas – that is, working together brings prosperity to all. His administration is doing everything to compel people not to work together and ripping their liberties and hell bent on dividing India. They are telling what an Indian can eat or not eat, believe or not believe.  The process of blatant discriminating against Muslims in employment and housing has begun, and on and on and on. Modi’s eerie silence on the issue is chilling, he is being told, and everything is alright sir. My hoon na!

Modi’s slogan, “We will build toilets and not temples” brought a lot of joy to the Indians. He is the first leader of independent India to even think and do something about it.  But his men and women are hell bent on forcing religious conversions, vandalizing churches and pushing a pluralistic Hindu faith into becoming a violent religion.

Does he want this or is he being bullied into silence? Whatever it is, he needs to tear the bubble and reconnect with people and speak up.  Indians are gutsy people and will bring him down as they did with the Almighty Indira Gandhi.

Skepticism is good and without which nothing good can come, and I understand the concerns people have.  In 2014,  I wrote, “I do connect with him now, and I will stick my neck out and say, things will get better under Modi Sarkar, good days are coming for every Indian regardless of his or her affiliation. “  I am withdrawing my neck now, until he comes out of the bubble and restores sanity and cohesiveness of India.

I thank Dr. Thomas A. Kodenkandath/Thommy, a Scientist by profession, and a cartoonist by hobby for drawing the Modi in Bubble cartoon precisely depicting the status of Mr. Modi. He is a graduate of  Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) and is a recipient of several awards, including the Kerala State Lalithakala Academy Award for editorial cartooning 

 Thank you

mike
Mike Ghouse, Speaker
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
........................................................................................................
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film " Sacred" to be released on 9/11 and a documentary "Americans together" for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com - Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day

Shashi Tharoor and Mike Ghouse on Narendra Modi at Huffington Post

Is there an Indian who does not want to hear the following statements from his national leader?  “125 Crore (1.25 Billion) Indians are my family” – “Sab Ka Sath sab Ka Vikas: everyone together, prosperity for all” - “I will not fall into the trap of looking at Muslim or Christian colors, but see everyone as my fellow Indian” - “Whether you voted for me or not, I am your Prime Minister” – “No one needs to fear the other” – Let’s build toilets before we build temples” and many such positive upbeat statements from Mr. Narendra Modi.

When Tharoor and I heard the above statements in a variety of expressions, we understood its depth and praised it. Even if he did not mean it, let the man define himself and live up to it. He has a reputation for discipline and in less than ten days, he has straightened the Parliamentary offices – if they know Modi is making the rounds, they clean up the offices and get their acts together. After all, Modi has quoted Mahatma Gandhi “we are the trustees of people” and we have to live up to it.

The accusations leveled against me and Tharoor is that we have changed, we did not!
It is actually Modi ……….. Continued at Huffington Post - to be posted before Monday at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/
   
References:

Links provided after each bullet and additional links, where you can link this as article.

"125 Crore [1.25 billion] Indians are my family."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/news/Full-text-of-Narendra-Modis-speech-in-Central-Hall-of-Parliament/articleshow/35420762.cms

   
"Sab Ka Sath sab Ka Vikas: Everyone together, prosperity for all."
http://www.narendramodi.in/sabka-saath-sabka-vikas-a-synopsis-of-11-years-of-shri-narendra-modi-in-gujarat-as-the-cm/


"I will not fall into the trap of looking at Muslim or Christian colors, but see everyone as my fellow Indian."
http://www.ndtv.com/elections/article/election-2014/in-message-to-muslims-narendra-modi-says-will-reach-out-to-all-512357

"Whether you voted for me or not, I am your prime minister."
https://news.yahoo.com/modi-condemns-anti-muslim-remarks-colleagues-defiant-112857867--business.html

"No one needs to fear the other."
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/17/world/asia/india-muslims-modi.html?_r=0

"Let's build toilets before we build temples."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Build-toilets-first-and-temples-later-Narendra-Modi-says/articleshow/23422631.cms 
 
Gandhi Quote
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PQlAJgf8Tc#t=522

 
Mike Ghouse is Public Speaker, thinker and an author commited to building cohesive societies, and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Everything about him is at MikeGhouse.net and many links to media, websites and blogs.

