MINORITIES: MUSLIMS - 2015
Transcript of MINORITIES: MUSLIMS - 2015
MINORITIES: MUSLIMS - 2015 January to December – 2015
Compiled By Fr. Paul G Documentation Centre∗
Gujarat Police make ‘dummy terrorists’ shout pro-Islamic slogan in mock drill (7)
Ahmedabad: A video of police mock drill showing dummy militants shouting pro-Islamic slogan emerged
on Thursday in Gujarat, a day after controversy erupted over men, playing the part of terrorists, being
made to wear skullcaps in a similar exercise in Surat. Reacting to the Surat episode that came to light on
Wednesday, Chief Minister Anandi Patel admitted it as a “mistake” to show people posing as terrorists in
the drill in skullcaps. The latest video is of another anti-terror mock drill at Narmada dam site in Kevadia
area of Narmada district. It shows policemen holding two dummy terrorists who were shouting “take our
lives, if you want. Islam Zindabad (long live Islam)”. When contacted by PTI, Narmada Superintendent of
Police Jaypalsinh Rathore said an inquiry will be conducted into the issue. “I came to know about this
incident (of projecting terrorists as Muslims) through media. If such an incident has happened, we will
conduct an inquiry and take necessary actions against those responsible,” he said. “The mock drill was a
routine police exercise which was conducted a week ago in Kevadia area,” Rathore added. As the Surat
episode generated controversy and invited criticism from several quarters, including from the chief of
Gujarat BJP Minority Cell, Patel told a TV channel it is wrong to link religion with terrorism. “It’s wrong to
link religion with terrorism. The issue has been resolved and the matter should be put to rest now. The
mistake has been rectified,” she said. The anti-terror drills were conducted ahead of the two high-profile
events being held in the state – Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (January 7 to 9) and Vibrant Gujarat Investors
Summit (January 11 to 13) – both in Gandhinagar. (Indian Express 1/1/15)
Muslims must stop demanding reservation: Najma Heptullah (7)
MUMBAI: Union minister for minority affairs Najma Heptullah said on Saturday that Muslims should stop
demanding reservation and should, instead, concentrate on empowering themselves with education and
skills. On her second trip to the city after she joined the Narendra Modi-led cabinet, she was speaking the
media and Muslim activists at Sahyadri Guest House, Malabar Hill, on Saturday, Heptullah said, "I have
always maintained that reservation is a crutch, which saps the energy to face challenges. Muslims will not
get reservation as the Constitution doesn't allow quota on religious ground. I am a Muslim and a woman.
Did I ever need reservation? The same applies to my fellow community members," said Heptullah,
claiming ignorance of the grounds on which the BJP government in the state has brought in a bill for
Maratha reservation (16%) while keeping mum on the 5% Muslim reservation in government jobs and
education declared by the Congress-NCP government. "I reiterate that Muslims should not waste time
and energy, demanding quota as it is mere tokenism," she said. She, however, promised to convey the
disappointment of Muslims to the Maharashtra CM and the PM . Heptuallh said that of 7 lakh Wakf
properties across the country, Maharashtra alone has 30,000. "If fully utilized, Wakf properties will
generate around Rs 20,000 crore annually which can make the community self-reliant," she said.
Heptuallh announced the regional offices of National Minorities Development Finance Corporation which
will undertake skill training of minorities. She said her department plans to set up a western regional office
in Mumbai to take centre's schemes to the beneficiaries in this part of the country. (Times of India 4/1/15)
∗ This is a collection of previously published news and views from the print as well as the electronic media, whose reference
marked at the end of each news items. Department of Documentation and Library (DDL) of the Indian Social Institute, New
Delhi neither claims to the veracity of the facts in the news nor subscribes to the views expressed.
