New York: The calm and matured relpy given by Republican leader Vivek Ramaswamy has sparked discussions about religious intolerance. Vivek Ramaswamy is an Indian-American entrepreneur who supports the Republican Party’s nominee Donald Trump in the run up for the US presidential post. The Indian-origin American entrepreneur is working an advisor in conservative circles. Earlier this year, he called off his presidential bid.
Vivek Ramaswamy was recently asked to describe the ‘God’ he has been speaking about. During his “You’ve Been Brainwashed Tour” earlier this week, a man from the audience asked Vivek about his Hindu faith and how it fits into the US.
‘Throughout the course of this lecture, you talked an awful lot about god and faith, and there were some men who came here and asked you about your Hindu religion. Most of the people in the room here would believe that you were talking about the only true God, Jesus Christ. God has a name and Hinduism is a wicked, pagan religion and it’s completely incompatible with America’, the man said.
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Vivek Ramaswamy chose to this question as an opportunity for dialogue and education. Vivek Ramaswamy response underscored Hinduism’s enduring principle of “Sarva Dharma Sambhava,” or the belief in the equality of all religions. Rather than escalating the situation, Vivek Ramaswamy calmly defended his faith and reframed the narrative in a way that fostered understanding, rather than division.
‘You run for US President at the age of 37. As somebody who’s been in business, who’s actually…easiest thing to call myself, some Vic Ramsey and pretend to be a Christian, got other people on that debate stage last time who shortened their names and called themselves to be a Christian, too. I man up and tell you who I am, and believe me, your suspicion is off base. Listen to any number of the campaign speeches I gave over thousands of them over the course of the last year. So, we can take the disingenuous accusation off the table, but level with what I do think is an interesting coming,’ Ramaswamy said.
In reply, Vivek Ramaswamy said, ‘The question of whether or not that somebody of non-Christian faith can embody and lead the United States of America at any meaningful level is an open question.’
It is a known fact that in the United States, there is a persistent trend within certain evangelical circles to discredit non-Abrahamic faiths, particularly Hinduism, by branding them as “pagan” or incompatible with American values.
Social media users in India has responded to this discussion. ‘No one in India has ever said “Your religion is wicked…” to Christian Sonia Gandhi or Muslim Owaisi to their face. Yet, India is communal & US is secular,’ one wrote on X. Another user tweeted about how India was often dragged as a country defined by communal violence even though people would never vehemently take aim at political leaders belonging to religious minority communities and their faiths in such a way.
Critics have pointed out that if a public figure had insulted Christianity in India the way Hinduism was targeted in the U.S., the reaction could have been significantly different. In India, an insult to Christianity might have led to accusations of rising “Hindutva” intolerance. The Indian and international media would likely seize on the event, with condemnations pouring in, painting India as increasingly intolerant. Legal actions, such as Public Interest Litigations (PILs) for hate speech, could follow, demonstrating how Christian groups might mobilize swiftly in response to such an affront.
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