Hindus organisations across Europe are starting a campaign to defeat German-led efforts for a Europe wide ban on the use of the swastika. If it comes into force, this would see a complete ban on the use of the symbol in all European Union member states.

The proposed ban is obviously aimed at the Nazi use of the symbol. But the Nazis were not the only ones who used the swastika, nor does the symbol mean the same thing for all its users. In many cultures, ancient as well as modern, the swastika has been used as a peaceful symbol of good luck, prosperity and divine beneficence.

It is this context that the symbol is used by Hindus, including those who live in Britain and other parts of Europe. The swastika is especially used in weddings, festivals and other celebrations. Thus, a ban on the swastika would make a considerable portion of Hindu culture illegal!

It should be noted that Hindus have never been practitioners of anti-Semitism, and Hindu-Jewish relationship throughout history have generally been cordial and friendly. A significant Jewish population has existed in India for up to 2,500 years, and in this time had never faced persecution from Hindus.

Through a strange sequence of events, the Nazis came to use a variant of the Swastika as their main symbol. Thus, the symbol has acquired a sinister connotation in much of Europe. However, one has to distinguish between the Nazi use of the symbol against the traditional usage, which extends back many thousands of years, and still persists today. A simple ban on the swastika is unfair to Hindus and other non-Nazi users of the symbol, and in practice will do nothing to alleviate the curse of racism or Nazism.

Speaking on this issue, Ramesh Kallidai of the Hindu Forum, that the proposed ban on the swastika is discriminatory against Hindus.

"The swastika has been around for 5,000 years as a symbol of peace. This is exactly the opposite of how it was used by Hitler. Just because Hitler misused the symbol, abused it and used it to propagate a reign of terror and racism and discrimination, it does not mean that its peaceful use should be banned."

He compared banning the swastika to "banning the cross simply because the Ku Klux Klan had used burning crosses."