After fourteen years of women’s struggle, Rajya Sabha passed a women’s Reservation Bill last week with two-third majority for constitutional amendment. The OBC satraps did their best to forestall the Bill but did not succeed. Their argument that the bill will benefit only upper caste Hindu women at the cost of OBCs and minority women is only superficial and would hardly bears scrutiny. Truth is more complex and has to be examined with all its complexity.

In fact Dalits and OBCs have already been given reservation and that reservation is fully justified. But by giving them reservation within reservation can make them even more dependants on reservation. Also, when OBC men can fight elections and all of them are not highly educated, in fact many men are not literate beyond reading or writing their names why can’t women, even if not highly literate, can go to state assembly or parliament. And this is also not true that all OBC women are illiterate and all upper caste women are highly literate. Many upper caste women are also not highly literate.

Today female education is spreading fast and let alone OBC women even dalit women are also getting better educated than their mothers. Truth is much more complex. OBC men are not willing to allow their women folk to go to state assemblies or parliament. They do not want to part with their share of power. If women start representing in assemblies and parliament they will become dominant and assertive of their power. It hurts their male ego.

Also, if they are really concerned about their women getting reservation why can’t they give 33% reservation to their women in party nomination. Why do they want quota within quota? They want extra reservation so that they do not want to cut down their own representation in parliament or assembly. And again who can say that the benefit will not go only to creamy layer among OBC. So far all the benefits of reservation have gone to creamy layers among OBCs and dalits. There is no reason to believe that political reservation will benefit at all. The dalits and OBCs as a whole have remained extremely poor and illiterate.

But the OBC satraps due to their numbers in Parliament are able to dictate terms and especially for passing the Finance Bill and without their cooperation Finance Bill can be stalled. That is the Government changed its strategy and postponed presenting Women’s Reservation Bill in Lok Sabha until May so that it can seek cooperation of OBC satraps in passing the Finance Bill.

But even in May these OBC leaders in Lok Sabha can succeed in stalling the Women’s Reservation Bill and Mulayam Singh Yadav is talking of compromising by conceding twenty per cent seats for women in parliament and state assemblies. And government also may compromise to ensure smooth passage of Bill. This would certainly be at the cost of justice to women. But in politics of vote bank who cares for justice. And it seems Government may accept 20% reservation for women. The Bill could have been passed 14 years ago with these amendments. Why then Government waited for 14 long years if it had to accept such a compromise. I wish the government does not give in to such pressures. It will be gross injustice to cause of women. And that too those OBC leaders who are crying foul for non representation of OBC women did not hesitate to make their wives even chief minister of the state. Laloo Prasad’s wife Rabri Devi was made Chief Minister of Bihar who did not have any experience in politics, much less administering a huge state like Bihar. Similarly, BJP’s Uma Bharti, another OBC woman, Chief Minister of another big state like Madhya Pradesh. She too had hardly any experience except being mass agitator and a demagogue.

Reservation for Muslim Women

Mulayam Singh Yadav and Laloo Prasad Yadav also are saying, to strengthen their position that a sub-quota be given to Muslim women. This has no iota of sincerity. Had they been sincere, they would have given tickets to Muslim women of their respective parties either for parliamentary elections or to say the least, assembly elections. As far as we know, these leaders did not give tickets even to Muslim men, in proportion to their population, let alone to Muslim women. Now to demand sub-quota for Muslim women is nothing more than politicking for winning support of Muslims. It is nothing more than mere politicking. It is this kind of politicking which denies justice to minorities and others. And as pointed out above, this is not even doing justice to OBC but only to creamy layer.

Much greater irony is Muslim community does not speak in one voice even for its own benefit. While political minded Muslims are demanding sub-quota for Muslims the conservative Ulema are banning Muslim women from the arena of representational politics. Few years ago when women were given 33% and in some states even 50% representation in panchayats, zilla parishad and municipal elections, a Muslim woman from Deoband filed her nomination for Municipal board election. A fatwa was issued by muftis of Deoband that it is haram for Muslim women to fight elections and campaign among men. However, the Muslim woman showed determination and refused to withdraw her nomination. The muftis then relaxed and asked her to wear hijab for campaigning among men. The woman again refused to bow down to wishes of muftis and campaigned and even won the election. Now we have news from Nadwatul Ulema, Lucknow that women should sit at home and perform her domestic chores rather than enter into public arena.

Our Ulema from India do not even know that Pakistan, the so called Islamic State has already given 22% reservation to women in National Assembly. Either this news has not reached Indian Ulema or they consider reservation for women in Pakistan “un Islamic”. The Indian Ulema unfortunately are totally cut off from the modern world. They are still living the medieval Islam which they study in the books written by Islamic jurists and scholars of medieval era. It appears they consider medieval Islam as the only Islam they know. For them women have been created to serve their husbands and any other role for women as “un-Islamic”. They even refuse to take cognizance of what is going on in other Islamic countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Indonesia and Malaysia. In Saudi Arabia, which is considered strictest regime for women, King Abdullah has nominated a woman as a cabinet minister. In Iran women freely contest parliamentary elections and have become achievers in various fields of life. In Kuwait women fought their case up to Supreme Court to go to parliament without wearing hijab. In Malaysia, women have been appointed to naval ships and in Indonesia a Muslim woman Megawati Sukarnoputri became president of the country. And of course in Pakistan Benazir Bhutto was elected as Prime Minister. In Bangladesh power rotates between Khaleda Zia and Haseena Wajed.

In our opinion it is government’s duty to ensure justice to women of all castes and communities and to refuse to slash 33% quota under pressure and there should not be sub-quotas for castes and communities. The democratic ideal requires that justice be done to women as a whole and all women to whatever castes and communities they belong to should have fair representation without taking resort to quota and suppose quota is agreed to how long will it last? Will it not become a permanent feature of Indian politics? Justice requires that only creamy layers and close relatives of regional satraps like Mulayam Singh Yadav and Laloo Prasad Yadav and other OBC leaders could not be the only beneficiaries of reservations.

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By Navaid Hamid,

Every new day has its own significance and if one goes into the history of human evolution, one finds that a good number of dates have left a mark on the history of civilisations. Some dates have dramatically changed the course of history while others have shamed humanity.

If we scrutinise the ”9th of March” in the history of civilisations, we get the glimpse of its impact on human history. It was on 9th March 1496 when the Jews were expelled from Austria. State of Naples banned kissing in public with death for the offenders on this day. On this day in 1841, the US Supreme Court ruled that blacks are free. Same day in 1893 witnessed the killings of thousands of Arabs by Congo cannibals. The Russian Bolshevik Party became the Communist Party on the 9th of March 1918 and in neighbouring Ukraine, mobs massacred Jews of Seredino Buda on the same day and year. This day in 1935 saw the launching of a new air force by Adolf Hitler. It was on 9th March 1945 when America started a fresh offensive against Japan and Tokyo was carpeted with 2,000 bombs killing more than 80,000 residents. In the year 1956, this day saw the military might of USSR suppress popular demonstrations in Georgia. It was again 9th March but of the year 1959 which saw the debut of the Barbie doll in the American markets.

With the passage of the Women Reservation Bill by the upper house of the Indian Parliament, 9th March 2010 would also be remembered in the Indian history for a number of reasons.

This day would be remembered for the historic decision to take Indian women from the confines of home to the house to legislate to play their role in defining the destiny of this young nation for many generations to come.

