Let me first categorically assert that the intentions of my post were not in any way meant to discredit John Dayal or show him in poor light. If my earlier posts appeared in that way, I sincerely apologize for the same as I have realised that the wordings of the post were quite unfair to him.
I would accept the words of Hartman and Frederick that John Dayal is a great humanitarian – something that I never disputed in my earlier posts in the first place. As a matter of fact, some of the most orthodox Missionaries who operate on Indian soils too are sincere humanitarians. Being involved with a few social groups and having done joint events with them, I can say with a large degree of conviction that they too are good human beings whose love and concern for fellow humans are qualities that are worthy of emulation. I however believe that the ideological positions John Dayal or radical evangelical groups hold are not in the interests of a modern progressive society that a liberal Indian would wish to see. Intolerance is a viscious cycle that results in violence that begets in further violence; and in communal clashes it is always the innocent citizens who suffer. There is therefore a need to weed out all forms of intolerance, orthodoxy and irrational behavior. This is the path that most modern progressive Western democracies followed when they adopted a model of secularism that was essentially anti-religion and if we want to prevent communal clashes from happening this is the path that India will need to emulate. Through further investigations, I have susbsequently learnt that John Dayal was a progressive liberal leader in the past. However, while he presently opposes the orthodoxy in Hinduism (which is a good thing) he somehow does not seem to do the same when it comes to opposing the fundamentalists operating in his religion. My objections to him are therefore limited to this and if my opinions about him are wrong, then the correct approach will be in presenting the facts in a sincere and articulate manner, without resorting to unfair name-calling. For the records, I have nothing to do with RSS or Jana Sangh or BJP or any other religious or political groups. Finally, thanks to Cecil, Anand, Santosh, Bosco, Frederick and a few others for their gracious support. Cheers Sandeep
