Muslim nations are generally known for the exclusive pursuit of their religion’s interests and there’s little room for manoeuvre for other religions. Christianity is tolerated to an extent in the Gulf nations — because of the history of British control over those regions and the present power of the West. On the other hand, a functional Hindu temple in Dubai had been covered from all sides except for the entrance till recently. But, the modern emirate is changing with the times, sending out the right signals to the outside world. Now, among other facilities, Dubai’s road transport authority has announced free travel for people for a full week from Christmas eve till New Year on its fleet of 1,400 buses. The Metro rail services would run for 43 hours non-stop — ringing in the New Year calculated as per the Christian calendar. Clearly, the Muslim sheikhdom overstretched its limits to encourage the season’s celebrations on a massive scale. Underpinning its intent is, apart from showing a sense of accommodation to the festivities of other religions, an eminent push for its economic growth. The more people get out of their homes, the more the money they spend, boosting the market mechanisms.
There are lessons for others, especially those in the Muslim world, to learn from the Dubai Growth Story. Unlike the other emirates and Gulf kingdoms, Dubai has negligible earnings from oil but anchors its economic whims on tourism, trade, business and port-based re-export. The tiny emirate grew itself from being a desert into a glitzy, world-class city state on the same lines as another tiny (island) nation like Singapore grew. An open-minded approach allowed Dubai to grow fast, unlike the other emirates/kingdoms in the Gulf even with their rich deposits of oil. Fundamentalist Islamic nations like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan etc., are on the other extreme. India stands in between the progressive obsessions of Dubai and the negative mindset of Islamic nations. In all fairness — and thanks to the secular base that leaders from Jawaharlal Nehru set– religious freedom is enshrined as a right in the Constitution. Threats to this article of faith are there too. Now that the pro-RSS political establishment, the BJP, is heading the national government for three consecutive terms, a sense of discomfiture to the religious minority is palpable. Words can hurt one as deep as deeds. Treating some communities as enemies, or excluding them from the mainframe, is not the way forward for any government with a modern mindset. Instead, as Dubai fittingly does, the collective energy of the people should be fully drawn for a nation’s economic growth and social well-being. An open-minded approach is important. A government’s goodwill should be all-encompassing. Parochial feelings should be eschewed. Growth should be powered by all, and its benefits must reach all.
