Author: R. Upadhyay
Publication: South Asia Analysis Group
Date: April 22, 2008
URL: http://www.southasiaanalysis.org/papers27/paper2676.html
The recent arrest of SIMI (Students Islamic
Movement of India) activists and supporters followed by media exposure of
their jehadi training camps, widespread network in the country from north
to south, its direct or indirect involvement in almost all the Islamist terror
attacks in the country and link with various terror groups and their controllers
in Pakistan and Bangladesh has reaffirmed its jihadi character which I had
discussed earlier ( vide paper no. 825 dated October 30, 2003 of this site).
Known for militant expression of jihad ever
since its inception in October 1977 as a student front of Jamaat-e-Islami
Hind it continues to believe in fundamentalist interpretation of Islam. The
most worrying part of the situation is that how could this organisation which
is banned since September 2001 dodge the police and activate its sleeping
cells in most regions of the country and assist in successful execution of
terror attacks in places like Mumbai, Delhi, Malgaon, Varanasi, Ayodhya, Bangalore
and Hyderabad?
SIMI was initially banned by Government of
India in September 2001 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967
due to its reported working relation with Al Qaida, Taliban and other Islamist
terrorist groups. The ban was further extended from time to time and it is
still an unlawful organisation. SIMI challenged the ban in Supreme Court and
sought its revocation. However, the bench did not entertain it and cautioned
the petitioner to either withdraw the petition or get it dismissed. The counsel
appearing on behalf of SIMI subsequently chose to withdraw the petition. Some
news paper reports suggested that the serial blasts in a local train in Bombay
on July 11, 2006 were apparently planned to show its ire against the ban by
the government and refusal of the Supreme Court to revoke it.
Inspired by the ideology for Islamic revival
movements launched by Darul Uloom Deoband and Maulana Maudoodi, the founder
of Jamaat-e-Islami, SIMI still stands for radical change in the socio-political
character of Muslims in India, supports to the jehadi interpretation of Islamic
scriptures and has assisted various Islamist terrorist groups to destabilise
the country. In a changed political environment its plan for revival of resurgent
Islam in India in a more coordinated manner with an overall objective of Islamising
India and to challenge the hegemony of Christian tradition at international
level is something which is more worrisome. The most alarming point of the
episode is the rising clout of SIMI among the educated Muslim youths and students
in technical institutes. Some of the arrestees are known to be engineers and
doctors.
Although, the security agencies deserve full
credit for the prized catch of SIMI activists and for unearthing vital information,
it has posed a question before the Government, Political leadership and Muslim
intellectuals as to how a banned organisation could expand its network to
the extent of challenging the political system in the country. In fact most
of the major terrorist attacks in which involvement of SIMI is suspected took
place after the organization was banned in 2001. Had security agencies been
alert since the beginning of the ban, a number of innocent people would not
have died. However, it may not be fair to put entire blame on security agencies.
It is an open secret that the security agencies
are always under strong pressure of political leadership of states and centre
that are more concerned of Muslim votes than action against Jehadi forces.
Due to such political pressure security agencies often develop go slow attitude
in dealing with Muslim organizations and overlook their subversive activities.
Similarly, some of the so called human right groups always come forward in
favour of Muslim organisatons even if they are found involved in anti-national
activities. They raise hue and cry against the government on arrest of Muslim
activists. Thirdly, the Islamic priestly class is not ready to accept the
fact that Muslim youths are involved in terrorism in the name of Islam. Hardly
any one of them has explicitly condemned SIMI or any Islamist terrorist groups
by name. All these factors are the reasons behind the clandestine growth of
the alarming jehadi plan of SIMI without any effective challenge from the
police.
A number of Congress leaders including Sonia
Gandhi, Ambila Soni, Prakash Jaiswal and others had opposed the first ban
on SIMI in 2001 when NDA was in power (Sulekha.com). But surprisingly, the
same Congress party led UPA Government extended the ban in 2006, which was
criticized by Muslim press. The Milli Gazette while quoting a Hyderabad based
Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee floated by some influential section of
Muslims strongly condemned the attitude of UPA Government towards SIMI and
expressed concern over the extension of ban. Teesta Setalwad, a known human
right activist had blamed the Hindus for terror attacks in Malegaon. After
investigation the security agency found that terrorists were the members of
SIMI. Setalwad is again active to defend the suspected SIMI supporters arrested
recently.
Islamic priestly class condemned terrorism
during All India Anti-Terrorism Conference at Deoband in February last but
instead of condemning the activities of SIMI some of the speakers defended
it and said no court has ever convicted a single member of it. In fact that
some of the SIMI activists were convicted by POTA courts in 1906. They also
maintained that case has been blown out of proportion by media while the common
Muslim students were ignorant of this organization (Booklet of deliberations).