After communal row, Hindus, Muslims join hands, demand justice for each other (7)
Agra: From the communal cauldron of UP, here's a heartwarming story of Hindu-Muslim amity. Nai ki
Mandi was the site of violence during the Barawafat procession on Sunday, to mark the birthday of
Prophet Mohammad. On Tuesday, however, Hindus and Muslims rallied together in the area. While
Muslim shopkeepers urged police to release the two Hindus arrested on Sunday, Hindus gathered at the
spot to demand proper security for Muslim shopkeepers. This show of solidarity even moved the cops
who decided to release the arrested shopkeepers late in the evening. Tension had prevailed in the area
on Sunday when a scuffle broke out between two groups after a dangling electricity wire allegedly
touched a vehicle in the Barawafat procession. While one group alleged that the wire was deliberately
kept loose with the intention of interrupting the procession, the other group claimed that it was because of
the procession that electricity wires in the city got disturbed. The situation worsened when a few
miscreants started pelting stones. Police had to intervene and FIRs were duly lodged against almost 500
persons for rioting and breach of peace. However, on Tuesday, the area presented a picture of communal
amity that would have moved even a die-hard skeptic. Over 300 people, both Hindus and Muslims, joined
hands to demand justice for each other. Muslim shopkeepers met senior police officials and requested
them to release the two Hindu businessmen, Haresh Singh, a cable TV operator and PD Gupta, a
jeweler, claiming they were innocent. "Those who started the violence were outsiders. They took their
procession inside our market and created a ruckus. As far as we are concerned, police have arrested our
innocent brothers and we will not rest till we get them released," said Shabbir Quadri, president of the Nai
ki Mandi market association. Endorsing his sentiments, Yamin Warsi, another shopkeeper, added, "We
have been working in the Nai ki Mandi area for several years but there has never been a fight between
Hindus and Muslims. There are some 300 shops in the market of which 70% are owned by Hindus and
30% by Muslims. Our president is a Muslim while other senior members are Hindus. We will continue to
fight for our brothers till they get bail." In reciprocation, Hindu shopkeepers organized a sit-in in the market
demanding better security for Muslim shopkeepers. "Police should ensure that Muslims in the area do not
feel threatened," said Manish Agarwal, a shop owner from the area. Added Navendu, another
shopkeeper, "Already their festival has been spoilt due to the ruckus and now their business is also
getting hit as shops have been closed for the past two days. We feel strongly for them." (Times of India
6/1/15)
Muslim clerics, activists slam Yakub Qureshi's 'Rs 51cr reward' statement (7)
NEW DELHI: Muslim clerics and activists have slammed ex-Uttar Pradesh minister Yakub Qureshi's
statement saying he would reward Rs 51 crore to terrorists who attacked Charlie Hebdo office. "We
condemn Qureshi's statement and people like him should be put behind the bars," said cleric Maulana
Mohammad Sajid Rashidi. Community leaders say such remarks are made for publicity and defame
Muslims. Some are planning to issue a memorandum against politicians who give such statements and
do 'disservice' to the community. Muslim clerics underlined Islam never allows anyone to kill and instead
talks about peace. "It's a very irresponsible statement and a crime in itself. There is no purpose for the
said sensational statement except to gain publicity,'' said All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat president
Zafarul-Islam Khan. "The government should take notice of this statement and ask Qureshi about the
source of such huge amount of money and how the same will be remitted outside the country.''He said
Qureshi should be punished as his offer is a crime and seeks to reward and promote another crime.
Activist Abdul Khaliq said Qureshi announced a reward for the killers rather than condemning the attack
on the French magazine and loss of lives. "Such statements are more atrocious than the attack," he said.
