The
bestest news I read in today’s (September 21) The Hindu was unfortunately buried deep in the paper, on page 11.
This post is an effort to bring it out in the open. But, you must understand
that my posts are read at the most by half dozen people and yet, I am claiming
I am spreading the news about it. This is not my vanity.
The
issue is about school education, indeed prayers in school. The issue is about a
school teacher, teacher of English at that, an atheist one at that. It is about
how the teacher stood up for his rights to stand up without folded hands during
school prayer [1]. The school, by not giving him his due, sat him down. But now
the school has relented, under a knuckle breaking judgment from the Bombay High
Court. [2]
Now,
you understand why this issue will not catch fire. People do not see this as a
matter of human rights violation, like they do other things. This is the pity.
In my understanding, a violation of human rights is a violation of human rights
– no gradation in acknowledging the
same; a khap panchayat induced honor killing is no different as an issue to be discussed,
debated and addressed. Will there be any debates on TV on this vis-à-vis the
veritable cascade we saw on khaps’ “honor killing”? I rest my case.
What
is my interest in this matter, why did this article catch my eye and why am I
blogging almost in real time? I am a rationalist and consequently an atheist, I
fancy myself a teacher – not accredited as such yet an effective one, people
have told me – and most importantly, the thinking that drove me to post on
Narendra Dabholkar and superstition [3] drove me to post this. I see
rationalism as a justifiable stream of thinking in society. In fact, I see
religionism verily not as a way of living, and I will come to it in a
subsequent post.
We
have a tendency to compare ourselves to the US, on various things to pat
ourselves on our backs (we are doing right, per the US), to criticize ourselves
(typically in matters not deeply significant, like traffic discipline, the
so-called meritocracy, governance etc.) and other matters that may not elicit foundational
resonances. But, freedom of religion is a core issue of our republic, yet not
recognized so. I hope this post will unravel the silence, as evidenced in the
newspaper carrying it on page 11.
Yes,
our conception of religious freedom and what the American constitution says on
it are very different, but there is the underlying common thread of “Live and
let live”. Had any instance similar to what happened to Sanjay Salve at the
Savitribai Phule Secondary School taken place in the US, the issue would have
resonated through local newspapers, would have percolated up to (if that is
possible) regional newspapers and national ones too, would have been caught by the
TV talking heads, and almost definitely reached the US Supreme Court, given the
intensity of debate on the “establishment clause” of their constitution.
Here,
we do not have such a mechanism. Indeed, I can bet half my estate (half of zero
is still zero!) that similar case will be brought elsewhere in this vast land
of ours, and we will start from scratch.
We
shy away from discussions on religion because we are fearful – fearful of “offending
the religious sensibilities”. Never has it been debated why we should not discuss
religion, which as far as we can see, is a social contrivance. This should be
the basic discussion on religion – questioning why it exists, whether it should
exist at all, and if yes, should it be given any “fear” premium.
Now,
this is where, even as I feel good for the judgment in favor of the teacher –
an English teacher at that, an atheist at that – I am disappointed that the
school acquiesced so easily. I would have liked the case to have gone up the
high court ladder and on to the Supreme Court Constitution bench. That is when,
we will know for sure that atheists per se cannot be barred from teaching, not
only English but any and all subjects, including rationalism if ever it is
introduced in the curricula.
Raghuram
Ekambaram
References
1.
Pray,
what wrong did I do, asks Nashik Teacher, Alok Deshpande, The Hindu, September 1, 2013
2.
After
six years, atheist teacher to get his dues, The Hindu, September 21, 2013
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