May,14,$2014!
Appeal to all secular parties, leaders and candidates to help prevent formation of
communalcentral government in India!
We,concerned citizens of India, are alarmed by the divisive, abusive and! violent Lok! Sabha
election campaign that!has just been concluded.Throughout the campaign, the Bharatiya Janata
Party under Narendra!Modi’s leadership has been especially virulent in ridiculing and insulting
religious and sexual minorities, dalits and! people with disabilities. Communal forces
represented and endorsed by BJP and Modi also work against the interests and rights of cultural
and linguistic minorities, adivasis and women across communities. BJP under Modi has also
threatened constitutional bodies like the Election Commission. Dissenting voices have been
intimidated and asked to leave the country.
Thecollusion of big corporates with rank communal and authoritarian ideas,visible starkly in
the poll campaign, will!seep into the structures of governance if a ModiK led NDAgovernment is
formed. All opponents to!this brand of politics will be hounded and hunted, as they indeed have
been in Gujarat. It is only reasonable to anticipate that the policies of discrimination and
ghettoisation practiced by!Modi's government in Gujarat will become the national norm. Even
more disturbingly, much of the mainstream media today is not only acting pliant, they are
carrying a barrage of misleading facts to promote Modi, leading to legitimate fears that they may
further abandon their watchdog role.
In this alarming scenario, it is imperative that you, the secular elected members of parliament
ensure that the Constitution and its values, and indeed, the future of this nation, are protected.
After all, secularism is not just a catchword in election manifestos. It is the backbone of our
democracy.
There is nothing inevitable about the rise of Modi to Prime Ministership. The keys to formation
of government in Delhi are held by all of you.We now remind some of you of the promises you
have made to the people of India to stand against communalism and uphold secularism during
this election campaign, which we have reproduced here. We, along with millions of citizens,
voted for you because of these promises.
We appeal to you and all other secular parties to come together to ensure the formation of a
secular government, and prevent the formation of a Narendra ModiKled BJP/NDA central!
government.
We gave you our votes. We hope you will honour our trust.
Eminentsignatories
Aditi!Mangaldas,!Dancer!
Aditya!Mukherjee,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Amiya!Kumar!Bagchi,!Emeritus!Professor,!Kolkata!
Amrita!Chhachhi!
Anand!Patwardhan,!Documentary!Filmmaker!
Aneesh!Pradhan,!Tabla!Maestro!
Ania!Loomba,!academic!!
Anil!Sadgopal,!Former!Dean,!Faculty!of!Education,!Delhi!University,!Bhopal!
Anthoniraj!Thumma,!Andhra!Pradesh!Federation!of!Churches,!Hyderabad!
Anusha!Khan,!Media!Professional!
Arjun!Dev,!Retired!professor,!NOIDA!
Asha!Mukherjee,!professor,!Visva!Bharati,!Shantiniketan,!West!Bengal!Atul!Sood,!professor!of!economics!
Bina!Sarkar!Ellias,!publisher/!writer,!Mumbai!
C.!P.!Chandrasekhar,!Professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
DN!Jha,!Retd!Professor!
Fr!Cedric!Prakash!SJ,!human!rights!activist,!Ahmedabad!
Githa!Hariharan,!writer,!Delhi!
Geeta!Kapur,!art!critic,!Delhi!
Hansal!Mehta,!writerKdirector!
Harbans!Mukhia,!former!Professor!of!History!and!Rector,!JNU,!National!Fellow,!ICHR!
Jairus!Banaji,!academic,!Mumbai!
Janaki!Nair,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Javed!Anand,!activist!Mumbai!
Jayati!Ghosh,!professor!of!economics!
Kabir!Khan,!Director!
Kundan!Shah,!Director!
Lakshmi!Subramaniam,!academic,!Kolkata!
Mahesh!Bhatt,!directorKproducer!
Mahesh!Murthy,!AdmanKEntrepreneur!
Maya!Krishna!Rao,!theatre!artist!
