Balidaan  (Paperback, M.k. Raina Ratnakar)

What is emerging in India today is a new phenomenon of political parties based on religion and caste. This is the harsh reality we are facing today. That is why one has no other option, but to look to the problems of nation building afresh. India is a vast country where people belonging to different religions, castes and creeds live together usually in harmony, but sometimes this harmony is disturbed and this disturbance creates many social problems in addition to losing some valuable human lives. Not only does India need to bring people belonging to different religions together once again, but the whole world needs to follow the suit. BALIDAAN, my novel is based on the theme of unity of religions. Shankar, the main character of the novel fortunately or unfortunately adopts a Muslim girl Salma and brings her up as a Muslim girl only, and not as a Hindu girl which he could easily do. He educates her academically and gives her the knowledge about the religious scriptures of most of the religions and thereafter marries her happily to an educated Muslim boy. This is not easily absorbed by the political scholars and religious savants of the society. In his struggle and sacrifice, he stands like a rock to all sorts of criticism from the religious leaders, so-called intellectuals and all other political thinkers of our society. The crux of the story is that religious unity is the need of present-day India. In this critical hour when the world is on the brink of third world war, India has to remain firmly seated on her eternal foundations of religious harmony.