Like all the Islamist terrorist outfits SIMI
has also considered USA as enemy of Islam and supported the jihad call of
Osama bin Laden against 'Western Crusader'. Deoband conference too used the
same language of Osama bin Laden against America. Stand of Deoband on Islamic
issues is highly appreciated by the Sunni Muslims of the country and therefore
similarity of its language with Osama has reduced the chances of isolating
SIMI from the Muslim community. Defending the SIMI by Islamic clergies is
therefore, the main reason behind the growth of SIMI and its effective dent
in various parts of the country. In fact its success in brainwashing a sizeable
section of even modern educated Muslim youths in terror ideology was not possible
without the support of priestly class.
The increasing growth of SIMI has now become
a great challenge to the country. However, in absence of proper space for
wider debate in Muslim fora on its growing influence, the menace has alarmingly
increased. The persistent criticism of law enforcing agencies by the Muslim
clergies over the arrest of innocent Muslim youths always obstructed efforts
to counter the growth of SIMI by the security agencies. In fact a significant
number of jobless Muslim youths passing out every year from hardline Islamist
institutions are easily influenced by the ideology of the SIMI for restoration
of the institution of Khilafat. If the Islamist priestly classes are really
serious in condemnation of terrorism, they are to come out openly and aggressively
challenge the SIMI as they had raised a war cry in Shahbano case or against
Danish cartoonists. They issued fatwa against Taslima Nasrin for her alleged
anti-Islamic writings but why don't they issue such fatwa against SIMI if
its terrorist actions are against the tenet of Islam? They blame the Government
for alleged maligning the image of Muslims but they are not raising voice
against SIMI which is also responsible for adversely affecting the image of
the community and defaming their religion. It shows that no effort has been
made by them to erase the jehadi spirit from the mindset of thousands of Muslim
youths who have already been brainwashed by SIMI.
SIMI may not be the main voice of Muslim students
of the country. However, its steady growth could be possible only due to indifference
of the general students and lack of visible resistance against it. Its exposure
in recent arrest has therefore created a general impression that it is the
main representative body of the Muslim youths and students. Since no Islamic
organization has come forward to challenge the jehadi spirit of SIMI, which
fully supports Osama bin Laden in his Jehad on behalf of Ummah , it is difficult
for Muslim youths to rise and counter the march of SIMI. Such indifference
of Islamic bodies not only indicts them indirectly for the death of innocent
people in terror attacks but also keeps the larger majority in the community
in perpetual confusion.
The main goal of SIMI is Islamisation of India
by recruiting Ansaars for jehadi onslaught on non-believers. Its activities
of over last three decades suggest that it has been on an informal war march
against India ever since its inception. With direct or indirect support from
the indigenous Islamist infrastructure as well as secularist forces, human
rights activists, go slow attitude of security agencies and Muslim vote bank
greed of politicians, SIMI took India as a soft state and increased its strength
steadily. The deeply ingrained religious intolerance and the violent burden
of historical luggage being carried by it have adversely affected the Islamic
ethos of forbearance and liberalism as projected by some saner section in
the community. Generating negative energy in the name of religion by the self-appointed
guardians of Muslim students only accelerated the widening divide between
the Hindus and the Muslims. In contemporary India it is also the responsibility
of the present generation of Muslim students to give a wake up call to their
co-religionists for developing a twenty-first century mindset, which does
not approve religious hegemony of any community. Ironically, the Muslim students
are not ready to counter the jihadi interpretation of Islam as carried out
by SIMI. It is the need of the time.
Reason behind the indifferent attitude of
the Muslim theologians and intellectuals may be that they are also scared
of SIMI and are therefore not coming out openly to challenge them. The larger
majority of the non-believers on the other hand are seen to be hesitant to
raise their voice aggressively to avoid any communal confrontation on the
issue. The only solution to this impasse is that both the Muslim and Hindu
leaders irrespective of their party affiliation should come to a joint platform
to unearh the sleeping cells of SIMI and its supporters and produce them for
legal action before the government.
National focus on recent exposure of SIMI
might have stemmed embarrassment for Deoband. However, it has also provided
an opportunity to this institution, which has emerged as the Markaz (Central
authority) of Sunni Islam in India to modify its stand on SIMI it had made
during All India Anti-Terrorism Conference and also issue a mandatory Islamic
fatwa declaring it as an enemy of Islam.
(The Author can be reached at e-mail ramashray60@rediffmail.com)