By IANS,
New Delhi : After many European and American universities, it's now the leading Japanese universities who are set to woo Indian students.
According to the Japanese embassy here, at least 13 major Japanese universities will participate in the "Study in Japan Fair".
"Many Japanese universities have degree courses which are offered fully in English and the foreign students can (pursue) bachelor, masters and PhD degrees without language barriers," the Japan Information Center here said about the forthcoming event.
The varsity officials will interact with prospective students and provide their consultations about opportunities in Japan. The fair will take place at Daulat Ram College of the Delhi University Jan 11.
Friday, January 08, 2010
Thursday, January 07, 2010
History of modern education among Malabar Muslims
By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net
TCN Malabar series: Part 5
Not unlike Muslims of north India, Mappilas also lagged behind when it came to modern education. While there were some attempts made, some as early as a hundred years ago, it was not until a generation ago that major effort was made to link the community to modern education without losing the religious and cultural identity.
The reasons for distrusting western education were same as in the north. English was “the language of hell” and western education a “passport to hell.” As a result of this attitude Muslims were slow to adopt the new system of education and therefore their employment opportunities were also limited. Realizing that they were lagging behind, an effort was made with the establishment of Malabar Muslim Educational Association in 1911. Famous social reformer Vakkom Abdul Qadir Moulavi started the “All Travancore Muslim Mahajana Sabha” around the same time. The result of the leadership and awareness led to the opening of many schools by Muslims where there were no government schools in their areas. Madarasthul Muhammadiya in Parappil, Kozhikode is an example of one such school that was established by the Muslim themselves.
Madrasthul Muhammadiya was established in 1918 in Kozhikode which offers modern education
In 1948 Farook Colllege was established in Kozhikode, which played a valuable part in encouraging the Muslims towards higher education. Farook College was the first degree college established by the Muslims of Kerala.
Kerala had led all the Indian states in making its population 100% literate. Obviously, Muslims have also benefitted from this campaign. In recent years, Muslims have made progress in leaps and bounds in the field of modern education. Until recently, this picture was not that rosy. In the 1940s only 42.5% of school-age Muslim boys and 23.3% of girls were enrolled.
The Kumara Pillai Commission in 1960s found that Kerala held the highest number of Muslims who have not completed primary education. Also, only 2.83 Muslims among per 1000 population were enrolled in Class 10th, this was lowest in the state. In 1970s, 13.3% of students who passed 10th class were Muslims, a big improvement but still much below their share in the population. This figure improved to 17.8% in 1990s.
Mappilas were recognized as a backward caste as early as 1894. The reservation benefit because of their backward status helped them get to the opportunities that were not available to Muslims of north India. This combined with the awareness about the importance of modern education led by social reformers has helped the community march forward and not be too far behind the rest of the state. But the problem of higher education is still there, because of the lure of easy gulf money, adequate numbers of Muslim students are still missing from higher education and professional courses.
Of course, the enlightened Muslim leadership of Kerala is aware of this problem. The organization that manages the largest number of madrasas in Kerala has also launched an engineering college. Samastha Kerala Jammiyyathul Ulama also runs a self-financing engineering college called MEA Engineering College named after the Muslim Educational Association. College is a co-educational institution with separate hostels for girls.
The Ernad Muslim Educational Association established the Mampad College in 1965 in Malappuram district. Later on, after the Muslim League came to power in the state and began to handle the education department, many Muslim colleges came to be established after 1967. The Calicut University was established in Malappuram district in 1968 due to the efforts of the Muslim League leader late CH Muhammed Koya who later became the one and only Muslim Chief Minister of the state for a brief period.
The Tirurangadi Orphanage was founded in the 1920s as an abode for the Mappilas orphaned by the great revolt of 1921 against the British. Later it became an important centre of education which now comprises of a first grade college, training school, hospital etc. The Jamiyathu Dawathul wa Tabligh Islami (JDT Islam) was established in Calicut in the early 1920s also for helping the orphans of the Revolt of 1921. This also has now grown into a centre of learning which includes Polytechnic College, Industrial Training Centre, Orphanage, etc. The JDT also runs a multi-specialty hospital. The Mukkam Muslim Orphanage near Calicut also is one of the pioneer centres of education which now includes a first grade college, training school, higher secondary school, orphanage etc. Since then a number of orphanages and associated other educational institutions have sprung up in various parts of Malabar.
A number of these young kids told me that they want to be police officers. This you will never hear from Muslim kids in north India. I was surprised and was told by Zubair bhai that this is because police here is held in high esteem.
The Muslim Education Society founded on 1964 by a small group of educated Muslim officials at Calicut is now the leading Muslim educational organization in the state as well as outside. The MES now runs a Medical College, an Engineering College, a number of first grade colleges affiliated to almost all universities in Kerala, schools affiliated to CBSE, ICSE and state syllabi, many unaided women’s colleges, training colleges and schools, paramaedical colleges etc not only in Kerala but other states and abroad.
The Kerala Muslim Educational Association based in Kochi runs an engineering college, a polytechnic college and other institutions. The Unity Women’s College, Manjeri, run by the Muslim Educational and Cultural Association is the one and only aided Muslim women’s college in Kerala affiliated to the University of Calicut. It was established in 1991.
Several educational trusts like the Association for the Welfare of the Handicapped (AWH), the Kunhitharuvai Memorial Charitable Trust (KMCT), etc run many institutions including engineering, medical and paramedical colleges.
Throughout Malabar, wherever there is Muslim concentration, one can see educational institutions from kindergarten to post graduate level run by various organizations and trusts.
Links:
http://www.meskerala.com/
http://www.awhonline.com/
http://www.universityofcalicut.info/
http://www.farookcollege.ac.in/
http://www.meaengg.in/
(with inputs from Najiya O. in Kerala)
http://twocircles.net/2010jan06/history_modern_education_among_malabar_muslims.html
TCN Malabar series: Part 5
Not unlike Muslims of north India, Mappilas also lagged behind when it came to modern education. While there were some attempts made, some as early as a hundred years ago, it was not until a generation ago that major effort was made to link the community to modern education without losing the religious and cultural identity.
The reasons for distrusting western education were same as in the north. English was “the language of hell” and western education a “passport to hell.” As a result of this attitude Muslims were slow to adopt the new system of education and therefore their employment opportunities were also limited. Realizing that they were lagging behind, an effort was made with the establishment of Malabar Muslim Educational Association in 1911. Famous social reformer Vakkom Abdul Qadir Moulavi started the “All Travancore Muslim Mahajana Sabha” around the same time. The result of the leadership and awareness led to the opening of many schools by Muslims where there were no government schools in their areas. Madarasthul Muhammadiya in Parappil, Kozhikode is an example of one such school that was established by the Muslim themselves.
Madrasthul Muhammadiya was established in 1918 in Kozhikode which offers modern education
In 1948 Farook Colllege was established in Kozhikode, which played a valuable part in encouraging the Muslims towards higher education. Farook College was the first degree college established by the Muslims of Kerala.
