Recently mainstream-media is covering only various “attacks” on Churches, some of which are plain robberies. In one such incident, a case of theft in Holy Child Auxilium, was blown up into a communal event by the following individuals:
Current Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal called it an “attack“, Barkha Dutt Tweeted: Every time a church vandalised in Delhi it’s described officially as a case of theft-Is it the failure to join the dots or willful denial?
We had covered more reactions in our story here. Luckily the Principal of the school made a strong statement dismissing reports of vandalism and said it was purely a case of robbery. Later, the case of theft and rape of a Nun in Kolkata was again given a communal angle by Mainstream media by twisting the statements of the Archbishop. We had covered this here.
If such robberies in Churches qualify to be “communal” “attacks”, as per the media, why haven’t they raised the issue of a spate of killings and robberies in Hindu Temples, where sadhu’s have been murdered and idols have been stolen.
Are these not “communal” “attacks” on a religion? Will a Hindu Julio Ribeiro write an exaggerated Op-ed saying he feels he is on a Hit-list? Have a look at the series of events. Are you “Adarsh Liberal” enough to see a “pattern”?
1. On 22 March 2015, a sadhu was killed in a Durga temple near Shimla-Solan border and robbed the temple. The thieves robbed Rs. 25,000, two LED TVs, smartphones, etc. and killed the Sadhu.
2. On 23 March 2015, a robbery in Tirumala temple was reported. Rs. 17,300 was stolen from mobile Hundi.
3. On 15 March 2015, six idols of Gods and Goddesses made of brass along with the donation box were stolen from Radha Madhav Jagannath temple situated in Pilibhit.
4. On 14 March 2015, news broke out of a brutal rape of a Sadhvi from Ram Krishna Mission in West Bengal, and the refusal of local cops to file her complaint.
5. On 13 March 2015, The Hindu reported a robbery in Chikkaballapur. 11 panchaloha idols which are estimated to be 500-year-old, worth about Rs. 8 lakhs each, were stolen. The miscreants locked the door of pujari’s house and robbed the idols. This was the second time the idols were stolen from the temple.
6. On 4 March 2015, Sai Baba’s padukas were stolen from a temple in Ananthapur district. The culprit fled with the silver Sai Baba padukas worth Rs 60,000.
7. On 25 Feb 2015, PTI reported that some precious idols from a 200-year-old temple stolen in Masauli. Thieves broke into Radha Krishna temple in Tikaitagar and stole three ‘ashtdhatu’ and five brass idols worth crores of rupees.
8. Yesterday, Senior Journalist tweeted about an incident in Kochi, where a temple was looted and deity was destroyed.
9. Today, Editor of Headlines Today, Gaurav Sawant mentioned a similar attack in his tweet:
Theft at temple in Gole Market. Donation worth ‘lakhs’ stolen. Police investigates. #justsaying
— GAURAV C SAWANT (@gauravcsawant) March 24, 2015
To slightly alter Julio Ribeiro’s statement: “Is it coincidence or a well-thought-out plan that the systematic targeting of the majority community should begin only after the BJP government of Narendra Modi came to power last May”.
We believe these events are unnecessarily being given a communal flavour by media. Whether it is deliberate, and emanates from their hatred for Modi, or it is only the way media functions, is open for debate. Rapes, Robberies, Murders are all law and order problems, and should not be “exaggerated” into something more than what they are.
