Author: Rajesh Sinha
Publication: Organiser
Date: December 29, 2002
In the recent months, the English
media in India and the Western media have started attacking the organisations,
which are working for the Hindu interests abroad. The "hate campaign" against
India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF) recently is a good example. The
donations from the USA for the noble cause of serving the victims of natural
calamity or for any service-based projects to uplift the poor masses in
the remote areas of our country has been named as "Saffron Dollar" a section
of the English media. Now in the month of December, once again, a section
of English media has described the donations from the UK as Saffron Pound",
which is collected by Sewa International with the help of 700 registered
organisations. The credentials and performance of Sewa Bharati have been
judged by the eminent people of the UK. After IDRF, now Sewa International
is the target of some groups whose main aim is to frame malicious designs
and propaganda against the organisations that are working for the interest
of the Hindus. "These groups are using certain sections of the media to
act against the said organisations", says the Francois Gautier.
The said media has ignored the commendable
jobs done by Sewa International and Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) after
the earthquakes in Maharashtra, Turkey and Gujarat and after the 1998 super
cyclone in Orissa. Although, Sewa International has been blamed for using
the funds only for Hindus, it is worth mentioning that Sewa International
donated funds for the Ethiopia drought and for the rebuilding of Afghanistan.
A report which appeared in The Hindu
on December 14, says: "Sewa International has raised over 2 million pounds
for the Gujarat earthquake amid allegations that some of it was later used
to fund sectarian violence". How can one allege without having any proof
that the amount was used for sectarian violence? If so, then Sewa International
officials are ready to face any consequences, says Shantilal Mystry, Chairman,
Sewa International. He has reserved his statement on this matter, as it
is under investigation by the Charity Commission, UK.
But before blaming one international
charity body for a particular religion or for any sectarian violence, one
should at least see the villages adopted by it and the schools which are
rebuilt by it. The Hindu report further says: "The programme specifically
focussed on the activities of the Sewa-funded Kalyan Vanvasi Ashram in
Gujarat, whose inmates and officials were alleged to have been involved
in attacks on Christians and Muslims."
It is a fact that the Vanvasi Kalyan
Ashram's self-service for many decades to the tribal people in the field
of education and health-care has been ignored by the Indian media, and
no media has ever reported the fact that how tribal are being exploited
by the Christian missionaries with ulterior motives. Tribal resistance
to Christian missionaries' conversion activity is evident everywhere in
the world. Not only in India but also all over the world, the missionaries
have been instrumental in destroying the tribal cultures. It should be
remembered that the opposition to the Christian missionaries is a worldwide
phenomenon and it is not restricted only to India.
For decades Saudi Arabia has been
funding madrasas, which are openly preaching sedition and are often dens
of terrorism, why is the Indian media silent on this issue? Why is it that
when foreign Christian organisations are pouring in billions of dollars
to deviously convert the innocent Harijans and tribal, teaching them to
hate their own culture and country. The 'secular' media maintain studied
silence? And why is it that when a few Hindu organisations- collect funds
for a harmless programme like Ekal Vidyalayas-which are doing a wonderful
job for tribal children- they are attacked as fundamentalists by most Indian
publications.
How Sewa International was dragged
to Charity Commission Lord Adam Patel, Patron of the Sewa International,
resigned from the organisation in August, 2002 after the allegation that,
"the charity is a front for controversial militant Hindu organisations".
That a campaign of calumny has been launched against such organisations
is evident in the following reports. It was reported in the Birmingham
Sunday Mercury by investigation editor Amardeep Bassey on August 11, 2002,
"very much regret ever having been part of the racist organisation and
I will be forwarding my complaints to the Charity Commission". The militant
organisations, Lord Patel refers to are the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP),
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS).
He claims that the Sewa International has strong links with them in order
to get funds for 'terrorist' activities rather than providing relief aid,
according to the Sunday Mercury report.
Sewa International is a registered
charity organisation and is reputed in providing unbiased and unlimited
aid to the victims of natural disaster around the world. Sources in Sewa
International says that Lord Patel, who was appointed as a patron of Sewa
International's Earthquake Appeal in January 2001, resigned from it without
ever approaching a single member of Sewa International with his grievances.
Neither had he ever taken up Sewa
International's open invitation to go to Gujarat to see any of the works
being carried out by the organisation.
The peer, who reportedly openly
declared in the House of Lords that the train-burning incident in Godhra
of 58 members was committed by the RSS itself, is also a close associate
of the Indian Muslim Federation in UK.
In a message from the Indian Muslim
Federation's (IMF) President Shamsuddin Agha in a newsletter makes claims
about the genocide of Muslims in the State of Gujarat and the persecution
of Muslims by "sectarian violence" in India. "We call upon the British
Government to ban the presence of extremist and violent organisations such
as HSS and VHP in the UK", he says and adds, "and also to ban their fundraising
in the UK for their nefarious activities, targeted against religious minorities
in India".
Mohammed Zina of the Council of
Indian Muslims in the UK, was reported in the Sunday Mercury's article
to have written to the Charity Commission and the Home Secretary, calling
for the VHP, UK, to be declared a terrorist organisation. Mohammed Zina,
is also reported by the Sunday Mercury to have "raised concerns about growing
VHP influence on Hindu students in UK".
The campaign of calumny tries to
project that 'Hindu terrorism' is taking its roots in India. But absolutely
there is no evidence of it at all", says Shantilal Mystry, Chairman, Sewa
International. It is interesting to note that when Lord Patel had been
approached by Asian Voice / Gujarat Samachar to substantiate his claims,
against Sewa International, he was unable to do so.
