External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj is supporting the demand by some saints and Hindus to declare the Bhagwad Gita as a national (Rashtriya Granth) Book, which is very understandable. India is a Hindu nation in terms of culture and identity and more than 80% of the population are Hindus. Ramayana and Mahabharata represent Hindu cultural identity, and Gita is 5,151 years old and it is the oldest holy book in the world.
Mamta Banerjee and her cronies in her party have shown their ignorance by equating Indian Constitution with the sacred book Bhagwad Gita.
India is a democratic country and recently elected Indian government wants to promote Indian identity. Secularism does not mean Hindus should not promote Hindu values and culture and they should encourage only minority religious communities.
It is left to BJP to carry the mandate and introduce true secularism in India with respect to all cultures. It is daft to introduce German instead of Sanskrit which is a foreign language. Sushma Swaraj is taking the right step to carry out the mandate and she should be congratulated.
We should write to the Indian High Commission supporting her suggestion and Sikhs also should have Granth Shaib as the national scripture.
Arun Vaidyanathan
Via Email
