a contextual missiology of the spirit - eTheses Repository ...

minority and fundamental rights, set up by the Constituent Assembly in 1947,
reveals the problem. Her study shows that Indian Christians initially demanded a
reservation of seats in proportion to the members, combined with the right to
contest seats in a joint electorate. K.M Munshi, the legal pilot of the Advisory
Committee, commended Christians for their fair attitude in accepting the
reservation. Sardar Vallabhai Patel, the Chairman of the Committee, urged the
granting of Fundamental Rights to minorities, citing the sacrifices made by them,
and the proposal was finally accepted unanimously. However, Albuquerque
comments that Christians were responding to the ‘goodwill of the majority and
surrendered the reservation seats accorded to them,’ adding that Christians had
agreed to this so that a solid foundation for a lasting democracy could be
ensured. 25
Nevertheless, even today, six decades after Independence, it appears likely that
the attitude of the majority is the same. In its annual conference in 2002, which
was held in Bangalore, India, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) 26 passed a
resolution stating that the safety of minority communities lies in the ‘goodwill of
the majority.’ 27 However, this cannot be taken as being representative of the voice
of the majority. Rather, as The Hindu, one of the leading newspapers in India,
commented, it shows the ‘RSS’s pretensions as the majority community’s sole
25 Albuquerque, ‘Role of the Christians, 167.
26 RSS is a Hindu NGO.
27 P.R. Dubhashi, ‘Meaning of Secularism,’ The Hindu, 11 June 2002, under ‘Open Page,’
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/op/2002/06/11/stories/2002061100020200.htm (accessed 13
Nov 2006).
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