Why I hate burqa
Many Muslims think that because I hate burqa I am anti-Islam and a 'bhakt' and a RSS man.
But then many Hindus think that because I eat beef ( where legally permitted e.g. in Kerala, Goa etc ) and have said there is nothing wrong in eating it, and that it is stupid to say that cow is our mother, I am anti-Hindu and a 'sickular'.
What is the truth ?
I am totally secular, and my whole track record proves it.
When I was a Judge in the Allahabad High Court at a time when the BJP was in power both at the Centre and in U.P. I said in several judgments that Muslims had a right to build mosques ( though while upholding that right I also recommended that Hindus and Muslims should not build temples and mosques but scientific institutes, engineering colleges and medical colleges, as the national interest requires that we move away from religion and go towards science ). I was almost transferred from the Allahabad High Court at the behest of some powerful political people because of those judgments.
In the Madras High Court, where I was the Chief Justice, I upheld the right of Muslims to take out their funeral processions through a public street.
I have spoken out against the hate speeches of Togadia, Sadhvi Prachi and Adityanath, and protested against the atrocities on Muslims in Muzaffarnagar, Ballabhgarh,etc, and against the lynching of Ikhlaque, and against the gau rakshaks, and those who compelled some Muslims to eat cow dung.
So how can I be called a 'bhakt' ? Does any 'bhakt' or RSS man eat beef and say there is nothing wrong in eating it ?
Whenever there were atrocities against Muslims my voice was one of the first to rise against it. I have repeatedly said that there should be no atrocities against anyone, whether Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian.
At the same time, I hate poverty and backwardness. The worst thing in life is poverty, and backwardness, and feudal thinking and customs contribute to remaining poor. I want to see India emerge as a modern, highly industrialized, prosperous nation.
So when I attack burqa I am not attacking Islam, but backwardness. I have in fact praised Islam for its great message of equality, and providing social emancipation to the depressed and downtrodden sections of society ( though now all religions are outdated, and should be replacxed by science ). See my statements in Arnab Goswamy's panel discussion on triple talaq.
I hate burqa because it is a feudal, outdated, backward custom, and has contributed to keeping Muslims backward. This is the age of equality. Why should Muslim women be kept in a cage ? And I do not say women should go about nude. Surely a woman who wears a salwar kameez or sari is not nude.
Some people say it should be left to the woman to have a choice in wearing a burqa or not. I disagree. These people forget that though there may not be any overt compulsion on a Muslim woman to wear a burqa, there are social pressures on many Muslim women to wear it. And to say that a Christian nun wears a veil is forgetting that nuns are priests, while Muslim women wearing burqa are not priests.
To those who say that it is one's right to wear a burqa or not, I say : you have no right to remain backward.
To those who say I should not comment about Muslims I say : Muslims are my countrymen too, and I have a right to comment on all our countrymen, whatever their religion, caste, or region.
The great Turkish ruler Kemal Mustafa Ataturk abolished burqa in Turkey, as he saw that such backward social customs have kept Turkey backward and become the ' Sick Man of Europe '. I am his admirer, and recommend all Mulims, particularly Muslim youth, to follow his example.
Many Muslims think that because I hate burqa I am anti-Islam and a 'bhakt' and a RSS man.
But then many Hindus think that because I eat beef ( where legally permitted e.g. in Kerala, Goa etc ) and have said there is nothing wrong in eating it, and that it is stupid to say that cow is our mother, I am anti-Hindu and a 'sickular'.
What is the truth ?
I am totally secular, and my whole track record proves it.
When I was a Judge in the Allahabad High Court at a time when the BJP was in power both at the Centre and in U.P. I said in several judgments that Muslims had a right to build mosques ( though while upholding that right I also recommended that Hindus and Muslims should not build temples and mosques but scientific institutes, engineering colleges and medical colleges, as the national interest requires that we move away from religion and go towards science ). I was almost transferred from the Allahabad High Court at the behest of some powerful political people because of those judgments.
In the Madras High Court, where I was the Chief Justice, I upheld the right of Muslims to take out their funeral processions through a public street.
I have spoken out against the hate speeches of Togadia, Sadhvi Prachi and Adityanath, and protested against the atrocities on Muslims in Muzaffarnagar, Ballabhgarh,etc, and against the lynching of Ikhlaque, and against the gau rakshaks, and those who compelled some Muslims to eat cow dung.
So how can I be called a 'bhakt' ? Does any 'bhakt' or RSS man eat beef and say there is nothing wrong in eating it ?
Whenever there were atrocities against Muslims my voice was one of the first to rise against it. I have repeatedly said that there should be no atrocities against anyone, whether Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian.
At the same time, I hate poverty and backwardness. The worst thing in life is poverty, and backwardness, and feudal thinking and customs contribute to remaining poor. I want to see India emerge as a modern, highly industrialized, prosperous nation.
So when I attack burqa I am not attacking Islam, but backwardness. I have in fact praised Islam for its great message of equality, and providing social emancipation to the depressed and downtrodden sections of society ( though now all religions are outdated, and should be replacxed by science ). See my statements in Arnab Goswamy's panel discussion on triple talaq.
I hate burqa because it is a feudal, outdated, backward custom, and has contributed to keeping Muslims backward. This is the age of equality. Why should Muslim women be kept in a cage ? And I do not say women should go about nude. Surely a woman who wears a salwar kameez or sari is not nude.
Some people say it should be left to the woman to have a choice in wearing a burqa or not. I disagree. These people forget that though there may not be any overt compulsion on a Muslim woman to wear a burqa, there are social pressures on many Muslim women to wear it. And to say that a Christian nun wears a veil is forgetting that nuns are priests, while Muslim women wearing burqa are not priests.
To those who say that it is one's right to wear a burqa or not, I say : you have no right to remain backward.
To those who say I should not comment about Muslims I say : Muslims are my countrymen too, and I have a right to comment on all our countrymen, whatever their religion, caste, or region.
The great Turkish ruler Kemal Mustafa Ataturk abolished burqa in Turkey, as he saw that such backward social customs have kept Turkey backward and become the ' Sick Man of Europe '. I am his admirer, and recommend all Mulims, particularly Muslim youth, to follow his example.
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