“In Hinduism, conscience, reason and independent thinking have no scope for development…. If Hindu Raj does become a fact, it will, no doubt be the greatest calamity for this country. No matter what the Hindus say, Hinduism is a menace to liberty, equality and fraternity. It is incompatible with democracy. Hindu raj must be prevented at any cost.”
– Dr B R Ambedkar
Pragya Singh Thakur claimed at Bhopal, April 19, 2019 that “Hemant Karkare died because of my curse.” In her own words, the policeman had treated her “very badly” while she was in custody in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. Elaborating the point, she said, “Hemant Karkare falsely implicated me. He died of his karma. I told him he will be destroyed. I told him his entire dynasty will be erased. Maine kaha tera [Karkare] sarvanash hoga.” [1]
Entire dynasty of the IPS officer came under curse of a political fortune seeker while doing his duty with highest standard of efficiency, probity and competence. The IPS officer was known impeccable integrity and indomitable courage, Hemant Karkare was cursed by an accused. This reminds me a Bengali proverb, “Death does not befall a cow in consequence of curse of a vulture, does it?” Almost all Indian languages, I am sure, must boast of a proverb as this or similar to it.
Hemant along with his colleagues chased the Pakistani terrorists, who, on November 26, 2011, waged a war against India and invaded Mumbai. The Mumbai police fought valiantly and Hemant Karkare and some of his colleagues on mission finally laid down their lives. The nation is proud of those martyrs. About eight years later, we hear that the IPS officer died of curse of a political power-seeker, contesting 2019 elections from Bhopal Parliamentary constituency, Madhya Pradesh. This nonsense or rubbish has widely been reported, commented upon and/or condemned by Indian media, columnists and opinion-makers.
The nation conferred on slain Hemant Karkare, posthumously, the Ashoka Chakra for his exemplary sacrifice. This is India’s highest peacetime military decoration conferred for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the battlefield. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for the “most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent valour or self-sacrifice” other than in the face of the enemy.
According to a British Broadcasting Corporation bulletin, the Mumbai terror attacks of 26/11 of 2008 left 166 people dead and soured ties between India and Pakistan. During the 60-hour siege, the gunmen also ambushed a group of policemen, including three of the city’s top officers travelling in a vehicle and killed six of them. The only policeman, Arun Jadhav, with grievous injuries, survived the unprovoked brutalities launched on India to tell the world “the grisly story of his escape.” [2]
Besides, Karkare, Sadhvi Pragya’s curse, if anyone takes her at all seriously, drew curtains on lives of valiant Indian Army Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, Mumbai’s Additional Police Commissioner Ashok Kamte and Senior Police Inspector Vijay Salaskar who, in no way, were involved in the alleged torture of Pragya Thakur during investigations of Malegaon blasts cases. A television channel reported that India had asked Pakistan to hand over Mumbai underworld Don Dawood Ibrahim, Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed and Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Maulana Masood Azhar for their suspected involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks. [3]
Any person with an iota of intelligence would be appalled at the direct linkage the curse straightway established between the merchants of deaths and manufacturers of terror aforementioned operating from Pakistani soil and the Hindu Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, who enjoys the umbrella held by the Hindu nationalist ruling Party over her head to contest parliamentary elections 2019. The implication of the Sadhvi’s claim underlines that Pakistani terror outfits patronized by Dawood Ibrahim, Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed and Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Maulana Masood Azhar took immediate and absorbing interest in translating her curse into action with bloody and devastating consequences. A deadly gang of terrorists, including Ajmal Kasab, descended on Mumbai within ‘theek sava mahine’ or 37-38 days, to achieve the objectives and purposes of sadhvi Pragya’s curse, i. e., Hemant Karkare’s sarvanash. It is of immense national importance to decode the secrets along with the mystery enveloping the entire issue. However, no Indian worth his salt would pocket an insult as this for his motherland. This is a crying need to investigate the probably link between the two ends—a Sadhvi of India and terror outfits in Pakistan.
