Recently innocent, unarmed Hindu pilgrims to the holy Amarnath cave were attacked by militants and killed mercilessly. Instead of saying a word of denouncement of that dastardly act and offering condolences to the families of those killed NYT is playing dirty games.
This venomous article published by New York Times is testimony to this pulp paper’s lack of respect for democratic principles and its bigotry.
This paper has been traditionally anti-Modi and anti-democracy but now it has crossed all limits by making this brazen, shameless and malicious attempt to defame India, Hindus in particular, and trying to inflame the feelings of hatred and conflict in India with the sole intent to weaken this country and fomenting ethnic strife and trouble here.
NYT’s nefarious agenda must be condemned by all Indians and Indian opposition parties should be careful to not try to tout it as gospel. This is anti-national and targeted to harm India, and the opposition parties should not become party to NYT’s mischievous designs irrespective of their politics within the country.
The article is full of lies. Hindus are the world’s most peaceful community and that is why India has accepted all people of different religions in its fold. More than ten million Bangladeshis entered India as refugees during Pakistan’s massacre of Bengalis in erstwhile East Pakistan. We have had Jews, Parsis, Refugee Muslims etc and we embraced them all and offered hem security and safety. A Hindu shrine does not encourage hostility and does not preach violence. Contrast it with the places of worship of some others.
Hindus are not militants even when they have strong faith bordering on fanatic in some cases. Militancy does not belong to Hindus. Hindus never raise arms except for self defence, and that too only after all avenues to find conciliation are closed. Defaming Hindus in such a pathological manner is downright deplorable.
NYT’s article is a bundle of lies. They should know how popular Yogi is among Muslims of his area too. They should know some of the most responsible functionaries in the Gorakhnath temple are in fact Muslims. Passing adverse, loose, disrespectful and false comments on Prime Minister Modi is the most offensive and unfriendly act by this rotten newspaper. They have not realised that the infamous Godhra incident was actually the burning alive of religious travellers in a train by people of a certain identity. It was not the riots of Gujarat.
The riots were actually Post-Godhra and were a spontaneous reaction to that brutal, inhuman and heinous crime. It was Modi who ordered Military within 24 hours or so of the breaking out of riots which is record in any Indian disturbance. Certain news reporters who were inimical to unity and well being of Indian people made all efforts to inflame people’s feelings and engineer more riots. Thanks to the Army and the iron hand handling by Modi government in Gujarat that they failed.
Gujarat Muslims are probably the most well off amongst all Muslims in India. And this has happened during Modi regime in Gujarat. They are also the happiest. Gujarat has been riot free for 15 years under Modi’s watch and under BJP rule which is also a record for India. NYT wake up, come to senses and stop your rubbish.
Yogi Adityanath is a respected person among Muslims in his constituency. All charges made in the NYT article against him are false and malicious. Yogi is not anti-Muslim. He is a just a staunch nationalist.
Every American would be proud to be single mindedly loyal and patriotic to America. Why the same thing is seen as ‘against minorities’ by NYT in India? Does NYT want to insinuate Indian Muslims are not patriotic? That would be even worse.
Even their reporting on meat trade are false. No licences abattoirs have been shut down. Only the unlicensed ones have been shut down as they were working against that law. They also did not have adequate hygiene and necessary safeguards for the workers on one hand and the quality and actual animal inventory on the other.
This has been mischievously misreported. In addition, the largest abattoirs of the country are in the hands of just a few Muslim families and it is not true that huge populations have been affected by the government action.
No country would allow illegal trade at that massive scale. In any case if some people did lose their jobs, sympathising with them is like saying the thieves should not be arrested or incarcerated because thieving is their job, and they have always lived off stealing. Is that the NYT doctrine?
Interestingly NYT has nothing to report on the atrocities on Hindus and minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh and recent happenings in West Bengal under Mamta Banerji. Not that I would like NYT to 
comment on India in that event too, but just a glaring anomaly. There appears to be a dirty game plan of which they seem to be a part.
NYT must apologise to India, to Hindus, to Modi and to Yogi unequivocally and should come clean on this entire filthy and deplorable article. They should withdraw this article forthwith too. I appeal to all Indian diaspora in America to denounce this rotten newspaper which is working to disrupt the country of their origin, the culture they sprang from and the identity they live with even when they become full fledged Americans.
By Rakesh Shah
