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With the demise of the Muslim leadership along with the demolition
of the Babri Masjid, one had heaved a sigh of relief. It was hoped
that the resultant vacuum would allow a sensible leadership to
emerge. For a time it did appear that the hope would not be
belied. Some genuine secularists started coming together and
making their voices heard. But their fervour did not last long.
They didn't get much support from any quarter.
Left on their own, the Muslims decided to concentrate on Taleem,
Tarbiat aur Tijarat, (Education, Training and Trade). With the
Hindu communalists also realising that "you cannot cash the same
cheque again and again," the result was peace and quiet on the
communal front. This obviously didn't suit the former leadership.
It kept trying to raise its head again and again.
Come December and a host of people would start reminding Muslims of
the tragedy of December 6, 1992. But every December they were
rebuffed, only to try once again next year.
A vacuum is not to the liking of mother nature. While this see-saw
was going on between the Muslims and their former leaders, a new
and more dangerous element has grown and apparently taken some
roots. Calling themselves Islamic radicals and working for a few
years under the banner of Milli Parliament, a group of Muslims
belonging to the Jamaat-e-Islami parivar, have decided to launch a
Muslim political party to strive for an "unfinished Islamic agenda"
to establish khilafa. (Caliphate) or Islamic rule in India. This
bunch of moronic obscurantists has released a Muslim Manifesto
which regards the last 50 years as "lost years" for the Muslims.
If all this is not provocative enough for the majority community,
it refers to them as Kuffar (infidels) and Mushrekeen (religious
deviants). It virtually issues a fatwa to Muslims telling them
that it is completely haram (prohibited) for them to join any
political party which does not share the Islamic agenda of Khilafat
or works for the establishment of a secular society. It is
incumbent on all Muslims, it says, that they sever all links with
the existing non-Muslim political groups as these are "in open
violation of Koranic dictates."
If this is not creating disaffection between communities, I don't
know what else is. But if our past experience of official apathy in
such matters is any guide, it would be futile to expect the
government to take any action. The responsibility for maintaining
communal amity, in the face of grave provocations, thus falls on
the people themselves. If it is for the Hindus to beware of the
machinations of various offshoots of the sangh parivar, it is for
the Muslims to confront the menace of the expanding Jamaat parivar.
A lot of things have gone wrong for Muslims in the last
half-a-century of Independence. But as a religious community
Muslims believe in the virtues of maintaining their focus on the
positive side of life with an attitude of gratitude to God. While
the people aspiring to leadership have traditionally promoted
paranoia, the Muslims know they must fear God and God alone.
Ask any Muslim how he is. Even in the worst of conditions, he
would reply, Alhamdo Lillah (All praise be to God) or Allah ka
shukr hai (I am grateful to God). It is indeed difficult to induce
a Muslim to complain or state his grievances against God.
The trend of articulating complaints and grievances and promoting
paranoia started with Mohammed Ali Jinnah. As a result the Muslims
of United India lie partitioned in three parts, none of which quite
at peace with itself.
The Muslims of divided India are still in the best situation,
though. They enjoy more religious freedom in this country than,
say, in Pakistan. The fact is we had a vast fund of goodwill with
our neighbours and fellow citizens till the Muslim League arrived
on the scene.
After Partition, any far-sighted leadership would have advised the
Muslims to try and rebuild that same trust and goodwill that
existed until the first decades of this century. It is not too
late for the Muslims to direct their energies in that direction
even now. The first requirement, however, is to fight and defeat
the lunatic fringe.
(The writer specialises in Islamic affairs)
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