Notes from watching Swearing in ceremony of PM Modi and his cabinet

Notes made while watching the Swearing in Ceremony of the PM and new Cabinet, it was a 90 minute event. This is raw, no grammar or spell check done.

·         Awesome event

·         Congratulations to Prime Minister Modi and his Cabinet

·         I don’t know about you guys- the Indian National Anthem has always made me feel tender and emotional, and frequently, I hear this version while working late or when I want to get a break. 

·         No Jai Hind after the national Anthem, even though I did not like Indira Gandhi for her emergency rule – but her voice Jai Hind have been engraved on my mind, I hear her every time, and usually, I am the one in gathering to say it out loud – Jai Hind.

·         It was good to see all people stand up for the National Anthem, of course, as Americans we have opened up, but apparently the TV people made a point about Nawaz Shariff standing up for the national Anthem.   

·          There is a false assumption that one should not stand up for other nations National Anthems, the problem is not with nations and the people – it’s the governmental policies. 

·         This the only glorious moment of the President of India

·         Modi’s swearing in started the roll – I was really hoping that Modi will take the oath, and then all of the ministers, together would take the oath collectively. It was too long to hear the exact same words except their names.

·         It would have been nice for the President and Prime Minister to speak 

·         Swearing in was in Hindi and English – Venkaiah Nadu from Andhra did it in English, followed by a few more including Najma Heptulla….. Ofcourse, they could have done in of the 28 languages

·         Uma Bharati walked out without bowing to the President

·         Good to see many women in the cabinet

·         Men shook hands with the president, women did not. 

·         Modi and someone leaned as if touching the feet

·         Most of them were around 62 – wonder what the median age was

·         Najma Heptulla is the oldest of all 74, born before independence 

·         Smriti Irani is the youngest of all - 38

·         Oddly, women’s age except Najma was not displayed

·         No western clothes were worn – except the shirt and pants by Mr. Gowda

·         As a pluralist I did not like the phrase “Sabhi prakar ke log” – translates to all kinds of people, it should have been “every Indian” and not all kinds of people. 

·         When Sushma Swaraj came – Barkha started talking in her boisterous voice- I have always liked her, but today I shouted her “Shut up Barkha” I want to hear them.  They did not have the sense to shut up. 

·         Disappointments

o   Too many Ministers, I was hoping Modi would cut the bureaucracy down

o   Nirmal Sitaraman should have been given the post of Public relations – she did very well in defending and speaking in behalf of BJP and Modi all these months.

o   Najma Heptulla should not have been given the minority affairs position, it should have been some oneelse who is aggressive and active in the market.

o   Too long – and a punishment of the guests to sit quietly… although many of them were “desis’ and talking with each other. 

·         Positive things

o   Great moment, great ceremony

o   Modi’s vision to be inclusive by inviting SAARC Nations, this is good step forward

o   Someone floated the idea of NAFTA – for Modi to do SAARC deal

o   It was good to see Rahul and Sonia in the audience – In a democracy; we have to learn to accept defeat gracefully.

o   None of the guests seem to have cell phones, and no one was checking messages, it must have been a punishment to Salman Khan, he was restless.

o   Glad they kept the age to be below 75 for Ministerial berths

These are the raw notes with no spell or grammar check

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net

Pakistan, China and Japan to receive high priority under Narendra Modi's foreign policy

Modi has the passion to leave his legacy, he wants to put his stamp on India. There is something about him that makes him uncommon. This may be an euphoric call for him to follow the Raj dharma - good governance.  As I have said in an earlier note, he was waiting for this opportunity to re-set the course for RSS and BJP away from fascist leanings to pluralistic pathways. He has the mandate and he will do it right. 

The other day, after he received his letter from the President to form the government, in a speech at the Parliament with BJP members, he said “he sets the record ever time, he had not seen Vidhana Sabha of Gujarat until he was elected as CM, and now he steps in to the parliament for the first time ‘after’ elected as the PM. I went deep into that statement, reading into his passion to do unusual things. 