Out of 7906 total members elected to the Lok Sabha, 542 women got opportunity to reach the lower house of Indian Parliament since 1952. WR Bill has provision to have 33 percent reservation for fair gender out of the total strength of 543 which would be 181 after it becomes law. The total strength of the members in 28 state assemblies stands at 4109 and the Bill has provision to reserve 1370 seats for women in these state assemblies.
The day would also be remembered for railroading an important legislation to safeguard the interests of the privileged classes which have felt the heat of a silent social renaissance in Indian society in the wake of the implementation of the Mandal report and for trying to negate the fruits of social justice which Other Backward Classes have started enjoying as a result of the implementation of the Mandal Report.

The day would be also be remembered for gagging the voices of the sanity and banning frank and free discussion and the right to vote according to one’s conscience with threats of disqualification from the membership of Rajya Sabha coupled with the stick of whips issued to members thus making a farce of democratic values.

Thus the day would also be remembered for the exposure of the misuse of the whips, in the highest decision making body of Indian democracy, by the leadership to persue their dictated agenda by imposing censorship on the voice of dissent.

The day would also be remembered for the use of Marshals, for the first time in the history of Indian democracy, to evict the dissenting members from the Rajya Sabha. One can disagree with the procedure these members have adopted for opposing the bill but it has also to be seen in the context of the insistence to follow the concept of ‘might is right’ too. A frustrated minority has no other option but to react in a manner which might, some time, seems to be indecent and uncivilised.

The day would be also be remembered for the famous quote of Arun Jaitely, leader of the opposition, that the majority of the upper house, Rajya Sabha, is in favor of the Women Reservation Bill (without sub-quotas for Other Backward Classes and SCs and STs) because they sincerely desires the empowerment of the Indian Women. What he failed to mention was the elitist character of the present Rajya Sabha where privileged classes dominate as far as the numerical strength is concerned. With this farce the nation has witnessed another live demonstration of ‘might is right’ after the demolition of Babri Mosque in Ayodhya by goons of the ideology, to which he belongs, in 1992.

Is it not true that unde the provision of the current Bill, women would get reservation only in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas (State Legislatures) and not in Rajya Sabha (Upper House) and State Councils (Upper House of State legisltaures) in several states where they exist.

Every citizen wishes to know from the pushers of WRB, why reservations for women have been confined to Lok Sabha and State Legislatures only.

The day would also be remembered for the misuse and exploitation of the issue of gender justice by members of the elite and privileged classes who control national parties from Right to Left, who are hell-bent to deny just rights and share in decision-making to the underprivileged and minorities. These privileged men and women have successfully imitated and copied the maneuverings of the white elites of the United States who have exploited gender discrimination by clubbing it with racial discrimination and thereby decimating Afro-American groups.

This day would also be remembered for ignoring the hard fact that during the last 60 years, national polity has failed to honour the promises and assurances of none other than the stalwarts of the freedom struggle, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, given in the Constituent Assembly to the minorities after Muslim members Begum Aizaz Rasool and Hafiz Tajammul Hussain moved amendments to exclude Muslims from the provisions of reservation in May 1949, that the nation would give fair justice to the minorities.

Who can deny that Muslims are the most decimated community today, educationally, economically and politically? Their women face double edge of discrimination, in comparison to women of other religions, being a Muslim and being women. Just 14 Muslim women succeeded in reaching to Lok Sabha and that constitutes mere 2.5 percent of the total elected women members in the history of last 60 years.

If we scrutinise the position of Muslims in corridors of power, we would find that Muslims have less than one third of their due representation in the Lok Sabha.

In West Bengal which is under the rule of an ultra secular Left alliance for close to three decades, the condition of Muslims is worse because of the deliberate attempts of the Left leaders to exploit the issue of security to deprive the Muslims of WB of their educational, economical and political rights. Sachar Committee pointed out the plight of the Muslim of West Bengal. The percentage of Muslims in the WB state legislature stands at around four percent while they represent over a quarter of that state’s total population. It was amusing to hear the fractured and distorted argument put forward by female face of the CPM in the Rajya Sabha Mrs. Brinda Karat that the women reservation at the local bodies level had indeed empowered Muslim women as 10 out of 50 women elected in Hyderabad Municipal Corporation were Muslims. What she failed to mention was that all these seats are predominantly Muslim-dominated. How can a municipal corporation seat having around 5000 or so voters be compared with sprawling assembly and Parliamentary seats?

It is also history that for two consecutive terms, in the state legislature of Madhya Pradesh, where Muslims constitutes about nine percent of the total population, the representation of Muslims in the state legislature was nil.

Even in Delhi, the capital of the nation, where the Muslim population stands over 12 percent of the total population, their representation is just seven percent in state legislature. Out of Delhi’s seven members in the Lok Sabha, Muslims have none in spite of the fact that Muslims constitute more than 27 percent of the total voters in the North East Delhi Parliamentary constituency.

This day would also be remembered for the true exposure of Muslim representatives in different political parties and their lack of courage by remaining mute spectators when history was inked with legislative provision to shrink the political space for the future generations of the Muslim community in a democratic nation.

Sacchar Committe have pointed that majority of the seats reserved for the SC and ST’s have Muslim concentration and with the reservations of women, without sub-quota for Muslim women, the options for Muslims would be limited to just 45 percent of the general seats and these might be those seats which have marginal percentage of Muslim electorates.

In May 1949, two Muslim representatives had sealed the fate of the Muslim community by moving amendments to exclude Muslims from reservation, the year 2010 witnessed indifferent attitude of most of the 20 Muslim representatives in Rajya Sabha towards safeguarding the democratic interests of their coming generations.

Who can deny that during elections, secular political parties deny tickets to Muslim aspirants on the ground that winnabilty is the deciding factor and not a candidate’s religion.

It is an irony that a stalwart of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad’s stature was asked to contest from the Muslim-dominated constituency of Rampur and the national icon Azharuddin was morphed into a “Muslim candidate” in Moradabad during the last general elections. The examples of Maulana Azad and Azharuddin, undoubtedly exposed the weaknesses of our secular polity and democratic process and the prejudices Muslims have to face during hustings.

This day would also be remembered for the second constitutional provision in the history of young India which would shrink the share of Muslims in the fruits of power after the imposition of the religious restriction on Article 341 of the Indian Constitution way back in 1950 in the shape of a presidential order that defined that only believers in a certain faith were entitled to reservation.

No doubt, the Bill in its present form would further alienate Muslims and create deep mistrust and frustration in the minds of younger generations. The day when this deep distrust and sense of frustration would be further cemented, for which the foundation have already been laid, that would be one of the saddest in the history of the evolution of a strong, vibrant, secular and inclusive India. To avoid that we needs to shed our arrogance and evolve a way to create trust and convey a message of care and inclusiveness to all, irrespective of their numerical strength for an integrated strong nation.

It is for the polity of the nation now to decide how they wish to register “9th March” in the history of the evolution of a vibrant India.

–
Navaid Hamid is the Secretary of South Asian Council for Minorities (SACM) and a member of National Integration Council.

Courtesy: TwoCircles.net

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By Md. Mudassir Alam ,

March 9, 2010 is seen as a red letter in the history of democratic India as the long waited Women’s Reservation Bill (WRB) was passed in the Rajya Sabha by a majority of 186 to 1. Some see the bill as a rising sun for the women of country, while some say women got their right in the political set up. From here on the Women’s Reservation Bill will be presented in the Lok Sabha for approval. Most probably the bill will be passed in Lok Sabha and further tabled in 14 state assemblies. Finally the President of India will put stamps on Women’ Reservation Bill as the new law of the political setup of the country. After the approval from the President of India women will get 33 per cent reservation in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.