"People who give hate speeches, sensational statements must be boycotted by the community as these
are against the basic tenets of Islam.''All India Shia Personal Law Board spokesman Maulana Yasoob
Abbas called Qureshi's statement "childish" and sought strict action against him failing which such
elements would feel emboldened. (Times of India 10/1/15)
Centre urged to raise govt. quota for Haj (7)
Indi (Vijayapura district): Regretting that many poor Muslims were deprived of affordable Haj pilgrimage
owing to a strong lobby of private agencies, Minister for Haj, Infrastructure and Information R. Roshan
Baig said he has urged External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to reduce the private quota and increase
government quota for Haj pilgrims. Addressing presspersons after laying the foundation stone for the Post
Matriculation Hostel for Boys of Minorities at Indi town on Monday, he said private agents used their
influence to keep a major chunk of the Haj quota. “These private agents charge exorbitant fee which only
rich people can afford. The government should reduce the private quota to a minimum and add that to
government quota, which would enable more poor and middle class people to visit the holy place,” he
said. Mr. Baig said he has urged Home Minister and directed the top police officials to register cases of
cheating against any private agency found to be cheating innocent pilgrims. The Minister said the State
government was ready to share Rs. 50 crore as land-levelling charge for the long-pending development
of airport at Vijayapura city if the Airport Authority of India (AAI) started working on the project. He said
that during the recent meeting convened by Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju in New Delhi,
the State government urged the Union government to expedite all airport projects in the State. (The Hindu
13/1/15)
Muslim population grows 24%, slower than previous decade (7)
NEW DELHI: The latest census data on the population of religious groups, set to be released shortly,
shows a 24% rise in the Muslim population between 2001 and 2011, with the community's share of total
population rising from 13.4% to 14.2% over the 10-year period. While the growth rate of the Muslim
population has slowed from around 29% between 1991 and 2001, it is still higher than the national
average of 18% for the decade. The data accessed by TOI showed that the most rapid rise in the share of
Muslims in the total population was witnessed in Assam. Muslims constituted 30.9% of the state's
population in 2001, but accounted for a 34.2% share a decade later. The state has had a persisting
problem of the illegal influx of Bangladeshi immigrants. West Bengal, another state where illegal
immigration from Bangladesh has been an old phenomenon, has also registered a rise in the share of
Muslims in total population from 25.2% in 2001 to 27% in 2011, a growth of 1.9 percentage points over
the 10 years, more than double the national average. Uttarakhand, significantly, has also reported a
sharp rise in the share of Muslim population from 11.9% to 13.9%, a growth of 2 percentage points
against the countrywide growth of 0.8 percentage points between 2001 and 2011. Other states with a
significant rise in the share of Muslims in the total population as per the 2011 census were Kerala (from
24.7% to 26.6%), Goa (6.8% to 8.4%), Jammu & Kashmir (67% to 68.3%), Haryana (5.8% to 7%) and
Delhi (11.7% to 12.9%)…. (Times of India 22/1/15)
‘Muslims are not terrorists but proud Indians’ (7)
HYDERABAD: "Muslims are proud Indians. They are neither terrorists nor from different country." This
was the message conveyed by the Telugu Muslim poets on the final day of the Hyderabad Literary
Festival on Monday. Taking a different take on what he said was a wrong portrayal of Muslims, Telugu
poet Khaja condemned the Centre's decision to invite American President Barack Obama for the
Republic Day. "To invite a man who has worked towards portraying Muslims as terrorists as a chief guest
on Republic Day is a matter of huge disappointment for Muslims across the country. We are not
terrorists," Khaja claimed. Khadar Mohiudeen, a poet who has been composing verses against Hindu
hegemony, further enhanced Khaja's point of view with his poem 'Birthmark'. "Cricket matches weigh and
measure my patriotism. Never mind my love for my motherland, what's important is how much I hate the
other land," he recited with a hint of irony. Representing over 200 Muslim Telugu poets from the city, the
bards brought up issues like identity crisis and caste divide amongst Muslims. Throwing light on the
struggle within the Telugu Muslim poets, renowned poet Yakoob explained their struggle for identity. "We
who call our mothers amma, never knew she was supposed to be called ammijaan. Abba, abbajaan,
Papa - that's how fathers are to be called, we're told. How would we know - our ayyas never taught us
that," recited Yakoob from his poem titled 'Awwal Kalima'. Yakoob, a dalit Muslim himself, expounded on
the state of lower Muslim castes of Laddafs, Dudekulas, Kasabs and Pinjaris through his poetry. (Times
of India 27/1/15)
Hyderabad's Muslim groups launch 'Eradication of evils' drive (7)
Hyderabad: Muslim leaders and organisations from various schools of thought came together on a
common platform to launch a campaign here to eradicate evils from the society. The eight-day
"Eradication of evils" campaign was launched with a public meeting here Sunday night. Addressing a
huge gathering of men and women at Khilwat Ground in the old city, the Islamic scholars voiced concern
over the fast spreading evils like alcohol, drug addiction, interest, dowry, and immorality. The speakers
called on all Muslims, especially the youth, to not only protect themselves from this "flood of evils" but
also save others by participating in such movements. Expressing concern over misuse of social
networking sites by youth to indulge in immoral activities, they felt that instead of using technology as a
tool for development, the new generation itself has become a tool in the hands of such sites. They
underlined the need to evolvr a mechanism with the participation of all to help poor Muslims and thus
save them from exploitation by financers. Renowned Islamic scholar Maulana Mufti Sadiq Mohiuddin
Faheem, who presided over the meeting, advised parents to ensure that their children are educated and
trained in accordance with the teachings of the Holy Quran. Khaja Arifuddin, president of Jamaat-e-Islami,
Andhra Pradesh and Odisha units, said that the Quran describes Muslim ummah as the best nation
produced for mankind, who enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. He said it was high time that the
community realised its responsibility and worked to fulfil it. M.K.M. Zafar, president of Jamaat's Greater
Hyderabad unit, said they made the campaign a collective effort by involving all sects of the community.
