The march in the heart of Hyderabad began with every participant reading the preamble of the constitution of India and taking the pledge to promote peace and unity.
Nikhat Fatima | TwoCircles.net
HYDERABAD — A peace march, calling for the unity of society and rejection of communal hatred amid the ongoing divisive political atmosphere prevailing in the country, was held Sunday in Hyderabad.
The peace march was organized by Telangana for Peace and Unity (TPU), which is an organization of concerned citizens from the state. The organization’s purported aim is to work towards establishing peace and unity of all communities in Hyderabad across Telangana, “especially, at a time when religious fundamentalist forces are trying to spread hatred in the country.”
The peace march was taken out in the heart of Hyderabad from Babu Jagjivan Ram Statue near Lal Bahadur Stadium to Babasaheb Ambedkar Statue. The march covered a distance of 2 kilometres amid the presence of police.
The peace march saw the participation of hundreds of people from different religious backgrounds, including activists and retired professors, advocates, writers, students, teachers, and educationists. Activists from different organisations like Rythu Swarajya Vedika, Help Hyderabad, Telangana Domestic Workers Union, Dalit women’s Forum, Dalit Stree Shakti (DSS), Ankuram, All India Muslim Sangham, Human rights Forum (HRF), Progressive Organisation for Women (POW), National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW), Confederation of Voluntary Associations(COVA), Telangana Women and Transgender Joint Action Committee, National Alliance of People’s Movement (NAPM), Sankalp Women’s support Alliance attended the march.
The march began with every participant reading the preamble of the constitution of India and taking the pledge to promote peace and unity.
Participants carried the tricolour, and placards with messages of unity that read, “We stand united for peace and unity”, “ Mazhab nahi sikhata aapas mein bair rakhna (Religion does not teach division)”, and “ Humanity is our common religion.”
Addressing the audience, Khalida Parveen, a senior activist and President of Amoomat society, said, “The constitution of India gives scope for people of all religions to participate in their religion freely but the constitutional values are not being upheld today. We have all always lived together and will continue to do so. We are not going to fight this violence with violence; we are going to fight the constitutional way. So I appeal to everyone to not give in to anger and resort to violence in order to retaliate. Let us be patient and work to promote unity and strengthen each other. Let us spread the message of peace to each and every corner of our state. I appeal to the Chief Minister of Telangana to support us to promote peace and unity and not let divisive forces destroy the peace that is prevailing in our state.”
Talking to TwoCircles.net, Meera Sanghmitra, a prominent activist from the National Alliance of People’s Movement and a member of the Joint Action Committee of women and transgender organisations, said, “While Telangana has not suffered major communal violence like some other states, recent developments in the state point to a very disturbing pattern. All of us who believe in peaceful co-existence must work very hard to ensure that the atmosphere in the state is not vitiated. We must take the spirit of TPU and constitutional values to every part of the state and demonstrate that people of Telangana want livelihoods and social security, not hate crimes and religious discrimination.”
Sarah Mathews, another senior activist from Hyderabad, heading Sankalp Women’s Support Alliance, said, “Our unity march is a show of strength of the gentle but strong. An indication of our resolve to save our constitution and country. We hope that this movement spreads across the country, that people stand together united as one and expose these corrupt politicians who pit one against another for their filthy vote bank politics.”
Nikhat Fatima is a correspondent with TwoCircles.net. She tweets at @snikhatf