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In everything that is fundamental and essential to life Hindus and Muslims differ. It is no use shutting one's eyes to realities. Among Hindus themselves there are schisms and exclusive castes and sub-castes. Between them they make a most undemocratic society, yet they have suddenly fallen in love with democracy. They talk of nothing else but democracy. In Bombay recently a swimming bath on the seashore was opened for the exclusive use of the Hindus. They are not prepared to swim with the Muslims even in the sea. I do not want to ridicule the feelings of the Hindus. I respect every one's religious feelings. I am only referring to these things to show how deep is the difference between the Hindus and the Muslims. It would be no wisdom to proceed to build for India a constitution on the assumption as if these differences did not exist. By ignoring the realities and the difficulties in the way of fitting India into a simple democratic system the Hindus will be doing the greatest harm to their own people. Democracy of the kind they want to impose on India is an impossibility, for even the conditions which make diluted democracy possible in other countries are absent from India. The sooner the idea is given up the better. (it) |
