Recently, a disturbing video of a hijab-clad student being surrounded and heckled by a mob of Hindu students at a college in Karnataka went viral. The incident was condemned by many people, in India and abroad. Why did the boys who wore saffron shawls (some were her own classmates) behave in an intolerant manner? What would have happened if she had not confronted the protesters? Was the girl harassed just for wearing a hijab or is it an act of Islamophobia? This particular incident and subsequent ones are clear cases of indoctrination of young minds.
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For decades, hijab-wearing and burqa-clad Muslim students have been allowed to attend classes and students of various faiths have been friends in our country. How did a non-issue become an issue?
Communalisation, radicalisation, indoctrination, and polarisation are opposed to the concept of education and are a great threat to peace and democracy in the country. Young minds — be they Muslims Hindus, Christians, or Sikhs — should never be allowed to be radicalised and indoctrinated.
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Education vs Indoctrination
Indoctrination is defined as “the process of teaching a person or group to accept a set of beliefs uncritically”. Many politicians, religious leaders and celebrities, and some teachers too, try to indoctrinate their followers, fans, and students. Different types of media constantly indoctrinate their users. Those who indoctrinate others make people believe that there is only one side to a story. As a result, indoctrinated people are not open-minded and not interested in engaging in meaningful discussion. They are prejudiced against those who have different belief systems, whether religious or political. In other words, they become bigots. Almost everyone is subject to indoctrination at some point in their lives. Those who are able to think critically do not allow themselves to be indoctrinated but those who lack critical thinking become victims of the evil design.
Education and indoctrination do not go together. Education liberates people from the shackles of narrow-mindedness, illogical thinking and bias. It enables people to think and broadens their vision. Education helps us know the difference between information and misinformation/disinformation.
Those who are educated fight for their rights and those of others and raise their voice against injustice. It is gratifying to note that around 800 right-thinking professionals, including lawyers, academics and students of law, wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court stating that “education cannot, should not, and must not be denied to anyone based on any marker of religious identity”. Unfortunately, many choose to be silent on such issues and this strategic silence could be another form of indoctrination.
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What should be done?
It is essential to create awareness among students about their Fundamental Rights and enable them think critically and not accept anything blindly. The need to celebrate diversity and plurality should be emphasised. It is not possible to have absolute uniformity in a multi-lingual, multi-religious, and multi-cultural society. Only the Constitution can give protection to vulnerable citizens and they need to be aware of their rights, as guaranteed in it.
Ultimately, everyone should be governed by the rule of law, which should be based on the principles of the Constitution. It is the responsibility of every right-thinking person to liberate young minds from the shackles of indoctrination. We are either educated or indoctrinated.
The writer is an education columnist and media critic. rayanal@yahoo.co.uk