Politics and religion should be kept at a distance

THEINDIAunion was created on the grounds of secularism and gave its people the freedom of religion. However, this was misused by the very people who were responsible for keeping it afloat. The influence of religion in politics is one of the most talked after topics in the field, right from the time of independence communal politics has been part and parcel of the Indian political scene.Even today as India has entered the era of information and is no more seen as a third world country by the world, India still has politics relating to religion. Any political party today has a community and a group that they support and expect votes from. This is where the inception of reservation and quota has emerged that has split the country as a whole. India today has more that 500 political parties and most of them are associated with some religion or the other.The two religions that have been the biggest focus in India have been Hinduism and Islam. Comprising of the highest share of the population these two religions have beenatloggerheadsmany times over the past 61 years of our republic. The hindu fundamentalist or the muslim fanatics, these are terms that have been created only due to political activities.This association however is not just an Indian phenomenon and is present in most countries in the world where more than one religion exists. It is this dirty politics that has led to 9/11. Peace and harmony was the reason behind the creation of any religion and that has been the very thing we have lost due to the misinterpretationby the politicians.If India and the world needs to grow they need to understand the true meaning of religion and that we need to understand that if working together all religious groups are complimentary and can be very beneficial for our growth and prosperity.