By Marcellus D’Souza

Apr 30: If I had made a statement like the one made by Subhash Velingkar, former state unit chief of the RSS, I would have been hauled up for sacrilege.
My twitter account would be flooded with slur words and unparliamentarily and derogatory language. Death threats would be received. I would have to go into hiding for fear of my life. My Facebook account would be hacked and flooded with the choicest of abuses. The 'official' trollers would bombard my in-box with all kind of defenses and weird explanations.

The government, who manages ‘Twitter’ and ‘Facebook’, by giving then a fair share of advertising, would have not spared any effort to block my account.

The reality is I am not Subhash Velingkar nor do I subscribe to his ideology or utterances nor do I have the backing of a state or central government.

Can it be comprehended, three days after the statement against Saint Francis Xavier was made, no condemnation has been received from Pramod Sawant, Chief Minster of Goa or the BJP chief Sadanand Tanavade or the BJP central orgainsation headed by J.P. Nanda or the government headed by Narendra Modi. This shows that Subhash Velingkar enjoys the active and tacit support of the powers that be within the BJP as well as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The only people who are making some feeble noises are the Catholic ministers in the government and in the opposition ranks. These noises could be to safeguard their positions with their electorate. Strangely, no comment has come from Curtorim MLA

Aleixo Lourenco; or Cortalim MLA Antonio Vas, or Jennifer Monserrate of Taleigao and wife of the MLA from Panjim Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate who have all been accommodated with plump post in various government bodies.

BJP members like Panjim MLA Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate or Mapusa MLA Joshua D'Souza have not condemned the statement by the RSS functionary. Atanasio has to walk the tight rope and protect his son 32-year-old son Rohit Monserrate and Mayor of Panjim. The only MLA who condemned the utterances of Subhash Velingkar, was Nilesh Cabral of Curchorem.

But none of the sitting MLAs have had the gall to resign from his posts in defense of the most revered Goan saint. They are cozy with their huge offices, vehicles and official perks.

Besides, Congress members like Michael Lobo and Carlos Álvares Ferreira who have vociferously condemned the rash statement, former minister Francisco Mickky Pacheco on Friday lodged a police complaint against the RSS ideologue.

Goan Members of Parliament Francisco Sardinha and Luizinho Faleiro have chosen to remain silent on the issue.

When RSS sanghchalak and Hindu Raksha Maha Aghadi convenor Subhash Velingkar said “St Francis Xavier (SFX) cannot be called ‘Goencho Saib’ and that a campaign ‘The Goa Files’ will be launched from May 3, to make Bhagwan Parshuram ‘Goencho Saib.’” Was he testing the waters of tolerance that is witnessed in Goan society.
Others who have protested have repeatedly said, 'The goodwill that communities have for each other in Goa cannot be broken by what a Subhash Velingkar has said about the Saint. We will continue to live in harmony, as we have done all these years'.

Why has Subhash Velingkar waited for now to spread his venom. As much as his utterances may not have had the desired effect, it has sown the seeds of doubt and is willing to wait for it to germinate until 2024 when the social fabric of the country will be tested and torn apart.

Subhash Velingkar could have made this statement during the campaign for the recently held elections but it would have been suicidal and would never have returned the BJP back to power.

The Chief Minister did play the emotive card when he promised to allocate Rs. 20 crores for the rebuilding of temples if the party was voted back to power, while inaugurating the historic Shree Mangueshi Temple at Mangueshi, Ponda. He honoured his promise and allocated the amount of Rs 20 crore in his budget which he presented after being sworn in to head his 0.2 government. I have always maintained this was a wrong move by the head of government.

So has Subhash Velingkar been able to set the cat amongst the pigeons. He did so thru a presser which received the desired coverage. The statement has far reaching ramifications in the long run. Most importantly, it has the approval of the RSS, the parent organisation of the BJP as well as the ‘high command’ of the BJP party. If not Subhash Velingkar would not dare take on Goencho Saib so blatantly.
Will he succeed in convincing the peace loving people of Goa, who have Goencho Saib as the protector of Goa of the replacement of Bhagwan Parshuram, the sixth incarnation among the Dashavatara of God Vishnu in Hinduism? Religion is indeed an emotive issue and the winds of change are blowing fast and furious.

Pramod Sawant who heads the government in sun soaked, fun loving, susegad Goa wears his political leanings, towards the RSS ideology, openly on his sleeve. In his first experiment of resurrecting destroyed temples, in which he never disclosed the methodology of his experiment. This has left many wondering if he will adopt hearsay and belief or scientific data. He has tasted success by his large largesse of cash towards the success of this experiment. In his second experiment he plans to undo the wrong doings of the 460-years of Portuguese rule. Is Subhash Velingkar only furthering his cause?

Is Goa becoming a laboratory for divisive forces? It's time to wake up and smell the coffee.