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                                                                                 Prof Sadgopal's comments would answer your questions , i have copied them from previous mail

Dear Shri Vinod Upadhyay ji,

Thank you for your thoughtful response. In view of the lack of these Hindi fonts in your PC, could you read my previous email written in 'mangal' font? If not, I will make a pdf copy and send it to you again as an attachment.

I am very happy that we have already reached a fundamental agreement. Our common stand: Both of us are resolutely opposed to those elements who inflict damage to our diverse religion(s), society (this includes all sections of Indian society) and our nation i.e. India. I think, in saying this, we are only reiterating the essence of the Preamble to the Constitution of India. For this, we both can legitimately feel a sense of pride as citizens of India.

Where is then the difference? Let me explore a bit, if you would please permit me. When Nathuram Godse assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, should we have started killing all the Maharashtrian Brahmins? Of course, not! What did the newly constituted Govt. of India do? It investigated, identified Nathuram Godse as the killer with evidence, arrested him and took him to the court. The case went on for quite some time until the charges were proved and the killer was duly punished as per the law of the land. It would have been indeed unfortunate if we had gone berserk and started expressing our anguish by massacring Maharashtrian Brahmins who also were equally upset at the assassination of Gandhiji.

You would agree that it was a national shame that thousands of Sikhs were killed or rendered homeless in November 1984, just because the killers of late PM Indira Gandhi were two of her Sikh guards. What was the fault of the poor carpenters, welders, motor mechanics, safai karamcharis, shop keepers and such other ordinary Sikh citizens of India in this assassination? Their role was no more than mine or yours. Why should the responsibility of the criminal acts of a handful be fixed on the entire 'kaum'? Why don't we practice our law honestly to punish the criminals responsible for such anti-social and anti-national acts? This is what is expected of a civilized nation like ours, whose cultural traditions date back to the ancient Vedic times and the Buddhist age.

In the case of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, however, the Delhi police stood as 'tamashbeen' while Congress leaders incited poor low caste Hindu slum dwellers to loot and kill Sikhs. I was a first hand witness to all this happening in my India. In order to convince the slum dwellers that all Sikhs were 'gaddars' and conspirators in killing Indiraji, organized rumours were spread that Sikhs distributed 'mithai' as the news of Indiraji's killing reached various corners of Delhi (just like the rumours spread after terrorist bomb blasts these days). When a marauding crowd tried to enter the lane where my mother lived in south Delhi, shouting that the Sikh family at the end of the lane distributed 'mithai', my then 75-year old mother (an arya samaajee who did vedic hawans periodically) stood in their path and asked them, "Kisko 'mithai' baantee, unke pados mein to hum rahte hain? Aap mein se kisne dekha unko mithai baantate?" There was a dead silence in the crowd of 400 excited young men holding swords and knives – all poor semiliterate Hindu slum dwellers. The Congress leader, realizing  that his emotional hold on crowd was about to slip, he shouted, "Aage badho, ve sab gaddaar hain. Mataji, hatiye hamaare raaste se." But my mother stood like a rock, all alone, and announced, "Meri laash ke oopar." The crowd backtracked and the Sikh family was saved from death. Until my mother's death in 1999, the entire Sikh family would touch my mother's feet. I still speak of those times with choked emotions. My Sikh family friends in Allahabad had to hide themselves in Hindu friends' homes for weeks in order to save themselves from the attack of Congress-engineered Hindu mobs. What an irony? Where was the law of the land? Where was the Republic of India?

At the end of all this, Rajiv Gandhi had the galls to announce, "Jab bargad ka ped girta hai to ghas to dab kar kuchlee hi hai!"

Ten days later, when things had become somewhat peaceful, I and my wife took a train from Delhi to Itarsi, back to our work. There was a Sikh woman in her thirties next to us along with her 13-year old son (studying in class 7, as we learned later) with a jooda but without a turban. The mother was tense, fearful of something going wrong. Both of us reassured her of our support. When the train had crossed, Faridabad, the young son asked her mother, "Mummy, Bhagat Singh to Sikh the na?" The mother nodded her head in affirmation but asked the son to keep shut. But the young lad could not resist and asked his next question, "To phir log Sikhon ko gaddar kyon bolte hain?" We both broke down and sobbed. Our India was breaking apart!

You remember, I also sobbed when I read Navin's story about Mushtaq a few days ago. I would also break down when my kashmeree pundit friends would narrate their horrors while being made to flee the Valley in 1990. Or when I meet a dalit woman raped by a gang of high caste big farmers, because her educated husband would not bow down while walking in front of them.

My dear Vinodji, how would you differentiate between the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the 2002 Gujarat anti-Muslim killings following the most tragic death of Hindu passengers in the train? Let us assume that some Muslims did set fire to the train, though this can be said with certainty only when matter goes to the court and the police produces evidence. But let us assume, for the sake of argument. No doubt, these criminals must be hanged for their crimes. But, how does it justify the killings of thousands of ordinary Muslims and rape of their women? And how do you distinguish between the deliberate inertia of Gujarat's police in protecting its citizens and what the Delhi police did (or did not do) in 1984, except that one was controlled by a BJP government and the other by a Congress government? And, more importantly, how do you differentiate between Narendra Modi and Rajiv Gandhi? Mr.. Modi talked of Newton's Law of action-reaction to justify all this, just like Rajiv Gandhi used the 'Large Tree–Grass" simile. Kudos to Atalji who reminded Mr. Modi of his Raj Dharma. But he too eventually had to bow before the pressure.

If this is the way to settle scores (e.g. Kandhamal), what is the role of IPC and Cr. PC and the thousands of crores we spend every year on police and judiciary? How long would we go on in this manner, taking law into our hands? Can India survive in this way? Are we not forcing Muslim youth to become terrorists?

On Eid morning, I telephoned Shahid, my former young computer programmer in Delhi University. He was quite upset. I inquired. He wept and told me that in the university, he is being asked, "Tum bataa do, tumhaare taar kis-kis se jude hain?" He asked me, "Sir, bataiye, main kya jawaab dun?" What are we doing to our people? I don't want my country partitioned again (the partition in1947 was entirely misconceived on a false 'kaum' theory). I am ready to fight unto death to keep my country united and protect the dignity of each and every citizen, irrespective of class (a landless adivasi or the super-rich Ambani), caste (dalit or Brahmin), religion (Paarsi, Christian or Hindu), language (Hindi, Tamil or Khasi of Meghalaya) and region (Raj Thakarey, a Hindu? Living in Mumbai, you would know this better than me!). I am sure you would join me in expressing the same commitment to India.

I am forwarding to you an email I sent a couple of days ago on the response of the Jodhpur Muslims to the Chamunda Devi Temple tragedy by declaring that they will keep Eid celebrations at low key. This is precisely the spirit of India. I am proud of having fellow citizens like the Jodhpur Muslims. Aren't you?

I will read the article you sent with care and respond. It may take some time as there are several pre-occupations.

Namaskaar! Jai Hind!!

Sincerely,

Anil Sadgopal