Editorial –
From the very beginning it appeared that the government, its ministers and their party BJP and patron RSS were more concerned about dragging Muslims to the Yoga mat than others or Yoga itself. Attempts including statements equalizing Yoga with Namaz and at the end release of a book drawing similarities between Yoga and Islam were aimed at convincing Muslims to accept, rather embrace Yoga.
This Hindutva mindset of imposing a particular culture on all the people of the country got exposed on the maiden International Day of Yoga when BJP’s General Secretary Ram Madhav questioned the absence of Vice President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari from the Yoga show that was led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Rajpath on 21st June. His question clearly indicated that his mind was too narrow to give space to knowledge about rules and protocols.
Hamid Ansari indeed did not attend the Yoga event because he should not have as he knew the rule. As per protocol, he cannot attend an event where Prime Minister is chief guest because his constitutional position is superior to the PM, and that is why the PM office had not invited him. This was admitted by Union minister Shripad Naik whose Ayush ministry organized the Yoga event. Naik himself apologized to Ansari over Madhav’s remark. “Unknowingly something happens, we apologize for that. It should have been avoided. It’s a mistake, he (Madhav) agrees, he apologized. He withdrew his statement,” Naik was quoted as saying in the media.
This was second time in last six months when Vice President Hamid Ansari was targeted with humiliation by leaders / supporters of BJP of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On Republic Day in January this year, he was targeted for not saluting the marching parade as national anthem was sung. That time too, he was on the right side of the protocol.
The targeting of Hamid Ansari on false grounds by BJP leaders and silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi could send a signal that the Vice President is being pressurized to quit office. The PM must come clean on it. Ansari was elected as Vice President of India in 2007 when Congress was ruling at the centre. He was re-elected to the post in 2012 – again during the Congress rule.