Mazher!Husaain,!COVA,!Hyderabad!
Mridula!Mukherjee,!Professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Nirmalangshu!Mukherji,!Teacher,!Delhi!University!
Prabhat!Patnaik,!professor!of!economics!
Rappai!Poothokaren,!S.J.,!Ahmedabad!
Robert!Miranda,!Bishop!of!Gulbarga!
Rukmini!Bhaya!Nair,!Professor!of!Linguistics!and!English!
Shabnam!Hashmi,!social!activist,!Anhad!
Shohini!Ghosh,!professor!and!filmmaker!
Shubha!Mudgal,!singerKmusician!
Tabish!Khair,!writer!and!academic!
Vijay!Krishna!Acharya!‘Victor’,!WriterKDirector!
Vineet!Tiwari,!Gen.!Secretary,!MP!Progressive!Writers!Association,!Indore!
Vivan!Sundaram,!artist!
Yug!Mohit!Chaudhry,!Lawyer,!Mumbai!
Zoya!Hasan,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
$!
with!
ANHAD!
Bombay!Catholic!Sabha,!Kalina!Unit!
LABIA!Queer!Feminist!LBT!Collective,!Mumbai!
Nigah!Queer!Collective,!Delhi!
NOMOre!Campaign,!allKIndia!secular!campaign!
Saheli!Women's!Resource!Centre,!Delhi!
Women's!Initiatives!(WINS),!Tirupati,!Andhra!Pradesh!
$!
And!900!voices!from!states!and!UTs!across!India.!Please!see!entire!list!of!signatories!in!pdf!
attachment.!!
$!
LEADERS,$IN$YOUR$OWN$WORDS!
$!
Shri$K$Chandrasekhar$Rao,$President,$Telangana$Rashtra$Samithi!
Sir,!on!April!14,!you!made!this!important!statement.!“I"am"making"a"policy"statement."TRS"will"
not"align"with"communal" forces."We"will"support" the"Third"Front."We"are"a"100%"secular"
party."We"will"not"join"the"NDA.”!Millions!gave!you!their!votes!on!this!assurance.!Sir,!we!hope!you!will!not!betray!them.!
!
Kumari$Mayawati,$Chairperson,$Bahujan$Samaj$Party!
Behenji,! on!May! 4! you! said! “Pura" desh" sampradayikta" ki" aag"mein"jalne"lagega" agar"woh"
(Modi)"PM"ban"gaya"!(the!whole!country!will!be!in!flames!if!Modi!becomes!the!PM).!You!have!
not!shied!away!from!challenging!Modi!head!on!during!the!election!campaign,!calling!the!bluff!of!
his! ‘backward! caste’! stunt! in! your! press! conference,! or! even! calling! for! a! ban! on! Amit! Shah’s!
entry!into!Uttar!Pradesh!when!he!made!his!mischievous!remarks!of!Azamgarh!being!the!den!of!
terrorists.!
!!
We! sincerely! urge! you! to! continue! your! stand! against! BJP's! brand! of! communal! politics! and!
hateful!attitude!of!BJP!supporters!towards!Dalits,!women!and!backwards.!
!!
Selvi$J$Jayalalitha,$General$Secretary,$All$India$Anna$Dravida$Munnetra$Kazhagam!
Amma,!on!October!31,!2013,! you! told! the!country! you!are!against!communal!politics,!and! that!
communalism! has! been! spreading! its! "dangerous! tentacles",! "with! the! sharp! increase! in!
communal! tensions! and! religionKbased! politics! and! growth! of! communal! forces! in! our! body!
politic."!
!!
While!releasing!the!Vision!2023!document!on!February!21,!2014,!you!said,!"I"have"a"vision"for"
India"in"which"Tamil"Nadu"will"play"a"key"role"—"a"vision"of"a"resurgent"India;"a"nation"with"
an"inclusive"society..."a"modern,"secular"and"prosperous"India."I"want"to"assure"you"all"that"
this"day"is"not"far.”!