Kerala had led all the Indian states in making its population 100% literate. Obviously, Muslims have also benefitted from this campaign. In recent years, Muslims have made progress in leaps and bounds in the field of modern education. Until recently, this picture was not that rosy. In the 1940s only 42.5% of school-age Muslim boys and 23.3% of girls were enrolled.
The Kumara Pillai Commission in 1960s found that Kerala held the highest number of Muslims who have not completed primary education. Also, only 2.83 Muslims among per 1000 population were enrolled in Class 10th, this was lowest in the state. In 1970s, 13.3% of students who passed 10th class were Muslims, a big improvement but still much below their share in the population. This figure improved to 17.8% in 1990s.
Mappilas were recognized as a backward caste as early as 1894. The reservation benefit because of their backward status helped them get to the opportunities that were not available to Muslims of north India. This combined with the awareness about the importance of modern education led by social reformers has helped the community march forward and not be too far behind the rest of the state. But the problem of higher education is still there, because of the lure of easy gulf money, adequate numbers of Muslim students are still missing from higher education and professional courses.
Of course, the enlightened Muslim leadership of Kerala is aware of this problem. The organization that manages the largest number of madrasas in Kerala has also launched an engineering college. Samastha Kerala Jammiyyathul Ulama also runs a self-financing engineering college called MEA Engineering College named after the Muslim Educational Association. College is a co-educational institution with separate hostels for girls.
The Ernad Muslim Educational Association established the Mampad College in 1965 in Malappuram district. Later on, after the Muslim League came to power in the state and began to handle the education department, many Muslim colleges came to be established after 1967. The Calicut University was established in Malappuram district in 1968 due to the efforts of the Muslim League leader late CH Muhammed Koya who later became the one and only Muslim Chief Minister of the state for a brief period.
The Tirurangadi Orphanage was founded in the 1920s as an abode for the Mappilas orphaned by the great revolt of 1921 against the British. Later it became an important centre of education which now comprises of a first grade college, training school, hospital etc. The Jamiyathu Dawathul wa Tabligh Islami (JDT Islam) was established in Calicut in the early 1920s also for helping the orphans of the Revolt of 1921. This also has now grown into a centre of learning which includes Polytechnic College, Industrial Training Centre, Orphanage, etc. The JDT also runs a multi-specialty hospital. The Mukkam Muslim Orphanage near Calicut also is one of the pioneer centres of education which now includes a first grade college, training school, higher secondary school, orphanage etc. Since then a number of orphanages and associated other educational institutions have sprung up in various parts of Malabar.
A number of these young kids told me that they want to be police officers. This you will never hear from Muslim kids in north India. I was surprised and was told by Zubair bhai that this is because police here is held in high esteem.
The Muslim Education Society founded on 1964 by a small group of educated Muslim officials at Calicut is now the leading Muslim educational organization in the state as well as outside. The MES now runs a Medical College, an Engineering College, a number of first grade colleges affiliated to almost all universities in Kerala, schools affiliated to CBSE, ICSE and state syllabi, many unaided women’s colleges, training colleges and schools, paramaedical colleges etc not only in Kerala but other states and abroad.
The Kerala Muslim Educational Association based in Kochi runs an engineering college, a polytechnic college and other institutions. The Unity Women’s College, Manjeri, run by the Muslim Educational and Cultural Association is the one and only aided Muslim women’s college in Kerala affiliated to the University of Calicut. It was established in 1991.
Several educational trusts like the Association for the Welfare of the Handicapped (AWH), the Kunhitharuvai Memorial Charitable Trust (KMCT), etc run many institutions including engineering, medical and paramedical colleges.
Throughout Malabar, wherever there is Muslim concentration, one can see educational institutions from kindergarten to post graduate level run by various organizations and trusts.
Links:
http://www.meskerala.com/
http://www.awhonline.com/
http://www.universityofcalicut.info/
http://www.farookcollege.ac.in/
http://www.meaengg.in/
(with inputs from Najiya O. in Kerala)
http://twocircles.net/2010jan06/history_modern_education_among_malabar_muslims.html
AUDF condemns Chidambaram’s Jihad comment
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: Assam United Democratic Front has condemned Union Home Minister P Chidambaram for equating Jihad with terrorism, and demanded immediate clarification from him.
While addressing Intelligence Bureau officials in New Delhi on December 23, Chidambaram had made the statement. In his speech he had termed Crusades as traditional war but Jihad terrorism. The statement has gathered wide criticism from the Muslim leaders and organizations.
Spokesperson of AUDF in Maharashtra, Burhanuddin Qasmi said that what Chidambaram said was not expected from a man like him who is know for secularism and integrity. Qasmi said Chidambaram should clarify his position on the issue.
New Delhi: Assam United Democratic Front has condemned Union Home Minister P Chidambaram for equating Jihad with terrorism, and demanded immediate clarification from him.
While addressing Intelligence Bureau officials in New Delhi on December 23, Chidambaram had made the statement. In his speech he had termed Crusades as traditional war but Jihad terrorism. The statement has gathered wide criticism from the Muslim leaders and organizations.
Spokesperson of AUDF in Maharashtra, Burhanuddin Qasmi said that what Chidambaram said was not expected from a man like him who is know for secularism and integrity. Qasmi said Chidambaram should clarify his position on the issue.
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
From Africa Persecution to MI5 Harassment
IslamOnline.net & Newspapers
CAIRO – Fleeing persecution in Somalia, Isahaq Elmi says he suffered a new chapter in Britain, this time at the hand of MI5 agents who allegedly harassed him into spying on fellow Muslims.
"I thought I was safe after I was granted asylum in 2006 but since the visits and phone calls from MI5 my life has fallen apart," Elmi told The Independent on Tuesday, January 5.
He claims to have received more than 200 phone calls from MI5 agents who tried to force him to turn into an informer.
Met with outright rejection, the British intelligence agents allegedly threatened Elmi with words that echo in his ear and send jolts of fear into his body.
"One way or another we are going to get you," he recalls being told by one MI5 officer.
The first episode of Elmi’s nightmare started in March 2009 after visiting his mother in Kenya.
On his return to Heathrow he was approached by anti-terror police officers who questioned him and took a DNA sample.
They threatened to detain him and grilled him for three hours before releasing him.
Two months later Elmi was contacted by an agent called Jahil who wanted to discuss his detention at Heathrow.
"They phoned me nearly every day for two months," lamented Elmi, a community worker with no criminal record.
He finally agreed to meet the MI5 men at a police station, where they said they wanted him to work as an informant in Mogadishu.
"I said I had no information. After all, I hadn't been to Somalia for 10 years," he recalls.
"But they still said I could help and could work for them. But I said I already had a job and didn't want to spy on my friends and neighbors."
Met with firm rejection, the British intelligence officer reportedly threatened Elmi with words that still echo in his ears and send jolts of fear into his body.
"It was the one called Jahil. I told him that I never wanted to see him again. Jahil began shouting, he said, 'One way or another we are going to get you.'"
Victimized
Just like Elmi, Ahmed Diini, a Dutch citizen who has settled in Britain, says he was also bombarded with phone calls and threatened with detention under Britain’s Terrorism Act.
