Skip to main content

Hindutva votaries criticize Ramdev, support LGBT rights, say Hinduism "never opposed" homosexuality

By Our Representative
Baba Ramdev calling homosexuality a "disease" and a “mental disorder” against the backdrop of the gruesome killings in Orlando, in which 49 were killed. has sparked a row among some of the most well-known votaries of Hindutva joining those who stand by LGBT rights.
While top journalist Burkha Dutt (@bdutt), soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's comment expressing shock at Orlando killings, said, "Our empathy more meaningful if we at least scrap 377", who who has sharply criticised Ramdev is Rupa Subramanya ‏(@rupasubramanya), a top Dutt critic, who has been involved in incessant arguments on twitter with her.
Section 377 of Indian Penal Code, a colonial era law, calls homosexuality an "unnatural offence", explaining as, "Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine."
In reply to a query posed by Counterview on Twitter on what she thought of Ramdev's view that homosexuality is a disease, Subramanya, an economist and a commentator, apart from being a prolific twitteratti, hsaid "Is Ramdev the Jesus/Prophet Mo of Hinduism? Referring to Hindu scriptures to justify his homophobia? Get your head out of your ass."
Subramanya retweeted someone who said, "I support gay rights and wish to see homosexuality decriminalised. But that won't prevent Islamist from killing gays", adding elsewhere, "A top Saudi cleric in May 2016 said 'Homosexuality not a deviation from Islam, should not be punished'." The Orlando shooter
is known to have called himself an ISIS supporter.
While some of Subramanya's prolific followers, who are not a few, tried to justify Ramdev saying, "To his credit, Ramdev only talks about homosexuality being curable" ‏(@ParinVShah), others declared, "Ramdev is not even respected by most Hindus" (‏@Kunthavi5) calling her rhetoric "moronic".
Another Hindutva votary Girish Saxena (‏@Girish_Saxena_), speaking in the context of the LGTB row, advised those who site Ramdev's example as a Hindutva sample, "Referring to Hinduism thy won't refer Vivekanand, Aurobindo, Vedas, Geeta but they refer to Sadhvi Prachi."
Saxena did not stop here. He advised those who oppose lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights to "visit Khajuraho and other temples, read books”, even as asking Baba Ramdev to "never give any statement who is homophobic." He further said, "In India, in last 5.000 yrs there's not a single incident where a LGBT is killed just because he's a LGBT."
One of the top supporters of  LGBT rights in the Modi Cabinet is known to be Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who had caused a stir on saying, "When millions of people the world over are having alternative sexual preferences, it is too late in the day to propound a view that they should be jailed. The Delhi High Court's view appears more acceptable," he said.
Jaitley was referring to the 2009 Delhi High Court judgment which called Article 377 unconstitutional. The judgment was overturned by the Supreme Court, which said it was Parliament's prerogative to repeal or not repeal Section 377 of te IPC.
Divisions among the Hindutva enthusiasts on LGBT are not new. There have been sharp differences on the subject even within the RSS.
Earlier this year, RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, declared “homosexuality should not be a crime”, though apparently under pressure, he later amended that comment by saying it was a "socially immoral act" that should be treated as a "psychological" case – a view held by Ramdev, too.

Comments

TRENDING

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam*  Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

'Flawed' argument: Gandhi had minimal role, naval mutinies alone led to Independence

Counterview Desk Reacting to a Counterview  story , "Rewiring history? Bose, not Gandhi, was real Father of Nation: British PM Attlee 'cited'" (January 26, 2016), an avid reader has forwarded  reaction  in the form of a  link , which carries the article "Did Atlee say Gandhi had minimal role in Independence? #FactCheck", published in the site satyagrahis.in. The satyagraha.in article seeks to debunk the view, reported in the Counterview story, taken by retired army officer GD Bakshi in his book, “Bose: An Indian Samurai”, which claims that Gandhiji had a minimal role to play in India's freedom struggle, and that it was Netaji who played the crucial role. We reproduce the satyagraha.in article here. Text: Nowadays it is said by many MK Gandhi critics that Clement Atlee made a statement in which he said Gandhi has ‘minimal’ role in India's independence and gave credit to naval mutinies and with this statement, they concluded the whole freedom struggle.

Modi govt intimidating US citizens critical of abuses in India: NY Christian group to Biden

Counterview Desk  the New York Council of Churches for its release of an open letter calling on the Biden administration to “speak out forcefully” against rising Hindu extremist violence targeting Christians and other minorities in India. In the letter addressed to President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other major elected officials, the NY Council of Churches expressed "grave concern regarding escalating anti-Christian violence" throughout India, particularly in Manipur, where predominantly Christian Kuki-Zo tribals have faced hundreds of violent attacks on their villages, churches, and homes at the hands of predominantly Hindu Meitei mobs.

Green revolution "not sustainable", Bt cotton a failure in India: MS Swaminathan

MS Swaminathan Counterview Desk In a recent paper in the journal “Current Science”, distinguished scientist PC Kesaven and his colleague MS Swaminathan, widely regarded as the father of the Green Revolution, have argued that Bt insecticidal cotton, widely regarded as the continuation of the Green Revolution, has been a failure in India and has not provided livelihood security for mainly resource-poor, small and marginal farmers. Sharply taking on Green Revolution, the authors say, it has not been sustainable largely because of adverse environmental and social impacts, insisting on the need to move away from the simplistic output-yield paradigm that dominates much thinking. Seeking to address the concerns about local food security and sovereignty as well as on-farm and off-farm social and ecological issues associated with the Green Revolution, they argue in favour of what they call sustainable ‘Evergreen Revolution’, based on a ‘systems approach’ and ‘ecoagriculture’. Pointing ou

Link India's 'deteriorating' religious conditions with trade relations: US policymakers told

By Our Representative  Commissioners on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) raised concerns about the “sophisticated, systematic persecution” of religious minorities by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a hearing on India in Washington DC.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Why is green revolution harmful for nutrition, food safety, environment, climate change

By Bharat Dogra*  A lie repeated a hundred times will not turn a lie into a truth. The big media should realize this and stop perpetuating the lie of the green revolution saving India from hunger, long after the world has awakened to the reality of how harmful the green revolution has been from the point of nutrition, food safety, environment and climate change.

Alarming Odisha arrests, 'illegal' detentions ahead of Vedanta bauxite public hearing

Counterview Desk  More than 80 lawyers, legal academics and researchers have written to the Governor of Odisha raising concerns about the “alarming arrests and illegal detentions” of about two dozen persons from Rayagada district in Odisha in anticipation of the upcoming public hearing for the Sijimali bauxite mine proposed by M/s Vedanta Ltd.