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Pune:
Emphasising the need to fight those who are using religion as a
tool to set personal scores and get political mileage, Prof
Pushpatai - the professor of Marathi language at Ruia College,
Mumbai advised all Indians to refrain from misusing a religion.
"Practicing religion is not
bad. One can be a Muslim, Hindu, Christian or follow any other
religion", she said, adding, "But it should not be used
to set personal score or get political mileage."
Prof Pushpatai was addressing the
2nd Maharashtra State convention of All India Secular Forum (AISF)
held at Ishvari Kendra in Pune.
Delivering the keynote speech at the
two day convention that started September 24 morning, Prof
Pushpatai came down heavily on the communal forced in India
working to destabilize the nation.
"It doesn't mean I am against religions. In
fact I believe that a person who is practicing religions can be a
good citizen. No, I am not against religions. But yes, I am
against the 'Advanis' and 'Thackerays' who are using religions to
get political mileage", she stressed.
She also warned against the notions
like 'Indo Pak peace, ok....but can't trust Muslims...',
highlighted by Shobha De in her recent column and fast taking the
ground.
"These notions are dangerous for the
country. The time for us is to coordinate with each other and
jointly fight against those who deliberately spread such notions
to establish durable peace", she added.
She winded up her speech quoting
Mahatama Gandhi, "People ask for the ways to find peace. But the
fact is that Peace itself is a way."
Earlier, inaugurating the first
session of the All India Secular Forum (AISF) 2nd Maharashtra
convention, Father Joy of Ishvani Kendra stressed on the need for
joint effort to combat the communal forces.
"There is a famous saying that if
you plan to go small steps, you can go alone. But if we want to
achieve big targets, we cannot afford to go alone. We will have to
take everyone together", Father joy said in his nuagural speech.
All India Secular Forum (AISF) is
working for communal harmony and has a
presence in 12 states. Its first Maharashtra convention was held
in Nagpur in March 2009. The two day second seminar held in Pune
is coordinated by Neha Debhadeof Institute for Peace Studies and
Conflict Resolution (IPSCR) and will be addressed by renowned
activists Dr Ram Puniyani, Suresh Khairnar and Irfan Engineer.
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