Press Conference – An Anti-Hindu Narrative – A conspiracy to tarnish the image of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj : Mr Uday Mahurkar

(From left) – Mr Neeraj Atri, Mr Uday Mahurkar, Mr Praveen Chaturvedi, Mr Ramesh Shinde

“Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was a great Emperor who built a strong and long-lasting empire. He laid the foundation to eliminate the Mughal rule by constructing a 1600 km-long kingdom that stretched from South Gujarat to Gingee in Tamil Nadu. However, Hindu-phobic historians challenged the greatness of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and belittled him by referring to him as merely an ordinary Maratha warrior. It is a deliberate attempt to suppress Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s legacy and tarnish His image. The Hindu-phobic historians have deliberately presented our past in a distorted manner to suit their anti-Hindu narrative and glorified the Mughal invaders as the saviours of our Nation. Post-Independence, Hindus were constantly fed with a barrage of misinformation (read anti-Hindu lies). Even today, a broader anti-Hindu narrative is at play that aims to create confusion, division, and a sense of inferiority complex amongst Hindus to weaken them even further. It is high time for Hindus to be cognisant of such an anti-Hindu narrative that challenges our ethos and culture. Hindus should call out such false anti-Hindu narrative and strongly counter the same with facts and figures”, said Mr Uday Mahurkar, the founder of Save Culture Save Bharat Foundation (New Delhi), an Author, a Historian, and Former Information Commissioner, Government of India.

He was addressing a Press Conference on the 4th day of the ‘Vaishvik Hindu Rashtra Mahotsav’ held at the Shri Vidyadhiraj hall in Ponda (Goa). He shared the dais with Captain Praveen Chaturvedi (Founder & CEO, Prachyam, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh), Mr Neeraj Atri (President, Vivekananda Karya Samiti, Panchkula, Haryana), and Mr Ramesh Shinde (National Spokesperson, Hindu Janajagruti Samiti).

Talking about the anti-Hindu narrative, Mr Mahurkar further said that Hindus have to learn to win the battle of narrative. Hindus have always been losing the battle of narratives due to their moderate nature, as well as their lack of vindictiveness. This had been the case since Independence. Before the Gujarat riots in 2002, 59 Hindus were killed in the Sabarmati Express train at Godhra; however, Communist and Islamic strategists claimed that Narendra Modi, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the BJP orchestrated the act to create an anti-Muslim wave. In fact, only after the verdict of the Gujarat High Court it came to the fore that the Muslim mob burnt those railway coaches.

At the time Founder & CEO, Prachyam, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh the Mr Praveen Chaturvedi said that Hindu Dharma has always been a symbol of love, compassion and universal brotherhood. It is being maligned all over the world. Terms such as casteism, brahminical patriarchy have been coined especially among the Hindu youth to increase confusion and hatred towards each other. These false narratives can only be countered by exposing their falsity. For example, we had no concept of caste, only varna (Class); but the British created the caste system to divide us. Further this can be achieved by presenting before the society the achievements pertaining to India, Hindu Dharma, culture, achievements of Hindus from all walks of life over thousands of years, etc.

Thinker Mr Neeraj Atri said that one aspect of the distorted narrative is that even completely failed and disastrous events are presented as attempts at social justice or inclusiveness. Media should do due investigation before promoting such practices. Otherwise, it can be harmful to the society.