Part-II
Puri Jagannath & His Temple
Surrendered to East India Company in 1803
In a 14-day campaign, the East India Company captured Orissa unopposed and brought an end of oppressive Peshwa rule in 1803. The army simply marched up to Pipli within firing distance of Puri temple town. A delegation of the temple priests and pandas welcomed the victorious commanding officer of the British Army. They surrendered the control, management and maintenance of Bhagwan Jagannath, and his temple in obedience to an ‘oracle.’ [4]According to Swami Dharma Theertha (pre-ascetic Parameswara Menon, B. A., LLB) “the oracle of the Puri Jagannath proclaimed that it was the desire of the deity that the temple too be controlled by the Company.” [5] What an enigmatic desire of the Lord of the Universe!
Lo and behold the fate of bold and abiding promises Lord Krishna made in the Holy Geeta to his followers:
“Yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhavati bharata
Abhythanamadharmasya tadatmanam srijamyaham
Paritranaya sadhunang vinashay cha dushkritam
Dharmasangsthapanarthay sambhabami yuge” [6]
Was it any better than hogwash or a pre-election promise dishonoured and neglected in compliance? Though Lord Krishna was fervently expected to destroy the invading British along with the temple priests and pandas whose mischief out of petty self-interests threw Him, his brother and sister under the feet of the British overlords.
From 1803 to 1841, the British Trading Company controlled, managed and maintained the Jagannath Temple which was the home of Lord Krishna, his elder brother Balabhadra and their sister Subhadra. Regulations were passed in 1806 and taxes collected from the pilgrims in tens of thousands resorting to Puri from all over India. They paid taxes in lakhs of rupees. The Company spent, by and large, half of the income on the temple management, rituals, maintenance and establishment and the balance half was credited to Company Exchequer, as solid profits. The priests of the Jagannath temple did not suffer any qualms of conscience for this sorry state of affairs.
The question really to ask is: Are the slokas of the Bhagawad Geeta afore-quoted anything but work of fiction? Interestingly, the Englishmen, at home and abroad, condemned their own most famous Trading Company for subscribing to idolatry. No Indians ever appear to have voiced any grievance against British occupation and control of Jagannath Temple for about four decades when they minted tons of money. They also taxed pilgrims at Gaya, Tirupati, Prayag, etc. with enormous benefit. The British shared income from taxes with priests in these centres and so they were kept in good humour.
The BJP Sankalpa Patra Lok Sabha 2019 on national security enunciated ‘Zero tolerance’ approach to terrorism as follows:
“Our security doctrine will be guided by our national security interest only…. We will firmly continue our policy of ‘Zero Tolerance’ against terrorism and extremism and will continue our policy of giving free hand to our forces in combating terrorism.” [01]
Lord of the Universe, Jagannath was desirous of enjoying the superior control, management and maintenance of the foreign rulers! No countrymen seemed to have ever questioned Jagannath’s attachment for British rulers! Pragya Thakur’s curse invited Pakistani terrorists right in Mumbai with terrible consequences. Should she not at least be asked to enlighten the countrymen how did a gang of dreadful Pakistani terrorists become so handy in materializing her curse, waging a war against their sovereign neighbour? Does the blueprint of national security of BJP in their Sankalp for Lok Sabha 2019 presented before the country stand to be compromised by someone like of the Sadhvi?
(*The writer, a retired IAS officer and former Vice-Chancellor, Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Muzaffarpur, Bihar, Dr A K Biswas can be contacted at biswasatulk@gmail.com.)
[1] The Hindu, April 19, 2019, Bhopal, “Hemant Karkare died because of my curse.”
[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-46314555
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aftermath_of_the_2008_Mumbai_attacks
[4] Swami Dharma Theertha, Menace of Hindu Imperialism, 2nd edition, Har Bhagwan Happy Home Publication, Krishnanagar, Lahore, October 1946, p. 166.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Bhagavad Geeta Chapter 4, Verse 7-8