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NEW DELHI : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urged Indians on Friday to reject centuries of ethnic and religious divisions, warning that they would be manipulated by politicians to fracture the country.
His comments follow the recent arrests of Hindu leaders with links to right wing outfits in connection with a bomb blast which was earlier suspected to be the work of Muslim militants.
"Competitive politics must not be allowed to divide our people on the basis of religion, caste or region," Singh told a gathering of prominent Indians in New Delhi.
"Stop identifying yourself in terms of how the past has shaped you," the prime minister said.
"Who looks at our nuclear scientists or space engineers in terms of their narrow social identities or their religious beliefs?" Singh asked the audience.
"Who asks them what their caste is or religion is? Who asks what their language is or region is? We only ask what their achievement is. It is their work that defines them."
Indian police are investigating if Hindu militants were involved in a series of terror strikes across India since last year.
Earlier this year, India was criticised for anti-Christian attacks in the country's east, where more than 30 Christians have been killed.
The country has also seen several attacks on migrant workers from poorer states in the western state of Maharashtra.
- AFP/vm
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