Until after the campaign rhetoric was over, I really did not think he would make a good Prime Minister, but in the last week or so, I have come to believe that no one in India needs to fear the other (part of my definition of cohesive societies ) and Modi has articulated that verbatim.

He will turn things around in foreign policy - he will find a place for India in the UN Security Council, the first step is to have the ability to have good relations with the neighbors to pave the way for that role, and he is going to do that. He will breakthrough and establish newer relationships with our neighbors and China.

Again, I am walking a thin rope with a faith, a new found nascent faith in Modi. I connect with his words, his words are my words. I am really short on time, but before Monday, I may write at least few notes and pass it on to my friends, as I may not get the time to get it published in a paper, but it will be on my blog.  I think 50% of my write up would be reflected in Modi's speech on Monday after his oath of office.
 
Mike Ghouse, is a Public Speaker, thinker and a writer committed to offer pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

# # #

Pakistan, China and Japan to receive high priority under Narendra Modi's foreign policy 

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/35489428.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Congratulations Mr. Narendra Modi!

SUMMARY OF ARTICLES WRITTEN IN 2014
http://mikeghouse.net/Articles/Narendra-Modi-India.asp
 

Congratulations Mr. Narendra Modi!
CAVEAT EMPTOR -PLEASE READ THE DISCLOSURE AT BOTTOM

A few Muslims and Christians may find it difficult to read the phrase, “Congratulations Mr. Modi”- they feel a sense of betrayal in congratulating the “Butcher of Gujarat” or Hindutva forces that “raped the Nuns”.  The Muslim-Christian apprehensions are indeed legitimate and need to be addressed,  and I hope Mr. Modi will take this up and bring a closure to this.  

On his part, Mr. Modi has made statements to include every Indian, "sab ka sath, sab ka vikas" - i.e., together, everyone's prosperity.  I hope and pray that he will stand by his words. Meanwhile, we have to move forward. 

The time to argue and challenge was lost on May 12, 2014. Whatever needed to be done should have been done at the ballot, and the Modi won the ballot.  An overwhelming majority of Indians chose to trust his words about inclusive development, and on his part,  he has stayed away from communalizing the elections process, which invariably appealed to the voters. We have to honor the verdict of the people of India, and it does not mean we cannot differ and continue to seek redressing the injustices to fellow Indians, but rather work as a team to solve the problems of the nation and uplift the common man, as opposed to spending our time in tearing each other apart with nothing to gain. 

The Dalits, Muslims and Christians have voted for Modi in similar percentages as the mainstream Hindu and other communities have, those are the hard numbers. Dalits have clearly abandoned their Rakhwala's (claimants and protectors) and voted for Modi. Likewise the good polls predicted Muslims could influence the outcomes for 222 MP's, and they did, not the congress or Samajawadi party, but Modi.  Congress and SP's should have won over 150 seats clearly if they had the Muslim and Dalit support, which they did not.  In fact, Modi has earned an inclusive mandate from all communities.  This needs to be dug deeper. We have to look at his statements in the last phase of the elections. In numerous interviews Mr. Modi has done what was needed to be done – articulate his vision for one India and inclusive growth.

The past has to come to an end, and for most Indians, it ended on May 16, and from the 17^th  a new era of action has begun. We have to go forward and focus on nation building . 

On my part,  I pledge to give my support in building a cohesive India, where no Indian is denied equal access, opportunity and justice to become a participant and a contributor to the overall growth of the nation, and more importantly no Indian has to live in fear of the other. I will be happy to part take in such efforts as needed, as my sacred duty to my motherland.   

A full op-ed is in the writing, and I hope to articulate the need to support Mr. Modi, while seeking redressing of justice for the victims of Gujarat Massacre. He also wants justice and will remain innocent until proven guilty of direct involvement.  

Congratulations Mr. Modi, the Indians have placed their trust in you, and now it is up to you to provide the leadership in building prosperity and bring cohesion to the children of India.

