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Author: Dr Abdulruff Colachal
Publication: dawn.com
Date: October 28, 2005
URL: http://dawn.com/2005/10/28/letted.htm#5
Strained Indo-Pakistan relations have harmed Indian Muslims badly. At long last India has realized that targeting and insulting the insecure Muslims in India is quite different from playing with Pakistan. The Muslims have felt relief at the latest positive developments in Indo-Pakistan ties. The Indian media now also tries to show some mercy towards Muslims by sidelining its anti-Muslim format. This is a good development, if it is real.
After independence a carefully manufactured pro-Hindu bureaucracy placed by governments both at the centre and states in connivance with the media has done unpardonable harm and damage to Indian Muslims.
The secular credentials of the Patel-Nehru combine were exposed even during their time, but the impact continues to keep anti-Muslim sentiments alive. The pro-Hindu organizations and parties took advantage of the weakness of the Indian nation.
The anti-social network operating in India also took shelter under the pro-Hindu campaign. A feeling was systematically created in India that Muslims live only at the mercy of Hindus.
India since Nehru has pursued a pro-Hindu and anti-Muslim policy denying even the minimum to Muslims. Lal Bahadur Shashtri, the weakest of prime ministers India ever had, courted and supported the pro-Hindu forces and his party helped the Hindutva forces spread their poisonous tentacles across the nation.
Governments one after another irrespective of the colour of the political parties they represent have succeeded in alienating the Muslim masses, while at the same time talking about socialism and secularism and democracy. India has very conveniently converted Indian Muslims into a vote bank commodity and even the BJP, aping the pseudo-secularist plank of the Congress party, has also acquired a share in the Muslim vote bank. India has forced the Muslims to the wall in such a way that the Muslims are desperate to see if some political party can just say some soothing words to them. So much so that both the government and private sectors have hardly any jobs left for Muslims.
The big talk of unity in diversity needs to be practised by the state and supported by the press. Favourite expressions like "Islamic fundamentalism" and "Islamic terrorism" have to be replaced with expressions that do not undermine Muslims.
India needs to consider the pathetic condition of the Muslims. Unless the media helps to empower the Muslims economically by involving them in government and the private sector, Indian Muslims will remain as backward as they are today.
Dr Abdulruff Colachal
Jawaharlal Nehru University
New Delhi
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