!!
Amma,!that!day!has!come!for!Tamil!Nadu!to!play!a!key!role!in!upholding!a!secular!India.!
!!
Shri$Jaganmohan$Reddy,$President,$Yuvajana$Sramika$Rythu$Congress$Party!
Sir,!in!October!2013,!you!said,!"I"want"BJP"to"change."I"want"Modi"to"change"BJP."I"want"BJP"to"
become"secular..."We"don’t"want"Muzaffarnagar,"we"want"Mohabbatnagar".!After!witnessing!
the!divisive!campaign!just!concluded!by!BJP,!do!you!think!a!BJP!under!Modi!will!change!for!the!
better?!Are!you!aware!that!a!Sangh!Parivar!website!throws!brutal!communal!abuse!at!your!late!
father! because! of! his! faith?! We! quote! from! it:! "Yeduguri! Sandinti! Rajasekhara! Reddy! alias!
Yeduguri!Samuel!Rodriguez!Reddy!(1949K2009),!late!Christian!chief!minister!of!andhrapradesh!
for! ongoing!&!last!government!was! the!most!SECULAR!govt.!ever!...!Many! of! his!ministers!are!
openly! Christian! and!Muslim,! and! many! others! are! secret! Christians...!!YSR! ordered! that! the!
jurisdiction! of! Lord! Venkateswara! temple! at! Tirumala! Tirupati! be! reduced! from! the! current!
seven! hills! to! only! two! hills! and! wanted! to! utilize! the! remaining! five! hills! to! build!
churches.”! !This! page! on!http://www.sanghparivar.org!was! taken! down! the! day! after! voting!
ended!in!Seemandhra,!but!we!have!preserved!this!screenshot.!
!!
Sir,! several! communities! in! Seemandhra! voted! for! you! en!bloc,! in! the! hope! that! you! will! do!
everything!you!can!to!keep!those!filled!with!this!kind!of!hatred!away!from!the!levers!of!power!in!
India.!
Appeal to all secular parties, leaders and candidates to help prevent formation of
communalcentral government in India!
We,concerned citizens of India, are alarmed by the divisive, abusive and! violent Lok! Sabha
election campaign that!has just been concluded.Throughout the campaign, the Bharatiya Janata
Party under Narendra!Modi’s leadership has been especially virulent in ridiculing and insulting
religious and sexual minorities, dalits and! people with disabilities. Communal forces
represented and endorsed by BJP and Modi also work against the interests and rights of cultural
and linguistic minorities, adivasis and women across communities. BJP under Modi has also
threatened constitutional bodies like the Election Commission. Dissenting voices have been
intimidated and asked to leave the country.
Thecollusion of big corporates with rank communal and authoritarian ideas,visible starkly in
the poll campaign, will!seep into the structures of governance if a ModiK led NDAgovernment is
formed. All opponents to!this brand of politics will be hounded and hunted, as they indeed have
been in Gujarat. It is only reasonable to anticipate that the policies of discrimination and
ghettoisation practiced by!Modi's government in Gujarat will become the national norm. Even
more disturbingly, much of the mainstream media today is not only acting pliant, they are
carrying a barrage of misleading facts to promote Modi, leading to legitimate fears that they may
further abandon their watchdog role.
In this alarming scenario, it is imperative that you, the secular elected members of parliament
ensure that the Constitution and its values, and indeed, the future of this nation, are protected.
After all, secularism is not just a catchword in election manifestos. It is the backbone of our
democracy.
There is nothing inevitable about the rise of Modi to Prime Ministership. The keys to formation
of government in Delhi are held by all of you.We now remind some of you of the promises you
have made to the people of India to stand against communalism and uphold secularism during
this election campaign, which we have reproduced here. We, along with millions of citizens,
voted for you because of these promises.
We appeal to you and all other secular parties to come together to ensure the formation of a
secular government, and prevent the formation of a Narendra ModiKled BJP/NDA central!
government.
We gave you our votes. We hope you will honour our trust.
