Blasphemy, according to a quick google search is "Actions or speech that is done in irreverence or dismissal of God". To no one's surprise there are laws in place even today in more than a comfortable number of countries to punish blasphemy as a crime. In this episode, we briefly discuss the origin of this phenomenon, and see why is it that the state chooses to use it's monopoly of violence over speech and literature against God. In continuation of the discussion, we discuss the rationale given by the Supreme Court of India, as the justification for the constitutional validity of the blasphemy law in the Democratic Republic of India. Additionally, we discuss the the largest incident of blasphemy in the 20th century - the fatwa against Salman Rushdie and the complexities of having geographical granted autonomy to write and say something, while another geographical and cultural taboo to the extent of demanding death of the blasphemer across jurisdictions. In addition to the Fatwa, we also talk about incidents of "Blasphemy" and how it defines the identity of a culture and location. The end of this episode discusses India and the choice as a culture we stand to make, whether the State should penalise the blasphemer on behalf of religions over the fear of violence.
Music: @triggerfish.wut, logo by @poorwow on instagram
Recommented Reading:
Any and all religious texts you can find - specially pertaining to Islam, Christianity and Hinduism (Ones I have glossed over are Bhagwat Gita, Quran and the Bible across commentaries)
The Portable Atheist - Christopher Hitchens
Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie (if it is legal in your country)
The Satanic Verses Affair (2009) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilbNgCWgnwE
Ramji Lal Modi V. the State of Uttar Pradesh 1957 AIR 620
Superintendent, Central Prison, Fatehgarh V. Ram Manohar Lohia 1960 AIR 633
The letter provided by Bangalore Police to Munawar Fariqui's organisers is attached in an article by the wire at:
https://thewire.in/rights/bengaluru-police-make-organisers-cancel-comedian-munawar-faruquis-show
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