Hindu American Foundation Newsletter: October 11, 2004

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Newsletter: October 11, 2004Mon, 11 Oct 2004 18:58:43 -0400

 

HAF Newsletter October 11, 2004

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In This Newsletter

HAF Authored Resolution Recognizing Diwali HAF Submits Amicus Letter in Federal Court

 

Campaigns

HAF wrote a Letter to the Editor in response to a Wall Street Journal Editorial,

"Islamists vs. Democracy" (September 27, 2004), about the growth in violence

attributed to Bangladesh’s Islamist movements, in which the genocide and

terrible human rights condition of Hindus was not even mentioned.click here for

more >>

 

Campaigns

The HAF Hindu Awareness Campaign's goal is to educate Hindus in America about

the issues HAF is addressing.click here for more >>

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HAF authored resolution recognizing Diwali introduced in the U.S. Congress

A resolution recognizing the historical and cultural significance of the Hindu

festival of Diwali was submitted to the United States House of Representatives,

Committee on Government Reform, on October 5, 2004. House Resolution 816 was

introduced by Rep. Joseph Crowley (D, NY), Democratic Chair of the

Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, and was authored with

assistance from the Hindu American Foundation (HAF)

(http://www.hinduamericanfoundation.org/).

HAF members with Rep Joseph Crowley (D-NY) at HAF reception in U.S. Capitol

"I am pleased to have introduced this resolution recognizing Diwali,” said

Representative Joseph Crowley (D, NY) Democratic Chair of the Congressional

Caucus on India and Indian Americans as he introduced the first resolution

recognizing a festival of religious significance to most Indian Americans.

“Diwali is an important day for Indian Americans and Indians around the world

and I am proud to be the sponsor of this resolution," Rep. Crowley continued.

The resolution explains that Diwali, a variation of the Sanskrit word Deepavali,

refers to the rows of earthen lamps celebrants place around their homes. Hindus

believe that the light from these lamps symbolizes illumination within the

individual that overwhelms ignorance, represented by darkness. In addition to

the spiritual significance the day holds for Hindus, the resolution also

explains the importance of the day to Sikhs and Jains. Sikhs celebrate the

release of the Sixth Guru, Hargobind, from captivity by the Mughal Emperor

Jehangir and Jains commemorate Diwali as the day Lord Mahavira, the last of the

Tirthankaras, attained Nirvana, or liberation, after his death in 527 B.C.

"Diwali is of immense significance to Hindu Americans, and this resolution

introduced by Congressman Crowley captures the essence of its spiritual and

historical importance to Hindus, Jains and Sikhs," said Aseem Shukla, M.D.,

Member of the HAF Board of Directors.

 

Congressman Crowley meets with members of HAF and discusses the strong impact

they have made on issues affecting Hindus.

The Hindu American Foundation, that had hosted a reception on Capitol Hill, and

met with several congressmen to discuss issues of concern to Hindu Americans,

approached contacts made during those visits to consider official congressional

recognition of Diwali. With official assent, HAF proceeded to provide a draft

of such a resolution. "When the co-chairs of the India caucus, Reps. Crowley

and Wilson, agreed to work with HAF to finalize a resolution on Diwali, we

quickly grasped this unique opportunity to garner official recognition for this

most widely celebrated festival. We have enjoyed an excellent working

relationship with many congressional offices, and we hope to utilize these

contacts to gain widespread support for this resolution," said Sheetal Shah,

coordinator of the HAF Government Interaction Project.

The resolution effort was the latest in a series of actions by HAF to fulfill

stated goals to further understanding of Hinduism and promote the religion’s

tenets of tolerance and pluralism. Mihir Meghani, M.D., President of HAF,

explained that the resolution was aimed at promoting awareness of the growing

Hindu American community and imparting an official recognition to one of their

most important festivals. "This will not only be the first time Hindus and all

Indian Americans are felicitated on Diwali, but in a sense, this resolution is a

first step in bringing Diwali into our nation's mainstream.” said Mihir Meghani,

M.D., President of HAF. “Congressman Crowley has once again demonstrated his

sincere commitment to Hindu American issues by introducing this resolution,"

Dr. Meghani added.

You may contact your Congressman and voice your opinion about the Diwali

resolution. To find out the contact details for your Congressman, visit

http://www.congress.org/

HAF Submits Amicus Letter in Federal Court

On September 2, 2004, The Hindu American Foundation (HAF)

(http://www.hinduamericanfoundation.org/) submitted an amicus (friend of court)

letter, with ten co-signatories spanning the religious spectrum, in support of a

request for injunctive relief filed by the Hindu Temple Society of North America

in United States federal court on August 4, 2004. The federal lawsuit, filed on

behalf of the Hindu temple by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and

supported by the HAF amici curiae letter, that was one of the last documents

accepted by United States District Judge Raymond Dearie for review, claimed

that the Supreme Court of the State of New York engaged in a hostile takeover

of the prominent Hindu Temple in Queens, New York.

