Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Economist's Angry old Man

An excerpt from The Economist's review of the divisive Hindu leader
L.K.Advani's book says--

"A hale octogenarian, Mr Advani's political career spans India's
independent history. But he is best known for his part in the calamity
that helped fuel the BJP's rise: the destruction of the Babri mosque
in Ayodhya by Hindu fanatics in 1992. This outrage—which sparked
communal massacres in which some 2,000 people died, most of them
Muslims—was instigated, at least in part, by a BJP campaign for a
Hindu temple to be built on the site of the mosque. The campaign was
spearheaded by Mr Advani, who led a ram rath yatra, or chariot
procession, halfway across India to rally support for the temple. Mr
Advani calls this the "most decisive, transformational event" of his
career."

This is a person who was born in Karachi, which is now of course part
of Pakistan, and is a staunch Hindu fundamentalist whose political
career divided India's religious groups into sharper niches than they
were ever in... Interesting person, controversial behavior, and a very
provoking book, surely.

Read the full article at--
http://www.economist.com/books/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11448647

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