The 21-year-old, who came to Europe when he was three, was also visited by agents at the Birmingham school where he worked and threatened with arrest.
When Diini went on holiday he was twice detained at British airports while his wife was harassed by a female MI5 officer while shopping at an airport.
"I have to live with the fact that I won't be able to travel somewhere without being stopped for a minimum of two hours and being seen as a criminal, since the people around me in the queue don't get stopped but I am the only one that gets picked on."
The young Muslim accuses MI5 agents of turning his wrecking his life.
"My wife also became angry because I hadn't told her about the problems with MI5 before we married," he says.
"I personally got morally and mentally affected since I am being victimized."
This is not the first time the MI5 faces accusations of using intimidation tactics to recruit Muslim informers.
Last year The Independent reported five cases in London where young Somali men complained of similar harassment by the MI5.
But the government denies any wrong doing.
"The Security Service operates within the law," a spokeswoman for the Home Office told the daily.
"If anyone feels they have been unfairly treated then there are clear procedures for asking the investigatory powers commissioner, who is a senior judge, to investigate any complaints."
CAIRO – Fleeing persecution in Somalia, Isahaq Elmi says he suffered a new chapter in Britain, this time at the hand of MI5 agents who allegedly harassed him into spying on fellow Muslims.
"I thought I was safe after I was granted asylum in 2006 but since the visits and phone calls from MI5 my life has fallen apart," Elmi told The Independent on Tuesday, January 5.
He claims to have received more than 200 phone calls from MI5 agents who tried to force him to turn into an informer.
Met with outright rejection, the British intelligence agents allegedly threatened Elmi with words that echo in his ear and send jolts of fear into his body.
"One way or another we are going to get you," he recalls being told by one MI5 officer.
The first episode of Elmi’s nightmare started in March 2009 after visiting his mother in Kenya.
On his return to Heathrow he was approached by anti-terror police officers who questioned him and took a DNA sample.
They threatened to detain him and grilled him for three hours before releasing him.
Two months later Elmi was contacted by an agent called Jahil who wanted to discuss his detention at Heathrow.
"They phoned me nearly every day for two months," lamented Elmi, a community worker with no criminal record.
He finally agreed to meet the MI5 men at a police station, where they said they wanted him to work as an informant in Mogadishu.
"I said I had no information. After all, I hadn't been to Somalia for 10 years," he recalls.
"But they still said I could help and could work for them. But I said I already had a job and didn't want to spy on my friends and neighbors."
Met with firm rejection, the British intelligence officer reportedly threatened Elmi with words that still echo in his ears and send jolts of fear into his body.
"It was the one called Jahil. I told him that I never wanted to see him again. Jahil began shouting, he said, 'One way or another we are going to get you.'"
Victimized
Just like Elmi, Ahmed Diini, a Dutch citizen who has settled in Britain, says he was also bombarded with phone calls and threatened with detention under Britain’s Terrorism Act.
The 21-year-old, who came to Europe when he was three, was also visited by agents at the Birmingham school where he worked and threatened with arrest.
When Diini went on holiday he was twice detained at British airports while his wife was harassed by a female MI5 officer while shopping at an airport.
"I have to live with the fact that I won't be able to travel somewhere without being stopped for a minimum of two hours and being seen as a criminal, since the people around me in the queue don't get stopped but I am the only one that gets picked on."
The young Muslim accuses MI5 agents of turning his wrecking his life.
"My wife also became angry because I hadn't told her about the problems with MI5 before we married," he says.
"I personally got morally and mentally affected since I am being victimized."
This is not the first time the MI5 faces accusations of using intimidation tactics to recruit Muslim informers.
Last year The Independent reported five cases in London where young Somali men complained of similar harassment by the MI5.
But the government denies any wrong doing.
"The Security Service operates within the law," a spokeswoman for the Home Office told the daily.
"If anyone feels they have been unfairly treated then there are clear procedures for asking the investigatory powers commissioner, who is a senior judge, to investigate any complaints."
US College Veil Ban Draws Fire
IslamOnline.net & Newspapers
CAIRO –- A Massachusetts college decision to bar the wearing of face veils is drawing fire from Muslim and non-Muslim civil rights groups as an illegal move that jeopardizes rights and targets religious freedom of Muslims in particular.
“It’s a very strange policy,’’ Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Washington-based civil liberties group the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told the Boston Globe on Wednesday, January 6.
“I don’t know where it came from. The only thing we can conclude is that it’s designed to specifically target Muslims.’’
The College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences issued a decision to banned students or others on its campuses from wearing clothing that obscures the face, including face veils and burqas worn by Muslim women.
College officials say that the rule, which went into effect January 1, is designed to promote safety and was imposed after a “periodic assessment of public safety policies’’ at the private college.
“This is another measure that public safety [officials at the college] wanted to implement to keep the campus safer,’’ Michael Ratty, a spokesman for the college, which has campuses in Boston, Worcester, and Manchester, N.H., said.
"It is not directed to any group or individual. It applies to all students and faculty."
But Muslims slammed the move as a form of religious discrimination for Muslims who believe they must cover their faces.
“I think they have two Muslim women wearing face veils, that made them feel uncomfortable and they had to do something about it,” said Hooper.
Even security activists like Jonathan Kassa, executive director of Security on Campus, a nonprofit that advocates for safer US college campuses, are not in favor of the rule, which they fear sacrificing rights in the name of security.
The majority of Muslim scholars believe that a woman is not obliged to cover her face but believe that it is up to women to decide whether to take on the face veil.
Illegal
Civil liberties groups and campus activists are also opposing the college decision as toeing the American constitution’s red-line of respecting religious freedoms.
It is “puzzling and possibly illegal,” Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney at the Massachusetts American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told The Globe describing the new rule.
Hooper affirmed he had not heard of any similar policies adopted at any other US college.
He added that a minority of Muslims believe that wearing clothes that cover the face is required, but that stopping them from practicing their faith remains "un-American."
“If this went to court I would feel comfortable the women would prevail because of the legal precedent that has been set.”
CAIR says that the ban should have an exemption for those who wear face veils for religious reasons, as is the case with some Muslim women, so that not to jeopardize religious rights.
As the college’s the policy includes a medical exemption, it should also include a religious exemption, Hooper noted.
“People should have the right to practice their faith as they see fit, not as others see fit.”
CAIRO –- A Massachusetts college decision to bar the wearing of face veils is drawing fire from Muslim and non-Muslim civil rights groups as an illegal move that jeopardizes rights and targets religious freedom of Muslims in particular.
“It’s a very strange policy,’’ Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Washington-based civil liberties group the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told the Boston Globe on Wednesday, January 6.
“I don’t know where it came from. The only thing we can conclude is that it’s designed to specifically target Muslims.’’
The College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences issued a decision to banned students or others on its campuses from wearing clothing that obscures the face, including face veils and burqas worn by Muslim women.
College officials say that the rule, which went into effect January 1, is designed to promote safety and was imposed after a “periodic assessment of public safety policies’’ at the private college.