History of the bill

The story of WRB began on September 12, 1996 when Ramakant D Khalap the then Law Minister during the Deve Gowda government introduced the Women’s Reservation Bill (81st Constitutional Amendment Bill) that sought 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. However, the very next day on September 13, 1996 only 230 Lok Sabha MPs showed up in the Parliament that was short of the magical number 273 required to approve a constitutional amendment. On December 9, 1996 a joint Parliamentary Committee chaired by Geeta Mukherjee, presented its report on the Women’s Reservation Bill to the Lok Sabha.

The matter of women’s reservation remained quiet for almost one and half years and was re-introduced in 1998 during Atal Bihari Vajpayee led NDA government through the 84th Constitutional Amendment Bill. In the year 1999 the NDA government re-introduced the Women’s Reservation Bill in the 13th Lok Sabha, and again in 2002 and 2003. An all-party meeting was called by the NDA in March 2003 and BJP spokesperson Vijay Malhotra told that his party wants the Bill passed in this session itself, with or without consensus. But the Bill could not be passed during NDA government and it became the part of Congress led UPA government’s Common Minimum Programme (CMP) in 2004. Meanwhile, in 2005 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced its full support for the Women’s Reservation Bill.

Muslim girls in a political rally in West Bengal [TCN photo]

The UPA government tabled the bill the Rajya Sabha in 2008 with the intention to continue the legislation without any lapse. In December 2009 the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice, and Personnel recommended the passage of the Bill. The Union Cabinet cleared the Women Reservation’s Bill on February 25, 2010 that was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on March 8, 2010, especially on the occasion of International Women’s Day.

However, the poor floor management of the Congress led UPA government and its lack of communication with the opposition parties led the MPs of RJD and SP MPs disrupt tabling the Bill in the Rajya Sabha. In fact, the MPs crossed all the limits and put the Parliament and democracy to shame when they tore the Women’s Reservation Bill and attacked Hamid Ansari, the Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. On March 9, 2010 government tabled the Bill again in the Rajya Sabha that was put into vote by the chairman.

What the Bill means

Since its introduction in 1996, Women’s Reservation Bill has been a debated topic and it had got mixed responses both in the forms of appreciation and criticism from various sects. As per the Bill the women will get 181 of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha and 1,370 out of a total of 4,109 seats in the 28 State Assemblies. Of course, the Bill has been passed with the aim to empower the women of the country who didn’t actively participate in the active politics or fail to win elections because of male dominancy. But on a broad spectrum the features of Women’s Reservation Bill has totally neglected the minorities especially Muslims, OBCs and Dalits of the country. Quite interestingly as well as surprisingly the Bill seeks 41 seats reserved for Schedule Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribes (ST) around 22 per cent of the total Lok Sabha seats.

Fact is that, the Bill clearly shows the negligence approach of the two major parties – namely the Congress Party and BJP towards Muslims the second biggest population of the country. At one side these parties always make tall claims that they wish the involvement of all religious sects of the country in all fields including politics, but when talked about the reservation of Muslims a step-motherly attitude is shown. Not only the political parties, the Apex Court as well as high courts had struck down the demand or provision for Muslim reservation many times in the past including recently in Andhra Pradesh where the state government has provided some reservation to Muslims.

Muslim representation

Despite having a population of around 16 per cent, Muslims have only 5.52% representation in the Parliament. Currently there are 29 Muslim MPs in the country that include a maximum of 11 MPs from Congress Party. In the 15th Lok Sabha among 59 women Lok Sabha members only three are Muslim MPs (approx 5 per cent only), namely Mausam Noor (from Malda Lok Sabha seat in West Bengal on Congress ticket), Tabassum Begum (from Kairana Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh on Bahujan Samaj Party ticket) and Kaisar Jahan (from Sitapur Lok Sabha seat on Bahujan Samaj Party ticket).

Now coming back to the important point regarding the Women’s Reservation Bill. If the government and the opposition was really serious about the rights and upliftment of the women in the country, then why Muslim women were neglected in the Bill? We all know very well and the Sachhar Committee Report has already told about the poor socio-economic condition of Muslims in the country. As per the Sachhar Committee recommendations Muslims of the country need essential support from the government for upliftment. But the government didn’t think twice or discussed the need of making amendment in the Women’s Reservation Bill keeping in mind the dismal status of Muslims in the country.

Muslims in India are backward from social as well as economic aspects. Due to lack of education and proper support from the government the Muslims are lagging behind from other sects of the country. Women’s Reservation Bill was a big hope for Muslim women whose presence is almost negligible in the Indian political system. Need of the hour is that Muslims should now come forward and sincerely discuss the issue of their presence in the Indian politics. Today Muslims have lost their reserved percentage in the Women’s Reservation Bill and in the coming time there are fair chances that the number of Muslims may go down if the accommodating nature of the top Muslim political leaders continues. If Muslims would not have representation in the Indian political setup, then who will address the issues related to the second biggest populace of the country.

Courtesy:  TwoCircles.net

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This month we celebrated the birth day of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). It is celebrated by Muslims with great devotion and reverence. But often it has been seen that devotees do not reflect on the message of the person whom they so venerate. It just becomes a tradition rather than occasion for deep reflection. Muslims also refer to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as Muhsin-e-Insaniyyat i.e. the benefactor of humanity but hardly care to know in what respect he became benefactor?

In this limited space that I have at my disposal I would try to throw some light on revolutionary aspects of Muhammad’s (PBUH) teachings and how Muslims should benefit from his teachings. Muhammad, all Muslims agree, was ummi i.e. did not know how to read and write and yet he ushered in great social and economic revolution that is as much useful today as it was then.

We can call him a liberator of humanity if we follow his teachings not so much from tangled web of hadith but from Qur’an. Qur’an indeed was his real miracle. Firstly, he emphasized importance of knowledge called ‘ilm. This word occurs in the Qur’an more than 800 times along with its various derivatives (word jihad, so controversial today occurs only 41 times).

Knowledge was so important to him that he required Muslims (both men and women) to seek it even if it is available in China, a distant land from Arabian Peninsula. Arabs who were quite averse to knowledge, especially in written form (there were on 17 people in Mecca during the Prophet’s time who could read and write), became great precursors of various sciences and even west immensely benefited from it. West discovered treasures of Greek knowledge through Arabs.

Secondly, he brought about liberation of women from bondage and gave her equal rights and recognized her individuality as a human being. He gave her equal right in marriage and made marriage a contract. He made it obligatory for her too, to seek knowledge. “Seeking knowledge is obligatory for Muslim man and Muslim women”, he said. The cause of her bondage to men was mainly her ignorance and now seeking knowledge became her right along with obligation. Knowledge, all thinkers agree, is real liberator.

Thirdly, Muhammad (PBUH) was greatly concerned with justice. Justice is so fundamental to Islam that it is one of the names of Allah (Adil). For him justice for weaker sections of society was of utmost importance. Allah, according to Qur’an, is on the side of the weak. And it is weak (mustad’ifin) who shall inherit the earth and who shall be the leaders. The powerful and arrogant (mustakbirun) shall be doomed.

Fourthly, for all the actions he made human individual responsible, not the collective unit, be it tribe or community, as responsible. Qur’an also declared that each individual carried his burden and no one else can carry it for others. For that time it was very revolutionary declaration. It was collectivity like tribe was everything and individual did not count for anything. Qur’an made reward or punishment individual-centered, not tribe centered. This freed individual from the burden of tribal customs and superstitions, Collectivity is important but not at the cost of individual.

