Where Else Except in India?

Where Else #1: Where can it happen that the prime minister, the president and the leader of a nation’s ruling party all at the same time be from minority religions? If you answered “India”, you are right! India’s prime minister in 2005, Dr. Manmohan Singh is a Sikh, the president, Dr. Abdul Kalam, is a Muslim, and leader of the ruling Congress Party, Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, is a Catholic. India is 80% Hindu, 15% Muslim, 2.5% Christian, and 2% Sikh. It is kind of fortuitous that the minority representation reached this extent. The secular democracy, India, does have a long record of minorities holding important political offices since becoming independence in 1947.

Where Else #2: Where in the world can you find a country/region that gave birth to four major religions that have existed side-by-side without significant killings in the name of religion? You are right if you answered “India”. The religions are: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. When one of the lost tribes of Israel came to India 2700 years ago, or Christian Saint Thomas in 50 AD, and, later, Zoroastrians and Bahai’s from Persia, they all found India to be a place where they could survive and flourish.

Where Else #3: Where can you see more national holidays for minority religions than for the majority religion? You are right if you answered “India”. Although Hindus today constitute 80% of the country’s population, there are more national holidays for the minority religions than for Hinduism. India’s official national holidays include those of Islam (Id, Muharram, and Mohammed Birthday), Christianity (Christmas and Good Friday), Sikhism (Nanak Birthday), and Buddhism (Buddha Birthday) along side Hindu and secular holidays. In India the emphasis is not so much on “a separation of religion and state”; it is more on an inclusion of all religions.

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