Eminentsignatories
Aditi!Mangaldas,!Dancer!
Aditya!Mukherjee,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Amiya!Kumar!Bagchi,!Emeritus!Professor,!Kolkata!
Amrita!Chhachhi!
Anand!Patwardhan,!Documentary!Filmmaker!
Aneesh!Pradhan,!Tabla!Maestro!
Ania!Loomba,!academic!!
Anil!Sadgopal,!Former!Dean,!Faculty!of!Education,!Delhi!University,!Bhopal!
Anthoniraj!Thumma,!Andhra!Pradesh!Federation!of!Churches,!Hyderabad!
Anusha!Khan,!Media!Professional!
Arjun!Dev,!Retired!professor,!NOIDA!
Asha!Mukherjee,!professor,!Visva!Bharati,!Shantiniketan,!West!Bengal!Atul!Sood,!professor!of!economics!
Bina!Sarkar!Ellias,!publisher/!writer,!Mumbai!
C.!P.!Chandrasekhar,!Professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
DN!Jha,!Retd!Professor!
Fr!Cedric!Prakash!SJ,!human!rights!activist,!Ahmedabad!
Githa!Hariharan,!writer,!Delhi!
Geeta!Kapur,!art!critic,!Delhi!
Hansal!Mehta,!writerKdirector!
Harbans!Mukhia,!former!Professor!of!History!and!Rector,!JNU,!National!Fellow,!ICHR!
Jairus!Banaji,!academic,!Mumbai!
Janaki!Nair,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Javed!Anand,!activist!Mumbai!
Jayati!Ghosh,!professor!of!economics!
Kabir!Khan,!Director!
Kundan!Shah,!Director!
Lakshmi!Subramaniam,!academic,!Kolkata!
Mahesh!Bhatt,!directorKproducer!
Mahesh!Murthy,!AdmanKEntrepreneur!
Maya!Krishna!Rao,!theatre!artist!
Mazher!Husaain,!COVA,!Hyderabad!
Mridula!Mukherjee,!Professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
Nirmalangshu!Mukherji,!Teacher,!Delhi!University!
Prabhat!Patnaik,!professor!of!economics!
Rappai!Poothokaren,!S.J.,!Ahmedabad!
Robert!Miranda,!Bishop!of!Gulbarga!
Rukmini!Bhaya!Nair,!Professor!of!Linguistics!and!English!
Shabnam!Hashmi,!social!activist,!Anhad!
Shohini!Ghosh,!professor!and!filmmaker!
Shubha!Mudgal,!singerKmusician!
Tabish!Khair,!writer!and!academic!
Vijay!Krishna!Acharya!‘Victor’,!WriterKDirector!
Vineet!Tiwari,!Gen.!Secretary,!MP!Progressive!Writers!Association,!Indore!
Vivan!Sundaram,!artist!
Yug!Mohit!Chaudhry,!Lawyer,!Mumbai!
Zoya!Hasan,!professor,!Jawaharlal!Nehru!University!
$!
with!
ANHAD!
Bombay!Catholic!Sabha,!Kalina!Unit!
LABIA!Queer!Feminist!LBT!Collective,!Mumbai!
Nigah!Queer!Collective,!Delhi!
NOMOre!Campaign,!allKIndia!secular!campaign!
Saheli!Women's!Resource!Centre,!Delhi!
Women's!Initiatives!(WINS),!Tirupati,!Andhra!Pradesh!
$!
And!900!voices!from!states!and!UTs!across!India.!Please!see!entire!list!of!signatories!in!pdf!
attachment.!!
$!
LEADERS,$IN$YOUR$OWN$WORDS!
$!
Shri$K$Chandrasekhar$Rao,$President,$Telangana$Rashtra$Samithi!
Sir,!on!April!14,!you!made!this!important!statement.!“I"am"making"a"policy"statement."TRS"will"
not"align"with"communal" forces."We"will"support" the"Third"Front."We"are"a"100%"secular"
party."We"will"not"join"the"NDA.”!Millions!gave!you!their!votes!on!this!assurance.!Sir,!we!hope!you!will!not!betray!them.!