“This is another measure that public safety [officials at the college] wanted to implement to keep the campus safer,’’ Michael Ratty, a spokesman for the college, which has campuses in Boston, Worcester, and Manchester, N.H., said.
"It is not directed to any group or individual. It applies to all students and faculty."
But Muslims slammed the move as a form of religious discrimination for Muslims who believe they must cover their faces.
“I think they have two Muslim women wearing face veils, that made them feel uncomfortable and they had to do something about it,” said Hooper.
Even security activists like Jonathan Kassa, executive director of Security on Campus, a nonprofit that advocates for safer US college campuses, are not in favor of the rule, which they fear sacrificing rights in the name of security.
The majority of Muslim scholars believe that a woman is not obliged to cover her face but believe that it is up to women to decide whether to take on the face veil.
Illegal
Civil liberties groups and campus activists are also opposing the college decision as toeing the American constitution’s red-line of respecting religious freedoms.
It is “puzzling and possibly illegal,” Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney at the Massachusetts American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told The Globe describing the new rule.
Hooper affirmed he had not heard of any similar policies adopted at any other US college.
He added that a minority of Muslims believe that wearing clothes that cover the face is required, but that stopping them from practicing their faith remains "un-American."
“If this went to court I would feel comfortable the women would prevail because of the legal precedent that has been set.”
CAIR says that the ban should have an exemption for those who wear face veils for religious reasons, as is the case with some Muslim women, so that not to jeopardize religious rights.
As the college’s the policy includes a medical exemption, it should also include a religious exemption, Hooper noted.
“People should have the right to practice their faith as they see fit, not as others see fit.”
Sunday, January 03, 2010
Communal riots 2009
By Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer,
The year 2009 also did not witness major riots and this pattern is continuing since Gujarat riots of 2002. However, no year so far has been riot-free year. Communal violence erupts on smaller scale in different places throughout India. It is interesting to note that since Mumbai riots of 1992-93 there was no major communal riot until Gujarat riots in 2002 except in Coimbatore in 1998 in which about 40 persons were killed. Similarly since Gujarat riots of 2002 there has been no major communal riots except in Kandhamal, Orissa, in which also around 40 persons were killed.
The year 2009 began with the UN condemning slow progress of probe in communal riots in Gujarat and called for speedy justice in its report published on 7th February. “A large number of criminal cases relating to the communal violence in 2002 remained uninvestigated or have been closed by the Gujarat Police and the miserable plight of those internally displaced from their homes continues” said the UN Report by Human Rights Council. It was indeed matter of shame that the UN Human Rights Council had to remind us of that. In fact it is Narendra Modi’s deep rooted communalism and arrogance of power which brought such disgrace to our country.
Fortunately January remained riot-free but with February communal situation began to slip down the slippery slope. It began with Nanded in Maharashtra. Maharashtra is one of the communally most sensitive states though it has been ruled by the Congress most of the time. In the centre of Nanded town near Railway station two youth belonging to Hindu and Muslim communities had quarrel and soon it acquired communal overtones and five youth were injured and had to be hospitalized. It began with eve teasing of girls belonging to one community and youth of two communities came out on the streets and violence erupted. Sharp edged weapons were openly used. One of the injured was in critical condition. All shops in the area downed their shutters. However, the police controlled the situation quickly.
It happened in Tanda town of Ambedkar Nagar when murder of Ramjor took place communal violence erupted and one house and several shops of minority community were set on fire. The police acted promptly and police force and PAC were sent to control the situation. However, much damage was not done and police controlled it in time.
M.P. is another sensitive state since BJP has taken over. On 11th March communal violence broke out in Mahidpur of Ujjain district which has considerable Muslim population. Some Muslims returning after the Prophet Day’s procession were asked to avoid a route where Ramayana recitation was going on but they insisted on taking that route and communal violence broke out in which one person was killed and 17 persons were injured. The police had resorted to firing and one person was killed in police firing. About 24 persons were arrested.
Shahrukh (right) carries the body of his elder brother Imran, killed by police firing in July 2009 in Indore
Festivals like Holi, Diwali or Ganesh Chaturthi generally witness outbreak of communal violence in number of places. On 11th March on the occasion of Holi four U.P. towns witnessed communal violence. These towns were Benaras, Azamgarh, Lucknow and Bareli. In all four persons were killed and more than 22 people were injured. Curfew had to be imposed in several parts of two cities. Police bandobast was made in all these cities to check further spreading of violence. Of these two persons were killed in firing in suburb of Benaras after colour was thrown on some Muslims. These incidents took place in Vellur and Bazari Deh and two police officers in charge of these police stations were suspended. The high police officials were camping here to keep situation under control.
The other incident took place in Khilafatpur of Azamgarh district where one person was killed and two persons were injured. In Lucknow in Nawagaon area one person was shot dead. In Bareily old city also two people of communities clashed on throwing colour and five persons were injured. And in Faridpur area one person was killed during Prophet day’s celebration.
During Holi festival reports of violent clashes from other places was also received. In Ghazipur U.P. a six year old girl was killed and several persons injured. Also from Bihar there were reports of 3 persons killed in Chapra and Nawada districts. In Delhi too one tailor was stabbed to death.
Again in Maharashtra in Rabodi area of Thane, near Mumbai, communal violence broke out after road accident. Police fired more than 30 rounds when the mob refuse to disperse. According to the eye witnesses about seven Autorickshaws, one milk van, four shops and three houses were set on fire near Kranti Nagar and rioters hurled stones and soda bottles at the police. Two police inspectors suffered serious head injuries. Rabodi had witnessed violent communal clashes in September 2008 also on the occasion of Navratri.
In South Karnataka also communal violence broke out and some mosques were seriously damaged on 15th March. It was alleged by the congress members in the Karnataka Assembly that volunteers of the Sangh Parivar (family) were in the forefront of the violence and police completely failed to control violence. It was even alleged that Ram Sena leader Pramod Muthallik and others were trying to convert Karnataka into another Gujarat. Karnataka has been witnessing attacks on Christians and churches also. It was also alleged by the Congress and other secular activists that on the eve of General elections BJP was trying to polarize Karnataka to win elections.
On 4th April Pusad witnessed communal violence in which a Muslim couple and a Hindu boy was killed. Pusad and Digras in Yavatmal district also had witnessed serious communal violence in 2008 on the occasion of Holi and now on 7th April 2009 Pusad again came under spell of communal violence. In 2008 it was in Digras that police brutally assaulted Muslims and broke their homes, looted cash and broke their T.V. sets, fridges and even water vessels. This time Police repeated these atrocities against Muslims in Pusad. In 2008 R.R.Patil was Home Minister and in 2009 Jayant Patil was Home Minister. Neither R.R.Patil took any action against the police nor Jayant Patil though video clippings of police atrocities were shown. So much for secularism of the Maharashtra Congress. And all this happened on the occasion of General elections. It was because of such communal violence that the seat went to the Shiv Sena. It was the Congress’s own loss. Many riots are organized just to win elections. One can call it winning elections through murder and killing. Pusad and Digras in Maharashtra have become communally highly sensitive thanks to VHP, Shiv Sena and other communal organizations and mysterious silence, nay approval of the congress. It appears congress government deliberately posts rank communal police officers in these places. Police becomes looters and rioters in uniform. Besides one mosque 45 houses belonging to Muslims were set to fire. The Ram Navmi procession comprising 20,000 people was taken out with loud speakers loudly playing the tune Mandir Vahin Banayenge (we will construct Mandir on that place only). The procession stopped near Mohammadi Masjid and indulged in stone throwing and rioting broke out. And this happened despite the fact that many Muslim leaders had welcomed the procession in Lohar lane to promote communal amity.