During the campaign, Jamaat would organise various programmes for college students and youth and
create awareness against the evils.(Business Standard 2/2/15)
ISIS are murderers and rapists, have to be condemned: Owaisi (7)
HYDERABAD: Condemning the deadly deeds of ISIS, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday
said the activities of the terror group have nothing to do with the religion of Islam. "What they have done
so far, all the Islamic scholars of various schools of thought have condemned it. They have raped people,
killed people. Not only killed, in a bloody way, they have decapitated bodies, they have cut heads. They
have burnt a person. "These are nothing to do with Islam or teachings of Islam. They have to be
condemned. They are bloody murderers and rapists," the Hyderabad MP told reporters here. As for some
youth from Hyderabad reportedly trying to join ISIS, Owaisi said none can break law and that the youth
should speak to religious scholars. Owaisi was speaking at a press conference held here in connection
with the "centenary death anniversary" of Hazrat Anwarullah Farooqui, founder of Jamia Nizamia, a 144-
year-old institution of Islamic studies. As part of the events, a seminar would be held on February 14 and
15 and a public meeting on March 20, organisers said. (Times of India 5/2/15)
Kiran Bedi writes to Election Commission over ‘fatwa’ (7)
New Delhi: After a humiliating defeat in the Delhi Assembly polls, BJP CM candidate Kiran Bedi has
written to the Election Commission saying fatwas impact the freedom of choice to vote. On Wednesday,
Ms Bedi blamed the “fatwa” by Jama Masjid Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari appealing to Muslims to
support AAP for her defeat in the BJP’s traditional stronghold of Krishna Nagar in East Delhi and sought a
probe into it by the poll panel. She said the Election Commission should inquire the issue to find out
whether the Shahi Imam’s appeal to Muslims a day before the polls had any impact on the electoral
outcome. Ms Bedi claimed that though she was leading in the vote count, her vote share started dropping
when counting of votes in a Muslim-dominated area of her constituency was taken up. “I was told that
during the vote count in Krishna Nagar I was leading, but when the counting of votes of the area where
the fatwa might have an impact was carried out, it started to drop,” Ms Bedi said, adding, “I lost by 2,000
votes when the counting reached that area.” A day ahead of the polls, Shahi Imam Bukhari appealed to
Muslims to vote for AAP but the party promptly rejected the offer. Though it was an appeal by Bukhari,
several BJP leaders called it a “fatwa”. “Fatwa means a diktat, a directive, it also means a hukumnama in
a way. EC should examine whether fatwas issued last minute before the elections are good for the
democratic process or not,” said Ms Bedi. However, the comments of the former IPS officer drew instant
criticism from the Congress camp. “BJP saw a downfall (sic) since the day Kiran Bedi was nominated,”
Congress leader J.P. Aggarwal said, dismissing her “fatwa” remark. Ms Bedi’s statements were noticed
on Tuesday after the results were announced, when she said, “I have not lost. I gave it all my best. Let
the BJP introspect. They will assess for themselves.” This after she took full responsibility for the poll
debacle. (Asian Age 12/2/5)
U.P. villagers reject communal politics (7)
Nayagaon Akbarpur Chhendri (Kanth), A loudspeaker was installed in a small temple at Kanth in
Moradabad last Friday. Muslim and Hindu villagers sat together with the local authorities and agreed to
install it for a few days on the occasion of Mahashivratri. What happened in just an hour of discussion
would have appeared “almost impossible” a few months ago, the villagers said. They spoke of the “mutual
distrust” between the two communities and attempts of political players to polarise the region over the
issue. Last June, the situation became tense after BJP workers violently protested against the removal of
the loudspeaker by the administration, which acted on complaints registered by a member of the minority
community. Tragically, during the protests, the then Moradabad District Magistrate Chandrakant lost
vision in one eye. Residents of Kanth, where Dalits and Muslims live in a closely knit society, told The
Hindu that political players in the region were trying to polarise the village by engaging in “competitive
communal politics” ahead of the by-polls in western Uttar Pradesh in September. Alok, a scrap seller on
the outskirts of the village, felt quite strongly about the peace of the village being a “casualty” in the
aftermath of the controversy. “The issue of loudspeaker over a temple or a mosque is a simple issue that
we could have sorted out had the political parties not jumped and made it a Hindu-Muslim issue,” he said.
