Leading Jain saint Shri Vijay Ratnasunder Surishwar Maharaj categorically said in New Delhi that the Jains are part and parcel of Hindu society and any move to separate them from the Hindu society would set the disastrous precedent which may even lead to another Division of the nation. He was presiding over a Dharma Sabha in Delhi organised at Mahavir Kendra on March 1. All the speakers and the saints participating in the Sabha stressed the need to warn the political leadership in clear words not to divide the society any more. The Dharma Sabha was organised by Indraprastha Vishwa Hindu Parishad.
Shri Surishwar further said the recent decision of the government to extend minority status to Jains would lead to separatism. ?Every section of the Hindu society believes in harmony and togetherness. We need to first decide whether we wish to bridge the gap or want to create a wall of differences. Despite the diversity of various ways of worship, communities and Gods we all are one,? he said adding that the Jains can never think of seeking separation from the Hindu society. ?Any move to extend minority status to any section of the society today is equal to attacking the integrity of the country. It should be seen as an attempt to destabilise the harmony between various sections of the Hindu society,? he added.
He reminded the gathering of the Supreme Court decision delivered by three judges bench headed by the then Chief Justice Shri RC Lahoti in 2005 in which the court had clearly said the main task of the Minority Commission is to suggest the ways and means to create the social conditions in which first the names of various sections could be deleted from the minority list and finally the entire list of minorities is deleted forever. He said the Supreme Court is also in favour of the creation of the society where the divisions of majority and minority become irrelevant. ?This attitude of the Supreme Court should be acceptable to all of us and we should move in that direction only so that the unity and harmony continues between all sections of the society,? he added.
He further said all these sections of the society existed even during the British regime and nobody was then divided on the basis of minority or majority. ?Then why the unity of the nation is being dented in the name of cheaper issues. We have been living together for centuries and in future also we will live together. I wish to state in clear words that granting the status of minority to any section of the Hindu society anywhere in the country is wrong and illegal and should be rejected outrightly,? he added.
Swami Hansdas, general secretary of Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti, criticised the government move to divide the society on the basis of minority and majority. Dr Surendra Jain, national spokesperson of VHP, said the minoritysm is a curse for the integrity of the country and it would prove very costly to the country. Kalikapeethadhishwar Mahant Surendra Avadhoot and Swami Bhaktiswaroopanand also spoke at the Dharma Sabha. The meeting also adopted a unanimous resolution, which said the Jains are an integral part of Hindu society and granting them minority status will damage the unity of the Hindu society.
(FOC)