Fifthly, Muhammad also gave human individual rights and dignity along with responsibility. And human dignity was not circumscribed by any religion, tribe or ethnicity but included all children of Adam (karramna bani Adam). It indeed was a revolutionary declaration of human rights which preceded UN Charter of Human rights by more than 1400 years. Also, the Prophet said entire creation is family of Allah.

Sixthly, he gave concept of Bayt al-maal i.e. treasury to which all Muslims will contribute according to ones income. We can describe it as concept of welfare state in modern terms. Zakat was not a tax for the luxury of the rulers, as used to happen in those days. It was strictly meant for welfare of weaker sections, orphans, widows, poor, travelers and liberation of prisoners and slaves. It was unprecedented levy in those days.

He even declared land is only for tillers thus bringing down the oppressive and exploitative feudal system. Unfortunately within few decades of his death Muslim rulers established great empire based on exploitative system again. However, all this would appear unbelievable for many non-Muslims. Why? Muslims often paid verbal tributes to the Prophet (PBUH) but did just the opposite.

What is the condition of women in Muslim countries? Are Muslim states welfare states at all? Do their rulers live simple life like the Prophet did? Do they respect individual rights and human dignity? Do they practice justice at all costs? Do they respect human life as sacred creation of Allah? Answers may not be in affirmative? Muslims have to reflect seriously on their failure and recommit themselves to the Qur’anic value system.

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By NM Sampathkumar Iyangar,

Pravin Mahajan is no more. The younger brother of late Pramod Mahajan – top leader of Bhartiya Janta Party, known as its Chief Fixer – died on March 3 at Jupiter Hospital in Thane after a prolonged illness. He had been admitted there in mid December 2009 after suffering a stroke while on parole. That was eight months after he came out with a tell-all book titled My Album. Pravin’s book raised several shocking questions about his dead brother’s life and times.

Pravin was serving life imprisonment and the book was written from the prison. A sessions court had convicted of killing his own brother. Four years ago, the Mahajan brothers shocked the country by being dramatis personae of the heinous murder. Interestingly, Pramod’s brother-in-law Gopinath Munde managed to escape media glare. This was despite the key role played by the heavyweight politician of Maharashtra in the drama.

According to the prosecution, Pravin killed Pramod Mahajan on April 22, 2006 in his Mumbai home. The court rushed through the case at break-neck speed – an oddity in Indian judiciary.

The wheeler-dealer BJP leader succumbed to his wounds 11 days later in a hospital. The who’s who of Indian business leaders got themselves videographed outside the hospital as the drama stole all the prime time in most news channels. This again was odd because Pramod Mahajan was out of office and was not in a position to curry favour to the tycoons. The only explanation for the clamour was that BJP patriarch AB Vajpayee had virtually designated him as his heir.

The fate of the man projected by the media, the cops and the entire political class as Killer Brother was no less mysterious. The otherwise healthy young man complained of high blood pressure and later slipped into coma. He was put on life support system and was struggling for life for close to three months. The hospital authorities were unwilling to issue any official word on the developments. This was in stark contrast to the way a very reputed VVIP hospital in Delhi was made to issue repeated statements when Pramod’s son had been rushed there after drug overdose.

It remains to be seen whether Pravin’s premature death would erase the stigma on him as a Brother-Killer. This was reinforced when the court sentenced him to life in December 2007. Winding up a murder trial in a matter of a year and a half, strangely, did not raise many eyebrows. Interestingly, Pravin’s wife Sarangi had said about his ‘My Album’: “This book should be treated as an ordinary book. It doesn’t include any of the court statements which were in-camera.”

Pravin’s death raises fresh questions about the state of justice dispensing system in India – particularly in criminal cases that involve the high and mighty of the country. True, the sessions judge sentenced him for fratricide. But, does that make him “Brother-Killer” automatically? Before the dubious title is confirmed more light needs to be thrown at several mysteries:

(1) Whereabouts of the treasures under the custody of Pramod Mahajan. A substantial part of the booty is alleged to be from kickbacks – estimated at a couple of thousand crore rupees – in the grand telecom scam of Vajpayee era. The government wrote off licence fees worth several thousand crore rupees due from big sharks. Vajpayee sacked from the Telecom Minister’s post a aggressively transparent and fanatical BJP leader Jagmohan Malhotra for opposing the sell out. Of all persons, Ram Vilas Paswan was appointed to succeed him and Pramod did all the running about in finalizing the ‘affairs’.

(2) The unholy haste with which all the evidences and dispositions in the case got ‘locked’ away from public scrutiny till 2027, despite lots of gaping holes. Pravin would ordinarily have completed his life sentence to lay his hands on any hidden treasure much earlier to that. He would not have been bothered much by the unveiling of facts.

(3) The drug-murder mystery involving the son accompanying the dead man’s ashes and his divorce after several cases of wife bashing. The mega-budgets available for media splash that the Bigg boss can manage.

(4) The clout of the brother-in-law across the political spectrum.

(5) The unnatural death of the convict behind a veil of secretiveness.

It would perhaps be advisable to be cautious in using the term till the matters are cleared. Given the level of corruption, cronyism and power politics prevailing in India, they may forever remain in mystery.

[The author is an unattached policy analyst based at Ahmedabad, India]

Courtesy: TwoCircles.net

By Irfan Engineer,

Mobs on the streets of Shimoga and Hassan protesting against an article that appeared in Kannda Prabha allegedly written by Taslima Nasreen has once again kicked up a debate on freedom of expression and need to place some reasonable restrictions on that freedom. Taslima Nasreen has described the article Purdah hai Purdah to be distorted.

She has in a statement clarified that she did not write any article for any Kannada daily. The article in Kannada Prabha carries statement that Prophet was against burqa and that she has called upon women to burn their burqas. Even if the article had been written by Taslima Nasreen, there is nothing provocative in the article justifying mobilization on the streets and the vandalism that we witnessed. If Taslima Nasreen was factually incorrect in her conclusion that Prophet was against burqa, one needs to marshal evidence to the contrary and put it in public domain. That would not only correct wrong statements, but also instruct the readers how far to rely on the author’s conclusions and views.

Many commentators have raised the issue of freedom of expression and often allege secularists to be partial towards Muslims. When M.F. Hussain is attacked and his paintings are torn and destroyed, the secularists see it as a attack on freedom of expression but they are silent when Talsima Nasreen or Salman Rushdie are attacked or there is a demand to ban their books by the Islamic fundamentalist. This charge is true but only to an extent. We cannot generalize – there are secularists of all varieties and hues. However, most secularists, it is true, have not condemned Islamic fundamentalists as vociferously when Taslima Nasreen or Salman Rushdie and their works are condemned, or for freedom of expression of the Dutch cartoonists drawing cartoons derogatory towards Prophet Mohammad. Most secularists react strongly when Shiv Sena or Bajrang Dal or VHP attack MF Hussain’s paintings are attacked or these organizations demand a ban on the film. Some secularists argue that threat to freedom of expression and indeed threat to democracy and democratic rights itself is not from minority fundamentalism. Fundamentalism of minority community at best can cause some irritation and hiccups for a democratic state but majority fundamentalism can threaten democracy. We do not subscribe to those notions. Minority fundamentalism often becomes existential justification for fundamentalist elements from majority community. Competitive fundamentalism together can erode individual freedoms and threaten democracy.