Despite being a high-school dropout, Alok said he was “wise enough” to see that political parties tried to
cash in on the controversy. “You must notice the fact that no political leader visits the village once the by-
polls were over in September last year,” he added. Moradbad MP Kunwar Sarvesh Kumar Singh of the
BJP had promised the Dalit community, which worships in the temple, to ensure that the temple got a
permanent loudspeaker, Alok said. Mr. Singh along with other BJP MPs and Anisurrahman — the local
MLA from the Peace Party, a relatively new political outfit — were at the forefront of an agitation against
the decision to remove the loudspeaker. The BJP also planned to organise a Mahapanchayat over the
issue, but the local administration banned it, leading to the protests in which Mr. Chandrakant lost sight in
one of his eyes. (The Hindu 15/2/15)
Muslim clerics pose six questions to RSS (7)
KANPUR: A delegation of Muslim clerics led by the Sunni Ulema Council's general secretary met RSS
functionary Indresh and posed six questions to the Sangh including whether it has prepared a format to
turn India into a Hindu 'rashtra', which he claimed left the saffron outfit irritated. The Muslim delegation
claimed that Indresh refused to answer their questions and instead said that a conference of Muslim
organisations should be called where he would give the answers. "We had a meeting with senior RSS
functionary Indreshji last night during which we asked six questions, but he did not have any answer,"
Sunni Ulema Council general secretary Haji Mohammed Salees said on Tuesday. He alleged that
Indreshji, who is pracharak and looks after minority affairs in the organisation, got "irritated" with the
questions. "Our first question was whether RSS considers India a Hindu country. The second one was
whether RSS has prepared a format to turn India into a Hindu 'rashtra'. The third one was whether this
Hindu 'rashtra' will be according to Hindu religious texts or RSS has chalked out a new philosophy," he
said. Salees said, "The fourth question was what they want on religious conversion. The fifth one was
what type of 'rashtra prem' (patriotism) RSS wants from Muslims. The sixth one was how RSS views
Islam," he said. He said that these were the six questions which Indreshji "failed" to answer. "They (RSS)
did not have any format. They are shouting about 'Hindu rashtra' only on the basis of propaganda," he
alleged. Salees feared that if Hindu rashtra was built on Hindu texts, Dalits could once again not be
allowed to enter temples. "We asked whether a new philosophy has been chalked out by RSS. If a new
philosophy has been chalked out that means Hindu religion is not religious culture. In that case, anyone
can convert," he said. Salees said when the Constitution provides freedom of religion, why is the RSS
afraid of bringing a bill. "We are not afraid. If any Muslim does not like Islam and wants to leave, he can
go. We don't have any law to keep anyone Muslim by compulsion," he said. Salees said as far as love for
the country was concerned their ancestors rejected Jinnah and Pakistan. "In 1947, when the concept of
two countries was decided, our ancestors rejected Jinnah and Pakistan and accepted Gandhiji as our
leader, India as our country and expressed faith in the Constitution," he said. "What do they want from the
Muslims? They should sing Vande Matram and bow before the picture of Bharat Mata, which they have
visualized? We won't accept it. It is against Islam," he said. "The ultimate result of the 90-minute meeting
was they (RSS) asked us to call a 'sammelan' of Muslims and they will reply (to our posers)," Salees said.
"I said that when you cannot answer these questions in a room, then how will you do so in a conference.
We then asked as to why should we call a conference," he said. Salees said there was restlessness
among Muslims over these issues and "I came to take reply to these questions being raised in our
community." "I believe whatever be our religion, we should be honest towards the Constitution. Religion is
our personal thing. It is not an issue of the nation. We don't even support the statements of All India
Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisi. "Those flaring communal passion are not
loyal to the country. The country will run on the principles of Gandhiji, it will not run on the statements of
Owaisi or Sangh," he added. Meanwhile, a city cleric, who skipped a meeting between Indresh and a
delegation of Muslim leaders on Monday night, said there "was no point" in meeting a representative and
that he would only meet RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat to highlight issues pertaining to their community.
