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Every time people discuss TLP & Khadim Rizvi, I am reminded of a bizarre experience I had in my fieldwork which shows the complex ways in which people interpret the past & present in this land.
A year ago I went to this village in Central Punjab. It was named after Guru Nanak.
A year ago I went to this village in Central Punjab. It was named after Guru Nanak.
The village was of the old-type, unlike the numbered canal colonies. After collecting data & doing interviews, our host there brought us to his house. His father was a respected educator in the village & the family was high-caste, powerful members of the community.
Anyways while serving, the host proudly told us about the village's history. This used to be unoccupied land which once had a Sarai aka inn. Centuries ago, Guru Nanak came & stayed at this Sarai on his spiritual travels. It was only after his blessing that this place got settled.
The host claimed that the house we are sitting in right now is the exact place where Guru Nanak stayed & prayed. I was skeptical but went along. Then they told us that this village used to have Sikhs. And some years back, a whole group of them came here looking for family homes.
The villagers helped them out in the search & the old Sikhs who had spent their childhood here had a good time. They even found a few buried heirlooms. The host was telling me all this with pride. Guru Nanak's name was said with respect.
Now the bizarre part.
Now the bizarre part.
Everywhere in the village, they had TLP posters. And our host was a member of the party & had spent some time in jail for that. I was a bit wary, but I asked him about it still. His response?
A whole lecture on the importance of Hurmat-e-Rasool & how the gov. is ignoring it.
A whole lecture on the importance of Hurmat-e-Rasool & how the gov. is ignoring it.
I was fully intrigued so I prodded further & asked what was the scene? How did he manage to take so much pride in belonging to Guru Nanak's village & yet support TLP? He said "Wo tau history hai ji. Is ka ab se kia lena dena". Modern politics & history were not linked for him.
I wondered if this was just the case with him so I talked to other people in the village as well jic. Turns out a lot of them thought about it this way.
But, even worse, there was one group who had actually changed the village's name from Nanak's to Muhammad's.
But, even worse, there was one group who had actually changed the village's name from Nanak's to Muhammad's.
Anyways, this was just an anecdote. But this bizarre cognitive dissonance is not a rarity. I have seen it in a lot of places. And the scary part? The cognitive dissonance is now giving away to straight-up bigotry. The memories & tendencies of pluralism are rapidly eroding away.