We must first make a distinction between freedom of an artist and freedom of a politician who has based his/her politics on demanding privileges and better rights for a particular community over others or politicians who demand communal rights and privileges. Freedoms of both cannot be equated. Motives of both are different. While the artists merely express through their art, literature or other forms of expressions. Whatever Taslima Nasreen and Salman Rushdie write, whether one agrees with them or not, every democratic minded citizen should uphold their freedom, even if they do not fundamentally agree with what they say. In a democracy, individual freedoms and liberties are fundamental and even necessary for the progress of the society. Without dissent in medieval ages, those who faced the gallows and persecution of various nature for their views ensured that the society as a whole progresses. Galileo, Socrates, Sarmad, Sir Syed, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, or other dissenters are example of this. We need Taslima Nasreens and Salman Rushdies and M.F.Hussains how much ever we may disagree with them. Their views may not be palatable to this society but may be future generations may view them differently. But unless they are allowed to express themselves, how will the future generations have a choice? What will they chose from? Creative artists, thinkers, philosophers, academicians, historians are in business of studying their subjects and expressing their views. Their views and creations may help or benefit one or other side and may even be partisan and totally unpalatable to a section of society or indeed to the entire society. Just as they have a right to express themselves and free from any intimidation and fear, their consumers, patrons, readers have a right to know and enjoy artistic creations. India is not the only country where artists, academicians, thinkers live in fear with their freedoms restricted. The fashion designers who create and design veils and burqas find their freedoms restricted in France as burqas cannot be worn in public places. The architects who design mosques or structures with minarets find their freedom restricted as the whole nation with majority voted in a referendum against any future minarets.

However, we must distinguish between right of an artist to freedom of expression and right to promote hatred, ill will and enmity between two communities based on caste, religion, ethnicity, language or race. While I would stand up for the right of the cartoonists who drew series of cartoons in Dutch paper Jallands Postem, it is foolish to argue that Jallands Postem had a right to publish the cartoons. Jallands Postem called for cartoons that depicted the Prophet of Islam, even if in poor light. The paper was abusing freedom of expression by openly calling artists to draw such cartoons for a reward. The intention of the paper was clearly to hurt the feelings of Muslims and evoke an adverse reaction from them. Jallands Postem was not even simpliciter providing a platform for already existing cartoons, it was calling upon cartoonists to draw provocative cartoons for a reward. Jallands Postem was in fact providing a platform for hate mongers targeting a religion. Had Jallands Postem provided the cartoon space for all dissenting cartoonists, against all that is sacred, the issue would have been on a different footing altogether. If Muslims all over the world reacted and demonstrated against such a campaign, it was only a reaction expected by the Dutch paper. To defend such abuse of freedom of expression by the Dutch papers will be self defeating and demeaning the freedom. However, some of the responses to publication of the cartoons also should be condemned – that of the terrorists kill the editor of the Dutch paper or the cartoonist. Any violence or hooliganism to achieve any objective no matter how much justified is condemnable.

No details are appearing in the media as to which organization mobilized the Muslim mobs on the street in Shimoga and Hassan. It is interesting to ponder why Muslim mobs got mobilized only in Shimoga and Hassan and why not elsewhere particularly when Siasat Urdu daily had also carried the news. There are Kannada speaking Muslims in other districts and towns of Karnataka as well. However, the organization or individuals who mobilized the mobs in Shimoga and Hassan did not care to wait and check the veracity of the articles and its translations. They must have been more interested in scoring quick brownie points and deriving political benefits and there are always advantages in protesting on streets before one’s competitor does. The organizations exploiting emotional and religio-cultural issues to mobilize large mob are less interested in the religion and more interested in throwing their weight around demonstrating their muscle power to the community as well as to the political class and bargain for fishes and loaves of electoral offices. Those who supported exclusive legislation for maintenance of divorced Muslim women, limiting maintenance to only to the 4 months of iddat period after the Supreme Court judgment in Shah Bano’s case did not bother that the legislation did not in fact so limit maintenance to divorced Muslim women only to 4 months but provided fair and reasonable maintenance to divorced Muslim women within 4 months. After competitive mobilization and political upmanship, everybody involved in opposing the Shahbano judgment have forgotten that they had proclaimed from roof top that their religion was in danger if men were forced to grant maintenance beyond the 4 months of iddat period to a divorced Muslim woman. How much the politicians and the organizations mobilizing against Taslima Nasreen and Salman Rushdie really care for Islam and how much they do out of political calculations is anybody’s guess.

Media focuses on such divisive issues and therefore these political outfits, like Shiv Sena in Mumbai, get disproportionate coverage. The difference between popular perception of Shiv Sena, Bajrang Dal, VHP, Abhinav Bharat, Ranbir Sena, ABVP, Sri Ram Sene, various caste Panchayats and scores of other ‘senas’ on the one hand and Muslim political outfits on the other hand is that while these ‘senas’ are perceived as fringe elements of the majority community, the Muslim outfits are taken to be representatives of the entire community. Muslims are then asked from that vantage position, “where is your sane and liberal voice? Or worst, is there a sane liberal voice amongst the Muslim community? What the ‘fringe’ elements among the Hindus is able to achieve is far more than what the Muslim political outfits are able to achieve. Producers of Bollywood routinely submit to the diktats of Bal Thackeray, the significant exception being recent defiance by the Shahrukh Khan and refusal to apologize on his views that Pakistani cricketers should be allowed to play in IPL matches. Fanaa and Parzania could not be exhibited in Gujarat. Bajrang Dal, VHP and various senas have often acted as super and extra Constitutional censors forcing certain moralities. They have their own sacred heroes, Shivaji and Rana Pratap for example. No serious historical research can be carried out on these heroes and they succeed in bringing the state to their knees and carry out their agendas.

The liberals amongst Muslims do not get the same space that the divisive and communal get, except the some articles. Maulana Wahiduddin Khan and Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer, Sultan Shahin, Javed Akhtar, Javed Anand editors of Urdu papers with large circulations like Siasat, Shahafat the Bollywood actors sports persons are just a few examples of the liberal voice within the community. But to know the liberal voice of the community one will have to look beyond the mainstream media and attend meetings of Muslims read to alternate forums where liberal Muslims express. Their task no doubt is made difficult by communal violence and growing communal forces in the country. In order to strengthen the liberal forces within both the communities, a larger responsibility falls on the state to create a conducive and non-intimidating environment where the liberals within all communities have equal opportunity and fair chance to compete and put across their views and ideas as well.

Courtesy: TwoCircles.net

Thanks to the propaganda of the Sangh Parivar, Babur, founder of Mughal Empire has become a controversial figure in Indian history. Babur was an invader but he was also the founder of a dynasty that gave shape to an India that we are rightly proud of. Be it the architecture, arts, literature, music, or dance, it is difficult to imagine present day India without the Mughals.

When Babur invaded India, Islam in this region was already about a thousand years old. Muslim rulers were established in many parts of India. In fact most of the battles the Mughal army partook in were against Muslim kings and sultans. Deep south, in Malabar, Mapillas were locked in a bitter battle against the Portuguese invaders who were threatening their economic and social life, completely ignorant of Babur or the Mughals.

Babur is more than an invader or just a founder of the most magnificent dynasty of India. Babur maintained a meticulous diary for most of his life and a majority of it has survived. Published as Baburnama, the memoir offers a rare insight into the mind and the complex personality of Babur. Written in what can only be called a very modern style, devoid of highly ornamental language of his time, free of hyperbole and exaggerations, it is a book that can be easily read and understood by a modern reader. Babur appears a very honest writer writing in detail about his loves, sicknesses and defeats. He makes no attempt to hide his weaknesses and when he boasts about his achievements it seems he sincerely believes in his greatness too.

