A group of students and faculty members from the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) in Bengaluru and Ahmedabad have raised their voice over the hate speech and attacks on minorities in a letter Friday to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying his silence “emboldens” voices of hate. The letter, signed by some students and faculty members of IIM-Ahmedabad and IIM-Bengaluru, has urged the PM to speak up on these issues and condemn them.
The letter reads, “Your silence on the rising intolerance in our country, Honourable Prime Minister, is disheartening to all of us who value the multicultural fabric of our country. Your silence, Honourable Prime Minister, emboldens the hate-filled voices and threatens the unity and integrity of our country.” The group of students and faculty have urged the PM to steer the country away from “forces that seek to divide us,” as reported by The Indian Express.
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The open letter that was sent to the Prime Minister’s Office, has been signed by 183 members, which includes 13 faculty members of IIM Bangalore and three of IIM Ahmedabad. The Indian Express reports that the faculty members of IIM Bangalore which includes: Deepak Malghan (Associate Professor, Public Policy), Hema Swaminathan (Associate Professor, Public Policy), Dalhia Mani (Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship); Prateek Raj (Assistant Professor of Strategy); and Rajluxmi V Murthy (Associate Professor, Decision Sciences); drafted the letter.
Citing the constitution of the country, the letter mentioned that the citizens of the country have the right to practice our religion with dignity – without fear, without shame.
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Faculty and students of one of the leading institutions of the country mentioned that there is a “sense of fear in the country now since places of worship, including churches in recent days, are being vandalised, and there have been calls to take arms against Muslim brothers and sisters. All of this is carried out with impunity and without any fear of due process,” mentioned the letter.
The letter comes after the Bulli Bai app case where Muslim women were put up for auction, and the recent Haridwar Dharam sansad event where some Hindu religious leaders urged people to take up arms against Muslims and called for their genocide. BJP Member of Parliament from Bangalore, Tejasvi Surya was also criticised for his hate-speech against minorities where he asked Hindus to convert Muslims and Christians.
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