[9enackivegliva]

I have always held the belief that 'secularism' is not about the rejection of 'religion' in the public square, but rather it is about 'accommodating the free expression of all good ideals' of all 'religions' represented in a social state.

I think the Europeans have adopted a more rigid view of secularism as 'the state should not permit any religious ideals in the public square'. This is probably because of the havoc created by their main religion, Christianity, which while supposedly came out of 'Love' has a violent past that is quite nauseus to the modern mind and Protestantinism, which extolls morality and ethics over any liturgical/religious sentiments.

But I think in a diverse country like India, where there are sizeable religious minorities, secularism of the first kind is appropriate. All this talk about 'pseudo-secularism' is a temporary phenomenon as people get more and more educated, and the electorate can not be 'vote banked'. I really look forward to the day when performance overrides any linguistic/religious/community concerns for the electorate. And the last election has given a glimmer of hope to India in this regard.

Regards,
KRS