Next Anand in Gujarat came under the spell of communal violence on 27th May. A 14 year old Muslim girl was murdered by a non-Muslim youth who later committed suicide. The girl’s throat was slit with sharp edged weapon. This led to clashes between two communities. According to the police there was massive stoning by both sides on each other five houses were burnt down. However, no one was killed. The police seem to have controlled the situation.
Assam which is normally not very communally sensitive witnessed communal riot on May 28. In this riot five persons were killed and hundreds more rendered homeless following communal clash in Western Assam’s Kokrajahr district. The police said that the trouble had erupted over a piece of temple land, after some hooligans drove out people living there. The residents alleged that a local police officer had played partisan role and demanded his removal, which was opposed by the members of another community.
In Nanded, Maharashtra communal violence broke out on June 18 when some people from Chopala area of the town objected to drugs being sold. The mischief mongers gave it a communal turn and members of both communities began to attack each other in which about 7 persons, including two women were injured and had to be admitted in the Government Hospital. The electric connections were severed and indulged in communal violence in darkness. However, police reached in time and brought the situation under control.
Mysore has been a peaceful town but under the BJP rule whole of Karnataka is turning communally sensitive. Mysore also came under the wave of communal violence on 3rd July in which 3 persons were killed. Communal flare up took place on the question of desecration of a religious school. Police fired in the air and lobbed teargas shells to disperse the mob. Prohibitory orders were enforced in four police station areas. In Udaigiri scores of houses were set on fire in Kyathanamaranahalli. However the incidents soon spread over to other areas like Udaigiri, Gayatripuram II stage and Rajivnagar. The rioters snatched the pistol of an inspector many houses were looted and set afire, police said. The tension continued next day also and a BJP leader who was seated in a car with a Muslim friend was stabbed though, stabbing was connected with a financial dispute.
After Mysore it was Shahpur area of Ahmedabad which was engulfed in communal violence on 17th August in which about 8 persons were injured. The violence broke out after alleged desecration of an idol in a temple. However, according to another source the real cause was playing music before the mosque. The whole area was littered with stones and pieces of glasses. Shahpur is a Muslim majority area of Ahmedabad city.
Interviews with local residents showed that the trouble had begun a week ago when some people tried to build a temple near the Ahmedi mosque opposite the Nagoriwad police Chowkey. Yet another version was that the mosque authorities objected to the noisy procession, as evening Namaz was being offered. Nearly half a dozen houses were torched and property damaged on both sides in the clashes and many injured. Many police officers were also injured among others. It was also reported in some newspapers that two people were stabbed from minority community and were seriously injured.
A madrasa burned in Gopalganj, Bihar in February 2009
During the Ganesh festival in September Maharashtra again witnessed communal violence in places like Sangli, Miraj and Icchalkaranji in Kolhapur district on 7-9 September. Ichhalkaranji which has population of 3 lakhs and is a textile town. Even after a month when I met some Muslims from Icchalkaranji they were living in fear. In fact riots had spread to other towns like Sangli and Miraj also. Extensive damage was done to 60 Mosques and Dargahs in the whole region.
During the Ganesh festival in this region of Western region various Ganesh Pandals were put up on which arches and posters showing Shivaji killing Afzal Khan were shown and this was objected to by some Muslims and it also became a controversy between the Congress and Shiv Sena-BJP and communal violence broke out. The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Mr. Ashok Chavan accusing the communal parties of fanning the riots for a political capital.
Mr. Gopinath Munde, the BJP leader from Maharashtra on the other hand, blamed the Congress for communal flare up exploiting it for electoral purposes. There is a proof, if any proof is needed that communal violence is used mainly for electoral purposes by political parties. However, one hope-giving feature of these rioting was that Hindu women in villages where mosques were damaged not only repaired these mosques but also provided protection to the Muslims in villages and persuaded them not to migrate to other places.
On 13th November we held one day workshop on Women for Secularism in Icchalkaranji in which many women from these villages who repaired mosques and saved Muslim lives in villages were also invited. I heard them speak and was inspired from their determination to fight communal forces. It gave me new confidence in the people of India to keep India secular. They were mostly illiterate village women who came out so strongly against communal forces. Again the communal riots were sparked to exploit religious sentiments for electoral purposes.
Another thing to be noted is that Icchalkaranji, as pointed out, is a textile town and was once stronghold of left trade unions. It went into flames like Bhivandi, another textile town near Mumbai, went up in flames in 1970 and 1984 communal violence. The Left trade union workers get as easily polarized in religious camps as other people. The left ideology hardly protects them from communal ideology.
On 23rd September Jaisalmer, Rajasthan saw communal frenzy in which one person died and 10 persons were seriously injured when a religious structure was demolished which was disputed in Fatehgarh area of Jaisalmer. Also a dozen shops and four vehicles were burnt and offices of SDM and Tehsildar were ransacked. Jaisalmer is a border town and Pakistan is just a few kilometers away from there. The Muslims of Jaisalmer can hardly be distinguished from Hindus culturally or linguistically. It has no history of communal violence either. Yet the BJP rule in Rajasthan gave Phillip to communal forces in the area.
On October 24 communal tension erupted in Shravasti town near Bahraich in U.P. when meat pieces were found inside a mosque. The Muslims of the town blocked the road and threw stones and attacked vehicles. The protestors blocked the Bahraich-Shravasti road for hours and tried to torch buses. According to the police, people noticed pieces of meat near the mosque but when they entered the gate of the mosque they found more pieces of meat and in no time some 500 people gathered shouting slogans and demanding arrest of those responsible. Some people of the town had dispute with members of minority community and they might have left pieces of meat inside the mosque. Some 14 persons were identified.
This was, in short, the account of communal violence in the year 2009. In all during 2009 23 lives were lost and 73 people injured. It is very difficult to estimate loss of properties but undoubtedly public and private properties put together it would run into hundreds of crores of rupees. Also, it would be observed that riots took place in U.P., Bihar, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka, M.P., Assam and Gujarat.
However, there were no riots in West Bengal, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Also, very few riots took place in this year in Gujarat and maximum riots took place in Maharashtra. This year hardly any riot was reported from Baroda in Gujarat which is highly communally sensitive state. Thus we can say while there is some improvement in Gujarat in terms of occurrence of communal violence in Maharashtra we witness no such improvement.