However, the Baburnama is not simply a memoir of an emperor or the chronicle of his life. It is the first of a kind of autobiography, a piece of travel writing, a scientist’s observations, a military document and a peek into the inner workings of one of the most brilliant minds of that time.

I started reading the Baburnama (The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor translated, edited and annotated by Wheeler M. Thackston) to find out what the driving force for Babur to come to India was. Babur made attempts on India five times. In his own words he “craved India” and felt that he had achieved a great feat when he finally succeeded, but nowhere does he give a reason why India was so important to him that he kept coming back to the land.

Writing about his conquest of India, Babur says that he is the third “padishah” after Mahmood Ghaznavi and Muhammad Ghori to conquer India, however, he quickly adds that his victory is much greater since he had almost no land of his own, and his army, which comprised of twelve thousand personnel by his own count, was much smaller than his predecessors. Also, when he arrived in India there was a well entrenched kingdom ruling a large part of India under Sultan Ibrahim Lodhi. As if humbled by his own achievement he lays all his success on God’s “generosity and favor.”

Babur had been a religious person in his youth. He was punctual about his prayers and stayed away from alcohol for a long time. But once he started drinking, there was no stopping him. In many pages he faithfully records what drinks and narcotics he consumed and where. It is not until his battle with Rana Sanga that he started talking in religious terms and that may not be because Sanga was not Muslim but because his army truly feared Rana Sanga and his men. After defeating Rana Sanga, Babur officially added the title of “Ghazi” to his name.

Though that does not mean that Babur suddenly turned religious or became a fanatic. In fact, in the whole Baburnama there is only one place where he mentions anything about destroying temples or idols. In Urwahi near Gwalior he was appalled to see Jain statues that were “shown stark naked with all their private parts exposed,” wrote Babur. He liked Urwahi but noted that “it’s one drawback was the idols, so I ordered them destroyed.” But in fact these statues continue to exist to this day.

Babur did destroy a religious building; it was the tomb of famous Sufi, Shahbaz Qalandar. His reason for destroying it was simple – “On a spur of the Maqam mountains is a rather low mountain that overlooks the whole plain; there, on an airy hill that commands superb vistas, was Shahbaz Qalandar’s tomb. I went on an excursion to examine it. It occurred to me that a heretic wandering dervish had no business having a tomb in such a pleasant spot, so I ordered it reduced to rubble.” After destroying the tomb he sat there and consumed narcotics.

The period when the Mughal army was around Ayodhya is missing from the Baburnama. Only physical evidence can tell us whether Babur indeed had a temple destroyed to construct the Babri Masjid, but if one reads his memoir it is difficult to think that he would do such a thing.

One aspect of Babur that has not been given due attention is that he recorded the flora and fauna of all the places he visited. His observations are like a scientist. This shows in the very accurate descriptions of his observations and the inclusion of full measurements. He mentions distances and also gives us a method on how he calculated the distance. The Baburnama is also a good source of knowing measurements prevalent in India during medieval times. He gives us units of measures for weights, distance, time, and numbering; when there are several units for the same type of measurement, he gives us information on conversions. I call him a scientist because he not only observed and accurately documented but also suggested ways to improve the existing system. He made suggestions that improved the Indian system of time announcements through ghariyals.

Babur was a good commander that lived with his people, treated his subordinates well and proved himself to be a leader. Whenever his army wavered he brought back their confidence with inspiring speeches. He was an excellent military strategist and never went into a battle without adequate preparation.

Why would a figure like Babur become a symbol and tool for the Sangh Parivar to beat down the Muslims of India with? One, because the now destroyed masjid was named after him and two, he is the founder of a dynasty that made the syncretic tradition of India very strong. By attacking Babur they show that Mughals were foreigners and invaders thereby rejecting all their rich contributions to the Indian culture. By calling all Muslims “Sons of Babur” they remind everyone that just like Babur, Muslims do not belong to India.

Babur died in Agra but is buried in Kabul. The dynasty that he founded lasted for over 300 years and it ended in 1857 when the last Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, was dethroned by the British and sent off to Yangon in present day Myanmar. Like the founder of the dynasty, the last Mughal Emperor, Zafar, is also buried outside the political boundaries of present day India.

Sons of Babur by Salman Khurshid

Babur, born and buried in a foreign land was indeed a foreigner, but what about his descendants that the world remembers as the Mighty Mughals or Magnificent Mughals. Salman Khurshid, present day Minister of India responsible for Minority Affairs and Corporate Affairs, wrote a play called Sons of Babur (Babur ki Aulad, translated in Urdu by Ather Farouqui) to explore the “Indian-ness” of the Mughal dynasty.

The play uses a very creative way to bring to life famous Mughal emperors in order to explore major incidents of their lives and also to give the present day reader or viewer a perspective on the lives of these historical figures. Suddenly, these characters that have so far been hidden behind stacks of books become human and we can ask them uncomfortable questions like why were Mughal princesses given in marriage to Rajputs? Was the Mughal rule religious in nature? Did Mughals truly consider themselves Indian?

Searching for answers will help us understand why the Mughals were always accepted by the Indian population as their rightful rulers. How else can it be explained that the Indian soldiers of the East India army raised the banner of revolt and right after headed directly to the Red Fort in Delhi to proclaim their loyalty to Zafar? Why did the Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs jointly fight for the restoration of the Mughal rule? How can Aurangzeb’s land grants to temples be explained? The friendship of Rajputs and Mughals that started during the reign of Akbar continued through Aurangzeb’s reign and the Rajput remained loyal till the end.

Salman Khurshid, though an active politician, does not hold back his pen as a writer. The book asks uncomfortable questions and passes remarks on politicians, intellectuals, and historians alike for their failure in portraying history as accurately as possible.

The fall of the Mughal Empire was lamented by both Hindus and Muslims and even now Indians remember the era of the culture and times of the Mughals, fondly. We take pride in the architectural marvels that they created. Simple but elegant mixtures of Indian and Islamic traditions. We savour the dishes perfected in Mughal kitchens that now sell all over the world as Indian cuisine. We enjoy ghazals and Bollywood songs written in Urdu, a language that became literary under the Mughal patronage. We also enjoy the music and dance that reached its pinnacle due to the works of Mughal artists. We can’t imagine an India without any of these elements and we can thank Babur for trying his luck for the fifth time.

Books:

The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor
Translated, edited, and annotated by Wheeler M. Thackston.
The Modern Library. New York. 2002.

Babur ki Aulad
By Salman Khurshid. Translation by Ather Farouqui.
Rupa. Delhi. 2008

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By Syed Shahabuddin,

Phobia means fear, the fear of the other. Any phobia has a psychological basis, which is a combination of historical memories, blended with myths and legends, complicated by social separateness, generated by the consciousness of economic and political rivalry, not to speak of persistent religious hostility and indifference. In the case of Europe, it can be truly said that it has not yet gotten over its memories of the Muslim conquest which took Islam to the heartland of France, on one side, and to the gates of Vienna, on the other. It has been truly said that had the Muslim won the Battle of Poitiers or taken Vienna, Europe would have been Islamized and a majority of its people today would be Muslim.