!
Kumari$Mayawati,$Chairperson,$Bahujan$Samaj$Party!
Behenji,! on!May! 4! you! said! “Pura" desh" sampradayikta" ki" aag"mein"jalne"lagega" agar"woh"
(Modi)"PM"ban"gaya"!(the!whole!country!will!be!in!flames!if!Modi!becomes!the!PM).!You!have!
not!shied!away!from!challenging!Modi!head!on!during!the!election!campaign,!calling!the!bluff!of!
his! ‘backward! caste’! stunt! in! your! press! conference,! or! even! calling! for! a! ban! on! Amit! Shah’s!
entry!into!Uttar!Pradesh!when!he!made!his!mischievous!remarks!of!Azamgarh!being!the!den!of!
terrorists.!
!!
We! sincerely! urge! you! to! continue! your! stand! against! BJP's! brand! of! communal! politics! and!
hateful!attitude!of!BJP!supporters!towards!Dalits,!women!and!backwards.!
!!
Selvi$J$Jayalalitha,$General$Secretary,$All$India$Anna$Dravida$Munnetra$Kazhagam!
Amma,!on!October!31,!2013,! you! told! the!country! you!are!against!communal!politics,!and! that!
communalism! has! been! spreading! its! "dangerous! tentacles",! "with! the! sharp! increase! in!
communal! tensions! and! religionKbased! politics! and! growth! of! communal! forces! in! our! body!
politic."!
!!
While!releasing!the!Vision!2023!document!on!February!21,!2014,!you!said,!"I"have"a"vision"for"
India"in"which"Tamil"Nadu"will"play"a"key"role"—"a"vision"of"a"resurgent"India;"a"nation"with"
an"inclusive"society..."a"modern,"secular"and"prosperous"India."I"want"to"assure"you"all"that"
this"day"is"not"far.”!
!!
Amma,!that!day!has!come!for!Tamil!Nadu!to!play!a!key!role!in!upholding!a!secular!India.!
!!
Shri$Jaganmohan$Reddy,$President,$Yuvajana$Sramika$Rythu$Congress$Party!
Sir,!in!October!2013,!you!said,!"I"want"BJP"to"change."I"want"Modi"to"change"BJP."I"want"BJP"to"
become"secular..."We"don’t"want"Muzaffarnagar,"we"want"Mohabbatnagar".!After!witnessing!
the!divisive!campaign!just!concluded!by!BJP,!do!you!think!a!BJP!under!Modi!will!change!for!the!
better?!Are!you!aware!that!a!Sangh!Parivar!website!throws!brutal!communal!abuse!at!your!late!
father! because! of! his! faith?! We! quote! from! it:! "Yeduguri! Sandinti! Rajasekhara! Reddy! alias!
Yeduguri!Samuel!Rodriguez!Reddy!(1949K2009),!late!Christian!chief!minister!of!andhrapradesh!
for! ongoing!&!last!government!was! the!most!SECULAR!govt.!ever!...!Many! of! his!ministers!are!
openly! Christian! and!Muslim,! and! many! others! are! secret! Christians...!!YSR! ordered! that! the!
jurisdiction! of! Lord! Venkateswara! temple! at! Tirumala! Tirupati! be! reduced! from! the! current!
seven! hills! to! only! two! hills! and! wanted! to! utilize! the! remaining! five! hills! to! build!
churches.”! !This! page! on!http://www.sanghparivar.org!was! taken! down! the! day! after! voting!
ended!in!Seemandhra,!but!we!have!preserved!this!screenshot.!
!!
Sir,! several! communities! in! Seemandhra! voted! for! you! en!bloc,! in! the! hope! that! you! will! do!
everything!you!can!to!keep!those!filled!with!this!kind!of!hatred!away!from!the!levers!of!power!in!
India.!
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