The government in Maharashtra is secular but has no political will to curb activities of the Shiv Sena. Shiv Seainiks can get away with anything. Also the Shiv Sena mouthpiece continues to be highly abrasive and no law applies to it. About Gujarat touch communal violence has gone down but not communalization. Since 2002 riots brought great disgrace to Narendra Modi he is unwilling, at least for the present, to have more communal violence but there is hardly any let up in communalization and polarization on the basis of religion. The great divide between Hindus and Muslims continues to be what it was in 2002 and Gujarat continues to be Hindutva laboratory.
It is also to be noted as pointed out earlier, there has been no major communal disaster after 2002 except in Kandhamal in Orissa. However, there is one difference that in Orissa BJP was a junior partner in Government and though it could inflict communal damage once in Kandhamal, the process could not continue as in Gujarat. Navin Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Orissa realized his mistake in allying with the BJP and he broke with it after the Kandhmal riots. This rupture stopped the process of Hinduization of Orissa.
However, in Gujarat, BJP was the real boss and hence after 2002 there was no such rupture and hence the process of communalization remained steady. If communalization goes on communal violence can be organized when needed. Communal violence cannot go on, on major scale for obvious reasons. And in U.P. and Bihar, the two states of Hindi belt which often witnessed major riots during eighties, communal politics there was seriously weakened due to emergence of caste-based parties there like Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal (United) etc.
There has been great change in power equation in the Hindi belt though small skirmishes continue there. Tamil Nadu and Kerala were always dominated by caste and left politics respectively. But in both the states there was eruption of communal violence temporarily. In Tamil Nadu the Hindu Munnani, an OBC party experienced a temporary rise after conversion to Islam in Meenakshipuram and because of clashes between OBC and Dalits. However, communal politics could not be sustained on a long term basis.
In Kerala too RSS tried to find its foothold in a section of society which was left out of power equations. It did succeed to some extent and apart from clashes between RSS and CPM, riots occurred between Hindus and Muslims also but only on few occasions. Assam though not a communal prone state but after ASSU movement in early eighties the Rajasthani business community there felt highly insecure and hence brought in RSS and communalized polity to some extent. However, it succeeds in engineering communal violence here and there but it is difficult to sustain communal discourse in Assam also for historical, cultural and linguistic reasons.
All this abundantly proves that communalism is a political and not a religious phenomenon and that communal graph goes up and down depending on political dynamics of a region. It gives us hope that bewildering diversity of Indian society cannot sustain communal violence on long term basis. If communal violence erupts it is more because of weakness of secular forces than the strength of communal forces.
Secular parties often loose courage and political will in the face of communal onslaught at certain junctures. If secular parties show courage and strong political will there is no reason communalism will have long lease of life.
The year 2009 also did not witness major riots and this pattern is continuing since Gujarat riots of 2002. However, no year so far has been riot-free year. Communal violence erupts on smaller scale in different places throughout India. It is interesting to note that since Mumbai riots of 1992-93 there was no major communal riot until Gujarat riots in 2002 except in Coimbatore in 1998 in which about 40 persons were killed. Similarly since Gujarat riots of 2002 there has been no major communal riots except in Kandhamal, Orissa, in which also around 40 persons were killed.
The year 2009 began with the UN condemning slow progress of probe in communal riots in Gujarat and called for speedy justice in its report published on 7th February. “A large number of criminal cases relating to the communal violence in 2002 remained uninvestigated or have been closed by the Gujarat Police and the miserable plight of those internally displaced from their homes continues” said the UN Report by Human Rights Council. It was indeed matter of shame that the UN Human Rights Council had to remind us of that. In fact it is Narendra Modi’s deep rooted communalism and arrogance of power which brought such disgrace to our country.
Fortunately January remained riot-free but with February communal situation began to slip down the slippery slope. It began with Nanded in Maharashtra. Maharashtra is one of the communally most sensitive states though it has been ruled by the Congress most of the time. In the centre of Nanded town near Railway station two youth belonging to Hindu and Muslim communities had quarrel and soon it acquired communal overtones and five youth were injured and had to be hospitalized. It began with eve teasing of girls belonging to one community and youth of two communities came out on the streets and violence erupted. Sharp edged weapons were openly used. One of the injured was in critical condition. All shops in the area downed their shutters. However, the police controlled the situation quickly.
It happened in Tanda town of Ambedkar Nagar when murder of Ramjor took place communal violence erupted and one house and several shops of minority community were set on fire. The police acted promptly and police force and PAC were sent to control the situation. However, much damage was not done and police controlled it in time.
M.P. is another sensitive state since BJP has taken over. On 11th March communal violence broke out in Mahidpur of Ujjain district which has considerable Muslim population. Some Muslims returning after the Prophet Day’s procession were asked to avoid a route where Ramayana recitation was going on but they insisted on taking that route and communal violence broke out in which one person was killed and 17 persons were injured. The police had resorted to firing and one person was killed in police firing. About 24 persons were arrested.
Shahrukh (right) carries the body of his elder brother Imran, killed by police firing in July 2009 in Indore
Festivals like Holi, Diwali or Ganesh Chaturthi generally witness outbreak of communal violence in number of places. On 11th March on the occasion of Holi four U.P. towns witnessed communal violence. These towns were Benaras, Azamgarh, Lucknow and Bareli. In all four persons were killed and more than 22 people were injured. Curfew had to be imposed in several parts of two cities. Police bandobast was made in all these cities to check further spreading of violence. Of these two persons were killed in firing in suburb of Benaras after colour was thrown on some Muslims. These incidents took place in Vellur and Bazari Deh and two police officers in charge of these police stations were suspended. The high police officials were camping here to keep situation under control.
The other incident took place in Khilafatpur of Azamgarh district where one person was killed and two persons were injured. In Lucknow in Nawagaon area one person was shot dead. In Bareily old city also two people of communities clashed on throwing colour and five persons were injured. And in Faridpur area one person was killed during Prophet day’s celebration.
During Holi festival reports of violent clashes from other places was also received. In Ghazipur U.P. a six year old girl was killed and several persons injured. Also from Bihar there were reports of 3 persons killed in Chapra and Nawada districts. In Delhi too one tailor was stabbed to death.
Again in Maharashtra in Rabodi area of Thane, near Mumbai, communal violence broke out after road accident. Police fired more than 30 rounds when the mob refuse to disperse. According to the eye witnesses about seven Autorickshaws, one milk van, four shops and three houses were set on fire near Kranti Nagar and rioters hurled stones and soda bottles at the police. Two police inspectors suffered serious head injuries. Rabodi had witnessed violent communal clashes in September 2008 also on the occasion of Navratri.
In South Karnataka also communal violence broke out and some mosques were seriously damaged on 15th March. It was alleged by the congress members in the Karnataka Assembly that volunteers of the Sangh Parivar (family) were in the forefront of the violence and police completely failed to control violence. It was even alleged that Ram Sena leader Pramod Muthallik and others were trying to convert Karnataka into another Gujarat. Karnataka has been witnessing attacks on Christians and churches also. It was also alleged by the Congress and other secular activists that on the eve of General elections BJP was trying to polarize Karnataka to win elections.