"Salees had called me for the meeting but I have already met Indresh before and there was no point in
meeting him again. I will respond to the request of a meeting only if Bhagwat will call us," city cleric Alam
Raja Noori said. "If we had met Bhagwat, we would have put forth our issues with their agenda of a Hindu
nation. Talking with Indresh about our concerns will not affect organisation's perspective," he said. The
cleric further said he was out of town when the meeting took place but even if he were here he wouldn't
have met Indresh. Meanwhile, Salees said Noori's name was not included in the list of members who
were to meet the RSS functionary and was only added later. Elaborating on the meeting, Salees said, on
being questioned by Indresh on their alleged silence over remarks by AIMIM Asaduddin Owaisi, the
delegation told him that Owaisi does not represent the views of the community. Equating him with the
likes of BJP MPs Sakshi Maharaj and Sadhvi Nirajan Jyoti, Salees said, "Owaisi is "just a Member of
Parliament". (Times of India 17/2/15)
Muslim trusts want custody of campus (7)
Mumbai: The recent announcement by Ravindra Waikar, minister of state for higher and technical
education, of setting up an educational hub on the Ismail Yusuf College campus at Jogeshwari has
prompted activists and Muslim trusts to protest against the minister’s proposal by forming a group that will
not only stop the government from going ahead with their plans but also get custody of the campus.
Announcing the decision on Saturday, the group named Ismail Yusuf Campus Bachao Samiti said that
they were against an aggressive protest. The samiti consists of Dr Zaheer Kazi, president of Anjuman-i-
Islam Trust, social activists like Sudheendra Kulkarni, Anil Tyagi, Prabhakar Narkar and Kishore Jagtap
who work on issues related to students and people from the minorities and backward classes and MLA
Kapil Patil. “Our demand is that as the government has failed to fulfil the purpose of providing facilities to
encourage higher education amongst Muslim youth, it should hand over the custody and management of
the campus to a Muslim trust so that it can achieve the vision of Sir Mohammad Ismail Yusuf who had
donated Rs 30 lakh to the governor of Mumbai in 1914 to set up educational facilities for Muslim youth
and minorities,” said Dr Kazi. Activist Kulkarni said “We appeal to the government of Maharashtra to
immediately stop its plans to encroach upon land belonging to Ismail Yusuf College, which was donated
by a Muslim philanthropist for Muslim education,” said Mr Kulkarni. Speaking about the issue, MLC Patil
said that as both the Sachar Committee and Mehmood-ur-Rehman committee had pointed to lack of
education as the main reason for the backwardness of Muslims, the government should hand over the
custody of the college campus to a Muslim trust so that the land could be properly used for the intended
purpose. (Asian Age 22/2/15)
Over 180 million Muslims in India but they are not part of global terror groups: Govt (7)
New Delhi: The government might not have officially released the religious data of Census 2011, but in a
presentation before an international delegation in the United States it said that over 180 million Muslims
were living in India, constituting 14.88 per cent of the total population. It also asserted that despite a large
Muslim population in India, there was hardly any case of the community members joining violent pan-
Islamic groups. Representing India at the White House hosted Summit to Counter Violent Extremism last
week, Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) chief RN Ravi told a delegation, where representatives from 60
countries were present, that “the usual alienation of minorities is not valid in the Indian context. Going by
the usual definition of minority, their population is over 260 million i.e over 21 per cent of India’s
population. There are over 180 million Muslims in India.” The data given by the government at an
international platform assumes significance after US President Barack Obama, during his India visit, said:
“India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along the lines of religious faith, as long as it is not
splintered along any lines, and it is unified as one nation.” Due to various political considerations, the
religious data of Census 2011 were never released by the UPA government. When the NDA government
came to power, they decided to release the religious data, which still has not been done. The Indian
Express reported on January 24 that Hindus comprised 78.35 per cent of the total population of 121.05
crore, compared with 80.45 per cent of the total population in 2001. In absolute terms, Muslim population
increased 24.4 per cent to 17.18 crore from 13.8 crore during 2001-11. Muslims were 13.4 per cent of the
total population in 2001. Ravi also told the delegation: “The recently held elections in Jammu and Kashmir
