First non-Hindu Leads India

For the first time ever, a non-Hindu has been chosen to lead India. This is interesting because Italian-born leader Sonia Gandhi declined the position because of criticisms over the fact that she wasn’t native-born. Apparently, the Hindu-nationalists are more comfortable with a native-born non-Hindu than a foreign-born Hindu. Yes, that makes lots of sense.

The Australian reports:

Dr Singh, a Sikh, was sworn in along with his 67-member cabinet in a glittering ceremony in New Delhi led by President Abdul Kalam, a Muslim. A respected economist, Dr Singh will be leading a leftist-backed coalition that ousted the Hindu nationalist government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee in a surprise election win. His team of 28 cabinet ministers and 39 junior ministers was decided after marathon negotiations and rows within the Congress-led coalition.

This is interesting not only because Singh isn’t a Hindu, but because he is a Sikh. This marks an important step forward for India in terms of political and religious tolerance, especially given the fact that there has been quite a lot of violence between the government and the Sikh minority at times.

Read More:

• Religious Intolerance & Bigotry
• Religion in India
• Religious Tensions in India