On 4th April Pusad witnessed communal violence in which a Muslim couple and a Hindu boy was killed. Pusad and Digras in Yavatmal district also had witnessed serious communal violence in 2008 on the occasion of Holi and now on 7th April 2009 Pusad again came under spell of communal violence. In 2008 it was in Digras that police brutally assaulted Muslims and broke their homes, looted cash and broke their T.V. sets, fridges and even water vessels. This time Police repeated these atrocities against Muslims in Pusad. In 2008 R.R.Patil was Home Minister and in 2009 Jayant Patil was Home Minister. Neither R.R.Patil took any action against the police nor Jayant Patil though video clippings of police atrocities were shown. So much for secularism of the Maharashtra Congress. And all this happened on the occasion of General elections. It was because of such communal violence that the seat went to the Shiv Sena. It was the Congress’s own loss. Many riots are organized just to win elections. One can call it winning elections through murder and killing. Pusad and Digras in Maharashtra have become communally highly sensitive thanks to VHP, Shiv Sena and other communal organizations and mysterious silence, nay approval of the congress. It appears congress government deliberately posts rank communal police officers in these places. Police becomes looters and rioters in uniform. Besides one mosque 45 houses belonging to Muslims were set to fire. The Ram Navmi procession comprising 20,000 people was taken out with loud speakers loudly playing the tune Mandir Vahin Banayenge (we will construct Mandir on that place only). The procession stopped near Mohammadi Masjid and indulged in stone throwing and rioting broke out. And this happened despite the fact that many Muslim leaders had welcomed the procession in Lohar lane to promote communal amity.
Next Anand in Gujarat came under the spell of communal violence on 27th May. A 14 year old Muslim girl was murdered by a non-Muslim youth who later committed suicide. The girl’s throat was slit with sharp edged weapon. This led to clashes between two communities. According to the police there was massive stoning by both sides on each other five houses were burnt down. However, no one was killed. The police seem to have controlled the situation.
Assam which is normally not very communally sensitive witnessed communal riot on May 28. In this riot five persons were killed and hundreds more rendered homeless following communal clash in Western Assam’s Kokrajahr district. The police said that the trouble had erupted over a piece of temple land, after some hooligans drove out people living there. The residents alleged that a local police officer had played partisan role and demanded his removal, which was opposed by the members of another community.
In Nanded, Maharashtra communal violence broke out on June 18 when some people from Chopala area of the town objected to drugs being sold. The mischief mongers gave it a communal turn and members of both communities began to attack each other in which about 7 persons, including two women were injured and had to be admitted in the Government Hospital. The electric connections were severed and indulged in communal violence in darkness. However, police reached in time and brought the situation under control.
Mysore has been a peaceful town but under the BJP rule whole of Karnataka is turning communally sensitive. Mysore also came under the wave of communal violence on 3rd July in which 3 persons were killed. Communal flare up took place on the question of desecration of a religious school. Police fired in the air and lobbed teargas shells to disperse the mob. Prohibitory orders were enforced in four police station areas. In Udaigiri scores of houses were set on fire in Kyathanamaranahalli. However the incidents soon spread over to other areas like Udaigiri, Gayatripuram II stage and Rajivnagar. The rioters snatched the pistol of an inspector many houses were looted and set afire, police said. The tension continued next day also and a BJP leader who was seated in a car with a Muslim friend was stabbed though, stabbing was connected with a financial dispute.
After Mysore it was Shahpur area of Ahmedabad which was engulfed in communal violence on 17th August in which about 8 persons were injured. The violence broke out after alleged desecration of an idol in a temple. However, according to another source the real cause was playing music before the mosque. The whole area was littered with stones and pieces of glasses. Shahpur is a Muslim majority area of Ahmedabad city.
Interviews with local residents showed that the trouble had begun a week ago when some people tried to build a temple near the Ahmedi mosque opposite the Nagoriwad police Chowkey. Yet another version was that the mosque authorities objected to the noisy procession, as evening Namaz was being offered. Nearly half a dozen houses were torched and property damaged on both sides in the clashes and many injured. Many police officers were also injured among others. It was also reported in some newspapers that two people were stabbed from minority community and were seriously injured.
A madrasa burned in Gopalganj, Bihar in February 2009
During the Ganesh festival in September Maharashtra again witnessed communal violence in places like Sangli, Miraj and Icchalkaranji in Kolhapur district on 7-9 September. Ichhalkaranji which has population of 3 lakhs and is a textile town. Even after a month when I met some Muslims from Icchalkaranji they were living in fear. In fact riots had spread to other towns like Sangli and Miraj also. Extensive damage was done to 60 Mosques and Dargahs in the whole region.
During the Ganesh festival in this region of Western region various Ganesh Pandals were put up on which arches and posters showing Shivaji killing Afzal Khan were shown and this was objected to by some Muslims and it also became a controversy between the Congress and Shiv Sena-BJP and communal violence broke out. The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Mr. Ashok Chavan accusing the communal parties of fanning the riots for a political capital.
Mr. Gopinath Munde, the BJP leader from Maharashtra on the other hand, blamed the Congress for communal flare up exploiting it for electoral purposes. There is a proof, if any proof is needed that communal violence is used mainly for electoral purposes by political parties. However, one hope-giving feature of these rioting was that Hindu women in villages where mosques were damaged not only repaired these mosques but also provided protection to the Muslims in villages and persuaded them not to migrate to other places.
On 13th November we held one day workshop on Women for Secularism in Icchalkaranji in which many women from these villages who repaired mosques and saved Muslim lives in villages were also invited. I heard them speak and was inspired from their determination to fight communal forces. It gave me new confidence in the people of India to keep India secular. They were mostly illiterate village women who came out so strongly against communal forces. Again the communal riots were sparked to exploit religious sentiments for electoral purposes.
Another thing to be noted is that Icchalkaranji, as pointed out, is a textile town and was once stronghold of left trade unions. It went into flames like Bhivandi, another textile town near Mumbai, went up in flames in 1970 and 1984 communal violence. The Left trade union workers get as easily polarized in religious camps as other people. The left ideology hardly protects them from communal ideology.
On 23rd September Jaisalmer, Rajasthan saw communal frenzy in which one person died and 10 persons were seriously injured when a religious structure was demolished which was disputed in Fatehgarh area of Jaisalmer. Also a dozen shops and four vehicles were burnt and offices of SDM and Tehsildar were ransacked. Jaisalmer is a border town and Pakistan is just a few kilometers away from there. The Muslims of Jaisalmer can hardly be distinguished from Hindus culturally or linguistically. It has no history of communal violence either. Yet the BJP rule in Rajasthan gave Phillip to communal forces in the area.
On October 24 communal tension erupted in Shravasti town near Bahraich in U.P. when meat pieces were found inside a mosque. The Muslims of the town blocked the road and threw stones and attacked vehicles. The protestors blocked the Bahraich-Shravasti road for hours and tried to torch buses. According to the police, people noticed pieces of meat near the mosque but when they entered the gate of the mosque they found more pieces of meat and in no time some 500 people gathered shouting slogans and demanding arrest of those responsible. Some people of the town had dispute with members of minority community and they might have left pieces of meat inside the mosque. Some 14 persons were identified.
