Indian President Pranab Mukherjee has voiced his concerns over growing intolerance in India.
The incumbent president said that it is extremely ‘sad’ to see the promotion of ideologies that aim at dividing the nation. He said that India has cultivated an environment of ‘fear’ and ‘uncertainty’.
The real dirt of India lies not on the streets but in “our minds and in our unwillingness to let go of views that divide society into them and us,” President Pranab Mukherjee said emphasising on cleansing minds of divisive thoughts.
Speaking at a function in Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, Mukherjee cited Gandhiji’s vision of India as an inclusive nation where every section of population lived in equality and enjoyed equal opportunity and said the essence of being human is “our trust of each other.” “Every day, we see unprecedented violence all around us. At the heart of this violence is darkness, fear and mistrust. While we invent new modes of combating this ever spiralling violence, we must not forget the power of non-violence, dialogue and reason,” he said.
Mukherjee has been speaking against intolerance after the Dadri lynching of a Muslim and subsequent events.
He said, “So long as the dehumanising practice of carrying night soil persists, we cannot have real Swacch Bharat”.