Aspects of Islamophobia

Economic supremacy

The economic aspect is obvious from the fact that after having stopped and eventually forced the Muslims out of Spain, Europe tried and succeeded in finding an alternative route for trade with the Indies in order to bypass the Muslim world which separated it from its major sources of supply and markets. This economic competition has taken a new form in the 20th century with Europe’s realization of its dependence on Arab oil to run its industrial machine. Even the increasing use of nuclear power depends to a large extent on the Uranium ore deposits in Muslim West Africa. There is also an economic interest in recycling petro-dollars which Europe was forced to shell out but which has eventually provided additional market for surplus manufactures by the West including massive sale of arms and luxury goods. Apart from selling its goods to Arabs and the Muslim countries along with a whole spectrum of projects including, some totally misconceived and egoistic which would consume their current surplus in payment for design, technology, manpower and constabulary and thus prevent their translating into self-sustaining economic power.

Crusades

Centuries ago, the West tried to wage the Crusades to win the Holy Places and they failed. So it planted Israel over the last 100 years or so in the heart of the Islamic world when the Ottoman Empire becomes the sick man of Europe. Israel constitutes a permanent threat to the security of the Arab and the Muslim world, stimulating sale of arms by the West. With rising migration particularly from the Maghreb and Turkey, a continuous trickle of conversion to Islam without any perceptible reverse flow frightens Europe about its prospects in the ongoing battle between Christianity and Islam.

Europe no doubt is way ahead of the Muslim world in the field of science and technology which was dominated by the Muslim world for nearly 500 years. It is another expression of Islamophobia that by and large, with some exceptions Europe has totally forgotten the role of Muslims in the transfer of science and technology from China and India and in the restoration of the heritage of Greece and Rome, which cumulatively resulted in the scientific and technological leap by the West.

A deepening shadow on the relations between Europe and Islam manifests itself not only in state policies and government strategies but in the persistent bias in administration and public space. Not surprisingly, its mass media gives a negative twist to any development in the Muslim world and projects Muslims as later-day barbarians.

Let me add that phobia is not particular to the psychology of the majority but extends to minority groups who also entertain bias, distrust, hatred and hostility against the majority and sometimes even against each other, coming from different regions speaking different languages and living in their own cultural worlds.

Phobia operates not only at the collective plane but also among individuals. Individuals who are sometimes afraid of darkness or closed space or of some little insects or some passing shadows but they are socially unimportant. What affects relations of nations and peoples are the collective phobias like the Islamophobia which now dominates Europe to the extent that it readily confers a crown to anyone who vilifies Islam in print or in the electronic media or through films or cartoons, and projects writers like Salman Rushdie, Taslima Nasreen, or Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who bear Muslim names. Indeed, in the West if you vilify your own religion you are regarded as liberal and secular.

What is important from our point of view is that the contemporary world is committed to a democratic way of life. Unfortunately, in a plural society which is multi-ethnic, democracy invariably takes the form of majoritarianism. Majoritarian phobias against the minority indeed have the potential to disturb social peace, erode rational thinking, and end up in conflicts of cultures and civilizations, even in physical hostilities. Such violent phobias can cause social breakdown because of economic deprivation, social marginalization and constitutional pressure on the minorities.

Phobias of a minority can be self-destructive but cannot affect overall social peace except in situations of active conflict.

Muslim invasions

Islamophobia also emanates in Europe, as in India, by the recollection of Muslim invasions and the fear of re-conquest!

It misinterprets the idea of the Caliphate and even of conversion to Islam. Such historical memories are always misinterpreted and exaggerated and passed on not only through books and literature but by word of mouth. Islamophobia also results from the fear of falling into dependence on the Muslim world for some essential supplies as oil is for Europe. It also aggravates a feeling of religious inferiority when it imagines the trickle turning into stream of conversion to Islam. On the other side of the coin, Western Islamophobes believe in their technological superiority and scientific advance and their own persistent propaganda that Islam is not compatible with democracy and that the Muslims peoples still live in the 7th century! This encourages constant vilification, a culture of mockery and taunt, abuse and castigation of the Holy Prophet and the Holy Quran and misrepresentation/ misinterpretation of Islamic history.

The current wave of Islamophobia in Europe must be seen in a global perspective. Sometimes, it takes the form of a free-for-all and sometimes of reciprocity, everyone is attacking the other and everyone lives in fear of attack. Naturally this fear mentally dominates the minorities who live in physical or cultural ghettos in non-Muslim majority countries.

In Muslim majority states, there are, apart from non-Muslims, groups which belong to minority sects, and who have their own culture. But there is a difference. In no Muslim states, is there any organized attempt to convert the other sects or the non-Muslims to Islam or to attack them physically. As a matter of fact at the height of the Palestinian crisis the Jews lived peacefully in the Arab world. If one goes back to history one finds that when the Jews were expelled from Spain along with the Muslims they took refuge in Muslim countries.

Today, nearly 40% of the world Muslim population lives in Muslims-minority states. The most important are India, Russia, China, Europe and USA. Islamophobia affects them directly. They have to be constantly on their guard to monitor and correct misinformation, misperceptions and misunderstandings. When they wish to live according to Islamic norms they are treated as unworthy of their host culture. They are expected to adopt its norms & get assimilated. The incidence of divorce and polygamy are exaggerated beyond limits and they are accused of avoiding secular education for their children.

Islamic terrorism

A new development of what has been called Islamic terrorism places them on defensive. The Muslim youth are particularly harassed & even detained & prosecuted in order to erode the civil rights of the Muslim community and to push them into ghettos when they live in a state of siege. The Muslim minorities, thus, bear the brunt of Islamophobia and are denied justice and equality and the benefits of modern education, even in states which believe in justice & equality.

What is the remedy? Constitutional mandates cannot penetrate horror psychology and erase bias and prejudice. Laws, judicial orders, even policy statements cannot reach out and protect the members of the community who face marginalization, deprivation and humiliation on a day-to-day basis. But there are other minorities in the world like the Jews who are well organized to monitor even a hint of criticism and counteract it through rebuttal, correction and protest. One wishes that Muslims had an organization like the Anti-Defamation League in the USA, which has ensured that not a word may be spoken against the Jews and acceptance of Zionism has become part of the liberal agenda.

How Muslim minorities can take on Islamophobia

History cannot be written. But the Muslims whether they are in a majority or a minority must accept that there is no right of conquest, no right of invasion, no right of terrorization or separatism or secessionism, the vices of which they are accused at every turn. Muslim minorities have every right to maintain their religious identity. But they have to be loyal to the state they live in, join the national mainstream and participate in national causes and movements. They cannot make themselves invisible or keep a low profile for fear that they lose their sense of identity. At the same time, they have to refrain from exhibition of orthodoxy or expression of fanaticism which provides the majority an excuse. A recent referendum in Switzerland was won by those who opposed construction of minarets in mosques. They should realize that a minaret or a dome is not an essential part of the Islamic architecture of a Masjid. Similarly, the Burqa is not universal or mandatory in Islam. They cannot gain in a face-to-face confrontation. They have to learn to be less contentious and reduce the level of cultural display. But sometimes a line needs to be drawn.

Apart from what the community may do, in terms of political initiatives, as citizen & permanent resident and human being, to respond to the western media and monitoring its bias, Muslim states along with the support of other members of the world community must promote a global standard of mutual acceptance and tolerance in terms of the UN Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Minorities, 1992, the International Covenants and the UN Convention against Religious Intolerance and Discrimination and the recent UN Declaration against Discrimination based on Faith. None shall eliminate but persistence may reduce the level of Islamophobia to a manageable extent over a period of time. These are the tools in the hands of religious minorities, national or global, which can change the tone of modernization but both sides have to avoid conceptual bottlenecks when it comes to defining the limits of freedom of religion and freedom of expression. Slowly it shall strike at the roots of the basic accusation which promote Islamophobia in Muslim-minority states, that Islam does not accept democracy, that Muslims reject national culture and are not loyal to the state they live in or the Constitution which provides their basic rights and that they are as a collectivity conspiring to take over the world and re-establish the Caliphate!