This was, in short, the account of communal violence in the year 2009. In all during 2009 23 lives were lost and 73 people injured. It is very difficult to estimate loss of properties but undoubtedly public and private properties put together it would run into hundreds of crores of rupees. Also, it would be observed that riots took place in U.P., Bihar, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka, M.P., Assam and Gujarat.
However, there were no riots in West Bengal, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Also, very few riots took place in this year in Gujarat and maximum riots took place in Maharashtra. This year hardly any riot was reported from Baroda in Gujarat which is highly communally sensitive state. Thus we can say while there is some improvement in Gujarat in terms of occurrence of communal violence in Maharashtra we witness no such improvement.
The government in Maharashtra is secular but has no political will to curb activities of the Shiv Sena. Shiv Seainiks can get away with anything. Also the Shiv Sena mouthpiece continues to be highly abrasive and no law applies to it. About Gujarat touch communal violence has gone down but not communalization. Since 2002 riots brought great disgrace to Narendra Modi he is unwilling, at least for the present, to have more communal violence but there is hardly any let up in communalization and polarization on the basis of religion. The great divide between Hindus and Muslims continues to be what it was in 2002 and Gujarat continues to be Hindutva laboratory.
It is also to be noted as pointed out earlier, there has been no major communal disaster after 2002 except in Kandhamal in Orissa. However, there is one difference that in Orissa BJP was a junior partner in Government and though it could inflict communal damage once in Kandhamal, the process could not continue as in Gujarat. Navin Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Orissa realized his mistake in allying with the BJP and he broke with it after the Kandhmal riots. This rupture stopped the process of Hinduization of Orissa.
However, in Gujarat, BJP was the real boss and hence after 2002 there was no such rupture and hence the process of communalization remained steady. If communalization goes on communal violence can be organized when needed. Communal violence cannot go on, on major scale for obvious reasons. And in U.P. and Bihar, the two states of Hindi belt which often witnessed major riots during eighties, communal politics there was seriously weakened due to emergence of caste-based parties there like Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal (United) etc.
There has been great change in power equation in the Hindi belt though small skirmishes continue there. Tamil Nadu and Kerala were always dominated by caste and left politics respectively. But in both the states there was eruption of communal violence temporarily. In Tamil Nadu the Hindu Munnani, an OBC party experienced a temporary rise after conversion to Islam in Meenakshipuram and because of clashes between OBC and Dalits. However, communal politics could not be sustained on a long term basis.
In Kerala too RSS tried to find its foothold in a section of society which was left out of power equations. It did succeed to some extent and apart from clashes between RSS and CPM, riots occurred between Hindus and Muslims also but only on few occasions. Assam though not a communal prone state but after ASSU movement in early eighties the Rajasthani business community there felt highly insecure and hence brought in RSS and communalized polity to some extent. However, it succeeds in engineering communal violence here and there but it is difficult to sustain communal discourse in Assam also for historical, cultural and linguistic reasons.
All this abundantly proves that communalism is a political and not a religious phenomenon and that communal graph goes up and down depending on political dynamics of a region. It gives us hope that bewildering diversity of Indian society cannot sustain communal violence on long term basis. If communal violence erupts it is more because of weakness of secular forces than the strength of communal forces.
Secular parties often loose courage and political will in the face of communal onslaught at certain junctures. If secular parties show courage and strong political will there is no reason communalism will have long lease of life.
UK warned against profiling Muslim travellers
By IRNA,
London : Prime Minister Gordon Brown was warned Saturday by one of the founders of a government-funded counter-extremism think-tank that profiling Muslim travellers at British airports would be “wrong, flawed, and will make matters worse.”
“This mindset not only fails to understand that most Muslims around the world detest al-Qaeda, but this outlook also cannot comprehend how terrorists are always one step ahead of the game,” said Ed Husain, who helped to create the Quilliam Foundation.
“The profiling of ordinary Muslims not only opens other avenues for al-Qaeda, but results in the harassment and potential loss of support from the very people we need on our side to contain al-Qaeda: ordinary Muslims,” Husain warned.
In his New Year message, Brown announced an urgent review of airport security would be made after the latest alleged attempt to blow up a transatlantic jet on Christmas Day, prompting fears that British Muslims will be singled out for increasing security checks.
He said new detection techniques would be considered for UK airports including the use of full body scanners travellers but because of the costs, it is expected that passengers will be selected for enhanced checks based on race, religion and ethnicity.
Britain’s two million Muslim community already faces intense surveillance under the government’s counter-terrorism policies, including being disproportionately singled out in police stop-and-searches.
Husein described the failed attack at Detroit airport as “a much-needed excuse for some agenda-driven American ideologues to demand opening ‘new fronts’ in the ‘war on terror’.”
“Time and again, from September 11 to the attempted Detroit-bound airline attack last week, there are Saudi fingerprints – ideological and practical – on terrorist attacks and yet western powers stab in the dark," he said in an article for the Guardian newspaper.
The Quilliam Foundation has been largely discredited since being set up in 2007 by members of Hizb ut-Tahrir, arguing for the creation of a new “Western Islam” and subsequently receiving government funding.
London : Prime Minister Gordon Brown was warned Saturday by one of the founders of a government-funded counter-extremism think-tank that profiling Muslim travellers at British airports would be “wrong, flawed, and will make matters worse.”
“This mindset not only fails to understand that most Muslims around the world detest al-Qaeda, but this outlook also cannot comprehend how terrorists are always one step ahead of the game,” said Ed Husain, who helped to create the Quilliam Foundation.
“The profiling of ordinary Muslims not only opens other avenues for al-Qaeda, but results in the harassment and potential loss of support from the very people we need on our side to contain al-Qaeda: ordinary Muslims,” Husain warned.
In his New Year message, Brown announced an urgent review of airport security would be made after the latest alleged attempt to blow up a transatlantic jet on Christmas Day, prompting fears that British Muslims will be singled out for increasing security checks.
He said new detection techniques would be considered for UK airports including the use of full body scanners travellers but because of the costs, it is expected that passengers will be selected for enhanced checks based on race, religion and ethnicity.
Britain’s two million Muslim community already faces intense surveillance under the government’s counter-terrorism policies, including being disproportionately singled out in police stop-and-searches.
Husein described the failed attack at Detroit airport as “a much-needed excuse for some agenda-driven American ideologues to demand opening ‘new fronts’ in the ‘war on terror’.”
“Time and again, from September 11 to the attempted Detroit-bound airline attack last week, there are Saudi fingerprints – ideological and practical – on terrorist attacks and yet western powers stab in the dark," he said in an article for the Guardian newspaper.
The Quilliam Foundation has been largely discredited since being set up in 2007 by members of Hizb ut-Tahrir, arguing for the creation of a new “Western Islam” and subsequently receiving government funding.
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