The Becket Fund and HAF hold that the state court, and an appointed referee who

is not Hindu, have unconstitutionally intruded upon the Hindu temple in

response to efforts by six dissident members to gain control over the temple.

The referee, Anthony Piacentini, is currently in control over the daily

administration of the temple, including determining who qualifies as a “member”

and whether a member need be Hindu, because the state court asserts that it has

been unable to gain the cooperation of the current Board in restructuring the

governance of the temple. The state court found that an earlier set of the

by-laws required the Hindu temple to have a voting membership to decide

numerous matters pertaining to the temple, including electing Board members.

The text of the amici letter clarifies that HAF does not advocate for a

specific party in the internal temple dispute.

“Our role is not to recommend how a temple chooses to structure its governance

or for whom the courts should rule when temple disputes reach the tragic point

of filing lawsuits,” asserts Suhag Shukla, Esq., Legal Counsel for HAF. “But

HAF is concerned that a similar dispute at a church or synagogue would not have

ended in the takeover of that institution by an outsider who controls every

aspect of that institution from administration to how and when religious rites

may be performed.” She also added, “And certainly, we are, by no means,

advocating a position that religious organizations are somehow above the law.

However, there are numerous alternatives a court may avail itself of to ensure

that its orders are carried out such as holding uncooperative parties in

contempt. In the instant case, the Supreme Court of the State of New York

chose to act in a way that ignores the fundamental

principle of separation of church and state.”

The Becket Fund and HAF claimed in their filings that the state court intruded

into every level of temple administration in violation of the First and

Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution—amendments that

guarantee the right to free exercise and equal protection under the law,

respectively. On September 16, 2004, Judge Dearie ruled that the federal court

appreciated the important First Amendment concerns raised by the Becket Fund and

HAF, but chose to abstain from overruling the state courts at this time.

“While we are obviously disappointed that the federal court did not reverse the

unconstitutional ongoing interference into temple affairs by the New York

Supreme Court,” said Ms. Shukla, “HAF will continue to support the Becket Fund

in their appeal and continue to spread awareness as to the crucial principles

at stake.”

The text of the HAF letter can be viewed in full on the Beckett Fund website at

http://www.becketfund.org/index.php/case/87.html. The letter that was

presented by HAF on behalf of AGNI Corporation, the Catholic League for Civil

and Religious Rights, the Hindu Human Rights Group, the Hindu International

Council Against Defamation, Hindu University of America, Ile Obatala Oya,

Kanchi Kamakoti Seva Foundation, Navya Shastra, and the Queens Federation of

Churches, discusses how the state court system has burdened the Hindu Temple

Society's religious practice:

"The order mandating a state-sponsored referee to determine the method by which

the Hindu Temple structures and governs itself; who qualifies as a member, an

inquiry which potentially includes determining who qualifies as a 'Hindu'; and

imposing rule by a majority of state-approved members, absent any legal basis,

appears punitive and represents a potentially hostile interference into the

sanctity of the Hindu Temple. It also clearly interferes with the Hindu

Temple’s ability to function, let alone exercise its religion, as the Board of

Trustees, which as an entity has governed the Hindu Temple for the past thirty

years, is no longer able conduct its business including appointing, hiring and

dismissing priests; exercising authority over the design and expansion of the

temple grounds according to Hindu religious principles; managing the scheduling

of religious services at the temple; deciding which divinities

will be honored as well as the forms of devotion that will occur at the temple;

controlling the finances of the temple; and all other aspects of religious and

temporal activities associated with the temple."

“The fact that ten organizations representing three different religions signed

onto a letter authored by HAF indicates the broad relevance of this issue,”

said Mihir Meghani, M.D., President of HAF. “Furthermore,” continued Dr.

Meghani, “It highlights well the role HAF can play in representing Hindu

interests in just such a circumstance—something few other Hindu organizations

are able to do.”

For further information, please visit http://www.hinduamericanfoundation.org/ or

contact HAF's Spokesperson at info (AT) hinduamericanfoundation (DOT) org. For urgent

inquiries, you may call (904) 285-0073.

We need your support to continue our work.

Please click here to support the work of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF)

Hindu American FoundationP.O. Box 48528Tampa, Florida

33647U.S.A.http://www.hinduamericanfoundation.org/info (AT) hinduamericanfoundation (DOT) orgDo

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