Mike Ghouse, is a Public Speaker, thinker and a writer committed to offer pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Thank you
Jai Hind



mike
Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916 text/talk

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Narendra Modi's speech on Good governance (5/19/14)

This is one of the best speeches Modi has delivered on good governance and a developmental economic model. Some may say that someone else may have written it, that is fine, but he has owned it by delivering it so eloquently and I hope he means every word of it. http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com/2014/05/narendra-modis-speech-on-good.html

US Policy on Modi needs to Change (5/16/14)

I do hope, President Obama puts his differences aside, and values the verdict of the people of India, it is not a simple majority, it is a huge majority. Let's give Modi a chance and trust our democracy and support him in his plans - as he has articulated it in his interview time and again. http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2014/05/us-policy-on-india-and-modi-needs-to.html

The bigger news of Modi is India wins (5/16/14)

The bigger news is that “India has won” as Modi has put it. An ordinary person has made it to the top, that is the sign of a true democracy, and it’s a positive motivation to the common Indian man – A chai wallah can make it so I one can make it too, if I have the dedication and commitment to do it. http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-bigger-news-of-modi-win.html

India's Modi on His Best Behavior: Can We Trust Him? (5/9/14)

We criticize individuals with the idea of wanting them to reset their course and get back on the righteous path of justice, humility, truth and respect for every life. Here is an effort to invoke Mr. Modi to follow "rajdharma," or good governance. Democracy and pluralism (i.e., respecting the otherness of others) runs in our veins, so let's have faith in our system. If Mr. Modi fails us, we can dump him through ballot or a no-confidence vote, as we did with Indira Gandhi and Vajpayee. To attain greatness and a place in the annals of history, Mr. Modi has a lot more to prove than we can demand. Continued at Huffington Post - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/indias-modi-on-his-best-behavior-can-we-trust-him_b_5280892.html#es_share_ended

Time Magazine changed the Times man of the year (4/23/14)

TIME heeded to Mike's activism on the issue and has now removed the 6 million votes generated from Modi's autobots that were cast yesterday. In the final result now on display at the TIME 100 Poll page, Arvind Kajriwal has been declared the winner and Modi now has voted as the most disliked person in the list with the largest number of NO votes. http://time.com/73538/indian-politician-arvind-kejriwal-wins-time-100-readers-poll/

Modi, Kejriwal become Time's 'most influential' people thanks to dodgy poll and online fan club (4/23/14)

Dallas-based multi-faith peace activist Mike Ghouse says he did exactly that to confirm his suspicion, clicking several times from the same computer to record multiple votes. "This is a serious issue of integrity of the Time Magazine," he said in an email. "Can Time audit its computers to determine how many clicks have come from the same computer?" Obviously, the online battle has no bearing on reality. But the winner will take home the momentary bragging rights of being "elected" Time magazine's most influential person in the world, even though the more important verdict will come on May 16.  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Modi-Kejriwal-become-Times-most-influential-people-thanks-to-dodgy-poll-and-online-fan-club/articleshow/34123215.cms

 

India's experiment with clean politics (3/13/2014)

Years ago, India ranked # 1 on the list of corrupt nations in the world, and today it is not. Despite the economic, social, cultural frictions we have, we are inherently a pluralistic democracy. http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/03/indias-experiment-with-clean-politics.html

Modi's Nakshatras are not in his favor (12/23/13)

Narendra Modi's Nakshatras (stars) are not in his favor, and the Grahan (eclipse) is hovering over him like a dark shadow casting its Rahu Kala (inauspicious times). His run for the Prime Ministership is ashubh (unlucky) for the 2014 elections. We recommend him to withdraw from the race, finish the current term as the Chief Minister of the state and lay a solid foundation for the next run. http://www.opednews.com/articles/Narendra-Modi-s-Nakshatras-by-Mike-Ghouse-Anti-christian_Bharatiya-Janata-Party_Business_Congress-131227-999.html -  It was also published as an interview at Saudi Gazette. http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20140227196984

India's future, Narendra Modi and moving forward (11/04/13)

Unfortunately, the majoritarian attitudes of a few harm India's harmony and adversely affect her prosperity. They harass, threaten and use violence to teach the minorities, women and the weak how to behave, and put them in their place. It is like letting the air out of one of the tires, hurting all of us in the end.

