In an event that showed how intolerance, especially of the religious variety, is a social malaise found in almost every part of the world, a Shiv Sena MP named Rajan Vichare showed the world just what a bully he is. He was videotaped last week, force-feeding a Muslim contractor at the lodges of the Maharashtra Sadan. This is a despicable act because of the fact that Muslims are observing the holy month of Ramzan and forcing food down a Muslim’s throat while he/she is fasting is a grave insult to religious sentiments. In his ‘defence’, Mr Vichare says that he committed this deplorable act because he found the food at the Maharashtra Sadan to be low in quality and substandard. Before the leaked video footage Shiv Sena, an ultra Hindu nationalist party known for its severe dislike for Muslims, denied these allegations but now had nowhere to hide its head. That Shiv Sena is in close alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of newly elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks volumes for the kind of sensitivity this newly formed government in India holds for its Muslim minority. In addition to this, a land dispute in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, has claimed two lives in an explosion of violence between the Muslim and Hindu communities in the area. Uttar Pradesh is the stronghold of PM Modi. That a place under direct influence and control of the prime minister is suffering intolerance and aggression in the form of religious discrimination is a matter that needs to be taken heed of and sorted out before a large-scale eruption of communal riots breaks out — the potential is there and must be curbed. Modi’s role in the Gujarat riots of 2002 was the centre of controversy during his election campaign, with many Muslims in India, and even in Pakistan, extremely weary of what would be their lot once he gained power. If the above-mentioned two incidents are anything to go by, the forecast looks grim for the many Muslims in India, especially in Uttar Pradesh. The force-feeding incident highlights that when it comes to regressive behaviour and intolerance for religious feelings and sensitivities, both sides of the divide, India and Pakistan, have a lot of demons in their closet. While here in Pakistan we see complete prohibition during Ramzan, even for non-Muslims, we see behaviour like that demonstrated by the Shiv Sena MP. Wherever religious insensitivity raises its ugly head, there will be agitation and frustration. Modi would do well to remember that. *