Dear Editor,
The Hindu Conference and When critics question the overtures to politicians for their participation in a Hindu Conference in Guyana on October 24, 2024, their queries are not without merit. Those who experienced firsthand the depths to which Hindu leaders and Pandits stooped to gain favor from a corrupt and autocratic government between 1970 and 1990, wonder if this playbook is not about to repeat itself (déjà vu). Hobnobbing with and stooping to politicians whose interests at best are apathetic to Hindu causes, is to indulge in conduct that can only be described as morally unsavory. A glimpse of the self-serving behaviors by Hindu leaders decades ago may give context to the malaise into which the Hindu community is mired for which the Conference is expected to find solutions.
Guyana has witnessed a decline of the Hindu population to 31% (The Association of Religion Data Archives 2023) from a high of 35.7% in 1980. A proportionately higher migration of Hindus to foreign lands than other demographic groups, and conversion through aggressive proselytization have contributed significantly to the shrinkage of the Hindu population. These are the results of a humiliation to the Hindu psyche, triggered by the opportunistic mentality of a group of Hindu leaders. It was a betrayal from which Hindus in Guyana are yet to recover.
In 1968, the Pandits Council and the Maha Sabha (the Sabha) threw their full support to the PNC, and were among the first to give an unqualified approval to the election results which were resoundingly condemned by influential voices locally and abroad as being massively rigged by the PNC. It was the beginning of an unholy relationship between the two Hindu organizations and a despotic government, with each side driven by selfish ends. The PNC Government was happy to use the two organizations as a facade to legitimize the election results, and to scotch criticisms that its policies were racist in practice against Indians. On a visit to the African continent, accompanied by the leader of the Sabha, Burnham boasted of having the support of over three hundred and fifty thousand Indians (most of them Hindus). Leaders in the Sabha and the Pandits Council felt that the relationship gave them national prestige, and a window into gaining political and economic power, which was denied to most other Hindus.
The narrow opportunistic pursuits of the two Hindu organizations saw them quickly defend the fraudulent outcome of the 1978 referendum, which paved the way for a change in the Guyana Constitution. Burnham ascended the Presidency in 1980, solidifying his power as the maximum leader to add to his clout as Head of a Party that had Paramountcy over the Government through the Sophia Declaration of 1974. The heavy-handed way the inner circles of the Sabha and the Pandits Council wielded power over their supporters was not unlike Burnham’s stronghold on power.
The stooges were richly rewarded for their sycophancy. One of the leaders of the Pandits Council was co-opted as a government minister, and the President of the Sabha became the Speaker of the National Assembly, a position he held for 21 years, until the PNC was defeated in 1992.
Heavy restrictions on the importation of certain food items, several of which were staples to the Indians kitchen, hardly affected family and friends of the Pandit’s Council, and the Sabha. Every banned item was made available to them along with assorted aged liquors and liqueurs. On the other hand, ordinary citizens spent hours in long lines to receive a pint of oil or a pound of flour from the government-established KSI (Knowledge Sharing Institute, a concept borrowed from the North Korean dictatorial regime).
Religious items that suffered the same restricted importation as food were placed in the hands of the Pandits Council for distribution. The Council carved that responsibility into a weapon demanding allegiance from those who wanted to purchase these scarce commodities. On the other hand, friends of the Council had easy access to unlimited supplies when needed.
The Pandits Council was instrumental in having certain provisions inserted into the Constitution to stipulate that only Brahmins were eligible for priesthood. Additionally, the Council was identified as the only institution that would determine who were qualified to become licensed priests. Again, the Council used its position to exclude those, including Brahmins, who did not subscribe to its brand of politics, frustrating priests in other organizations, who lacked the legal credentials to sign marriage certificates. Such political narrowness contributed to the shrinking of attendances at temples, now reduced to a trickle.
The systematic humiliation of the Indian community, particularly the Hindus, was occasioned by a complicity between self-serving religious organizations, and a callous regime whose policies were directed towards hurting Indians. Pain is more excruciating when it is inflicted by those whom you consider to be your spiritual mentors. The anger and bitterness led to cynicism and revulsion against the sheep in wolves’ clothing. The outcome has been a lack of trust and scorn by many men in particular for “people of the cloth,” and the institutions where they “weave their web of deceit.” Male disengagement from religious activities denies young people the motivation and guidance from father-figures, and male youth have tended to join their fence-sitting fathers. The void created by religious disengagement has unfortunately led to indulgence in alcohol, gambling and other negative social activities that undermine the stability and moral strength of people of all ages. Loneliness, and the absence of basic skills to withstand depression has resulted in suicides, which per capita is higher among Hindus, than any other ethnic group.
Conference organizers have insisted that their work is not influenced by politics, but the optics seem to tell another story which may be difficult to erase from the minds of those who witnessed a near similar maneuver in the past. In any event, I wish Conference leaders success in their deliberations during October 2024, with the hope that their messages would provide a roadmap to rekindle enthusiasm and renewed interest in the propagation of Sanatana Dharma.
Yours Truly
RS