The 1984 Sikh Genocide, the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992, burning of Hindu Passengers in Godhra and Massacre of Muslims in Gujarat in 2002, the rapes of Nuns, Dalits and destruction of Churches are among the ugly cruelties we have witnessed since independence in 1947. It is a shameful blot on the civility of our Mother; India. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/indias-future-narendra-mo_b_4177079.html

Another 25 Pieces are written prior to it - they are all in Google search, http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com and  Sulekha.com

How it all began:

I have been a severe critic of Mr. Modi, and have written and published articles ever since the Gujarat genocide. It started out with organizing a public demonstration against the riots in the first week of March 2002 in front of the old court house in Downtown Dallas.  This was followed by hosting events to show the horrors of the Massacre with Shabnam Hashmi and others to a program to commemorate the  Gujarat Genocide in a public forum on January 26, 2014 as a part of the 7^th annual Holocaust and Genocides event.  

Some of my fellow Hindu Indians (friends at one time)  in Dallas and on forums across the world started hating me and my presence without understanding that someone or the other has to speak up, and some of the hardcore Hindutva fanatics still do, they have clearly not understood the essence of democracy is to give voice to differing opinions and to stand up for the discriminated ones.   

Then some of the Muslims started hating me intensely for my endorsement of Vajpayee’s call to Muslims to join the BJP. We have to be engaged in the society – the answer is as simple as that. None of us can live in pens and expect the world to know us, and us to know others. Quran clearly calls the best one among us are those who "know" each other, knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of a different point of view - then comes the peace.

You and I have the freedom today because people have opposed and stood up against a singular way of thinking and shunning diversity.  Diversity of thought and expression is a necessity to build cohesive societies.

A lot of articles have been written since then, some preserved at Sulekha.com and at http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com
 

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C A V E A T   E M P T O R

I have been critical of Mr. Modi ever since Gujarat Massacre took place in 2002, and have been an activist and written extensively about the policies to govern. I have consistently sought justice for the victims of Gujarat and restoration of their livelihood and recommended on building desegregated societies for the ultimate good of India, but rarely have I sought the pound of flesh. In the last two weeks, however, I have written optimistic notes about Mr. Modi, based on his interviews and his speeches.  In the coming 100 days, IF I see his actions match his good words, and he does some praischit as a part of the raj dharma, I will admire that human quality in him, and would believe that he has the potential to be become one of the visionaries of India like Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru who was instrumental in building a stable democracy, that his daughter could not undo. Because of my write ups, I continue to lose a few my friends and that is ok, I don't need friends like that. We have to learn to live with our differences, and my commitment remains  building cohesive pluralistic societies and I like the new found inclusive language of Modi.
 

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in Standing up for others and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work through many links.
 

U.S. policy on India, and Modi, needs to change

URL -  http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/05/us-policy-on-india-and-modi-needs-to.html

We are a Democracy and each one of us has the freedom to express our differences without fear,  but yet we have to work together in nation building and the common good of every member of the society.

Whatever is needed to be done should have been done at the ballot, the majority, indeed, the overwhelming majority has chosen to trust the words of Mr. Modi and together, we have to go forward. 

Justice should be the foundation of every society and no one should be above the law, and the law is clear: One is innocent until proven guilty.  Mr. Modi in his interview with NDTV has challenged the civil society to hang him, if he is found guilty, until he is found guilty, we need to value our systems, justice is the only thing the society stands on.

I have been critical of Mr. Modi from the very beginning and that has not changed, but I was never for the pound of flesh, instead I was for restoring the lives of those who lost their homes, livelihood and the loved ones, and to build a cohesive India where no Indian had to live in fear of the other. In each one of the pieces I have written, the theme was consistent; Justice and inclusion. My last OpEd at Huffington post repeats the appeal - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/indias-modi-on-his-best-behavior-can-we-trust-him_b_5280892.html 

I  agree with Fareed Zakaria on many items he has listed, I do hope, President Obama puts his differences aside, and values the verdict of the people of India, it is not a simple majority, it is a huge majority. Let's give Modi a chance and trust our democracy and support him in his plans - as he has articulated it in his interview time and again. 


Mike Ghouse
http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com
www.MikeGhouse.net

Fareed Zakaria's piece at Washington Post
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