The world is changing and the pace of change is very fast. The cultural and even physical demarcation between peoples and states are getting dissolved in what is considered to be the climate of the age, Democracy and Secularism. Muslims in different parts of the world have to move with the time, accept that Islam lays down principles for living Islamically but does not identify Islamic culture or Islamic economy or Islamic political system. Islam can live comfortably with multiple political and economic structures and the Muslims should be prepared to accept any system & any culture which recognises their religion, guaranteed them identity and freedom and protects them from cultural absorption and assimilation.

(Syed Shahabuddin, ex-diplomat and MP, is president, All India Muslim Majlise Mushawarat)

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History books are full of kings and their battles and we forget people who were not involved in warfare. Much is yet to be written about Sufis and their contribution to India.

Bulleh Shah is a famous Sufi who continues to be popular because of his poetry. Below, I present a poem written by him on festival of colors, Holi. See how he uses Islamic terminologies and Quranic phrases and mixes so well with images of Holi that you have difficulty finding out if he is talking about physical or spiritual Holi. Well that’s the point.

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

نام نبی کی رتن چڑھی، بوند پڑی الا اللہ

رنگ رنگیلی اوہی کھلاوے، جو سکھی ہووے فنا فی اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

الست بربکم پیتم بولے،سبھ سکھیاں نے گھنگٹ کھولے

قالو بلی ہی یوں کر بولے، لاالہ الا اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

نحن اقرب کی بنسی بجائی، من عرف نفسہ کی کوک سنائی

فثم وجہ اللہ کی دھوم مچائی، وچ دربار رسول اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

ہاتھ جوڑ کرپاوں پڑوں گی، عاجز ہوکربنتی کروں گی

جھگڑا کر بھر جھولی لوں گی، نور محمد صلی اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

فاذ کرونی کی ہوری بناوں، وشکرولی پیا کو رجھاوں

ایسے پیا کے میں بل بل جاوں، کیسا پیا سبحان اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

صبغۃ اللہ کی بھرپچکاری، اللہ الصمد پیا مونہہ پر ماری

نور نبی دا حق سے جاری، نور محمد صلی اللہ

بلھا شوہ دی دھوم مچی ہے، لا الہ الا اللہ

ہوری کھیلوں گی کہہ کر بسم اللہ

Devotional dancer at the 252nd Urs of Baba Bulleh Shah in Kasur. [Photo by Saad Sarfaraz Shaikh]

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah

Naam nabi ki rattan charhi, bond pari illalah
Rang rangeli ohi khilawe, jo sakhi howe fana fi allah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah
Alast berabbikum peetam bole, sabh sakhian ne ghungat khole
Qalu bala hi yun kar bole, la ilaha illalah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah
Nahn aqrab ki bansi bajai, mann uraf nafsaa ki kook sunaai
Fasam wajah allah ki dhoom machai, wich darbaar rasul allah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah
Hath jor kar paoon paron gi, aajaz ho kar benti karon gi
Jhagra kar bhar jholi loon gi, Noor Muhammad sallalah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah
Faaza karoni ki hori banaoon, wa shakroli pia ko rijhaaon
Aise pia ke main bal bal jaoon, kaisa pia subhan allah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah
Sabghata allah ki bhar pichkari, allah hu samad pia monh par mari
Noor nabi da haq se jari, noor Muhammad sallalah

Hori khailoon gi keh kar bism allah

Links:

http://folkpunjab.com/kalam/bulleh-shah/hori-khailoon-gi-keh-kar-bismillah/

http://saajha-sarokaar.blogspot.com/2010/02/blog-post.html

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Mostly people think Muslim women are oppressed and forced to wear veil and confined to the four walls of their houses. This is mainly because we read every day in papers that Taliban force women into veil, burn down girls schools and always portray them wrapped completely in black cloth from head to foot. This image of Muslim women was further reinforced by the burqa controversy which erupted in France.

This image would be justified if all Muslim women followed the strict dress code propounded by Muslim theologians which was evolved in medieval ages and which they keep on justifying even today. But there is big difference in what is theologically projected and ground reality. It may not be wrong, if I venture to say, Muslim women have been defying theological code for more than a century now.

And now a century later, Muslim women have gone even further in their public achievements. It is true even today some Muslim theologians debate whether women are naqisul aql (defective reasoning power) or not but many Muslim women have superseded even Muslim men in several fields. In Saudi Arabia where women are not even permitted to drive cars, a woman became a licensed pilot and has been flying aircrafts.

Now we got news from Malyasia that Farah al-Habshi, an engineer by profession, has been appointed deputy of weapons and electrical officer in spanking new Malaysian warship KD Perak. Today she is donned in white and blue Royal Malaysian Navy uniform. What is interesting is that she also wears hijab to cover her head though not her face. She feels her hijab in no way comes in the way of performing her duties.

Maylaysia is an Islamic country and orthodox ulama exercise great deal of control over people’s lives. Recently even the Government of Malaysia chickened out when Ulama took stand that Christians in Malaysia cannot use the word Allah in their religious literature or in their newspaper. Muslim women face several problems in that country at the hands of conservative ulama in respect of family laws.

It is in the same country that a woman has been appointed naval officer on combat duty. Even in India women have not won the right to be on combat duty in navy or are not permitted to fly fighter planes or serve in combat arms. They are also not allowed seafaring in warships. Ms. Farah al-Habshi, on the other hand, recently participated in Milan naval exercise along with some other women.

Ansari- the first Muslim women astronaut

Ms. Farah is also highly articulate and answered all the questions put to her by the journalists. And it is not only one example out of many. There are several other examples. Many Muslim women have excelled even in theological fields and quite independently of the traditional theologians. They have shown courage to challenge orthodox ulama. Here I can give example of Amina Wudud of USA who teaches Islamic Studies in Washington.

She believed women can lead mixed congregation in prayer and she led around 100 persons, men and women in prayer a few year ago and that too on Friday and delivered Friday khutba (sermon), quite unthinkable in traditional Muslim world. It raised storm of controversy and even Yusuf Qardawi, otherwise a moderate theologian from Qatar, wrote an article, opposing a woman leading nixed congregational prayer.

Some Kuwaiti women, elected to Kuwaiti parliament after great deal of struggle, refused to wear hijab and fought for their right to go to parliament sessions without wearing one and fought their case up to Supreme Court of Kuwait and won. Many more examples can be cited of Muslim women daring authorities for their rights.

But media, which is interested in sensationalizing issues, refuses to highlight Muslim women’s achievements and continues to portray them as submissive to traditional authorities and meekly accepting their situation. This image of Muslim women has to change and reality, which is much more complex, has to be understood.

This is not to deny that in many countries Muslim women are facing difficult problems and their liberation is not a foregone conclusion. However, it is also true that many of them are fighting and refusing to submit meekly. What gives us hope is their continued struggle and defiance of traditional authorities.

It should also be mentioned here that many ‘ualam and jurists also have realized that medieval shari’ah formulations about women cannot be enforced easily any more and some of them like Muhammad Abduh of Egypt, Maulavi Mumtaz Ali Khan of India and Maulana Umar Ahmed Usmani of Pakistan have expressed their serious reservations about traditional theological formulations on women. The determined struggle on the part of Muslim women will force many more theologians to revise their position and take Qur’an, and not medieval theology, more seriously on women issues.

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