– a Muslim majority state of the Indian Union – in which over 65 per cent electorate peacefully cast their
votes is a testimony of its success story.” He further said, “India’s response to violent extremism is
calibrated in a way that prevents disproportionate use of force by the state.” On the other hand, one of the
civil society representatives from Pakistan told the delegation: “At least 26 terrorist organisations
operating in Pakistan like Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Taliban, Haqqani network had
people in leadership roles who came from madrasa background. The government had to go into the root
cause of this and reform madrasa education.” (Indian Express 24/2/15)
Village tense after Adityanath’s outfit enters land row, ‘150 Muslim families leave homes’ (7)
Lucknow: Tension prevailed in Madhopur village in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar district after 150 Muslim
families reportedly left their homes Monday, fearing a backlash from BJP MP Yogi Adityanath’s outfit
Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV) over a land dispute. Heavy police force including PAC personnel have been
deployed in the village to prevent any disturbance. Kushinagar additional district magistrate Ram Kewal
Tiwari admitted that there is tension in the village. “It is a property dispute. There was a minor clash and
we deployed PAC. HYV is active in this region and they often hold meetings, but we handle the situation,”
Tiwari claimed. He, however, denied that Muslims have left the village. HYV held a meeting at Madhopur
on Monday to show solidarity with the village’s Hindus following a property dispute. The outfit has
reportedly given call for a Hindu mahapanchayat on March 3 if its demand of handing over possession of
a 1.5-acre disputed plot to a Hindu villager is not met. “We had gone there to show solidarity with our
worker Digvijay Kishore Shahi who was assaulted by a Muslim when he resisted their move to grab his
land. Since the Muslims have done wrong, they have fled. We are not responsible,” Sunil Singh, state
president of HYV said. He added: “Digvijay owns that land. The district administration admitted it but
refused to hand him the possession before Holi claiming that communal atmosphere will be vitiated. We
cannot wait for that long. On March 3, we will hold a Hindu mahapanchayat”. Locals said the issue
erupted following a land dispute between Digvijay Kishore Shahi and another villager Ameen. The 1.5
acre plot belonging to the gram panchayat is close to the village and both groups are staking claim to it.
On February 13, a clash broke out between the two groups. Muslims claimed that nearly 1,000 HYV
workers attacked them. The district administration deployed PAC and a case was registered on Shahi’s
complaint. Two Muslim men were arrested. “We continued to stay in our village after the incident. But,
HYV announced a big meeting on February 23. We sought help of local administration but no one came
forward,” Aurangzeb (22) said. Social worker Mohammad Anwar Siddiqui said: “Police told villagers told
to leave the village before the HYV.” Aurangzeb said Muslims left the village on February 22 to avoid
confrontations. He added that the HYV meeting was attended by nearly 1,500 workers, including state
president Sunil Singh. Provocative speeches were delivered during the meeting. The Muslims are yet to
return home, he claimed. (Indian Express 25/2/15)
Centre’s scheme for madrassas lost in translation (7)
NEW DELHI: The NDA government had allocated Rs 100 crore for modernization of madrassas in the
last budget while the erstwhile UPA government had earmarked Rs 182.5 crore for the same in 2013-14.
However, a lack of awareness about the scheme and language barrier seem to have prevented a majority
of madrassas from availing its benefits. According to an RTI application filed by NGO Zakat Foundation in
2013, only 2,800 madrassas benefitted from the central scheme. The reason for many not availing the
benefits was because information about the scheme had not been translated into Urdu from English. "The
scheme has been there since 1996 but the funds have been curtailed over the years. There is a lack of
awareness—not many know about the scheme as it's not properly advertized. Madrassas are going for an
image makeover and apart from the religious teaching, education is imparted there," said Zafar Mehmood
of Zakat Foundation. According to people associated with Madrassa committees, most of these institutes
are community-funded. Some of the community heads believe that Rs 100 crore is a mere tokenism and
is not sufficient even for all Madrassas in Delhi. "There are 33,000 madrassas in India, according to the
Sachar committee report and many more must have come up by now. And this amount is too small to
strengthen and modernize all the institutes. Madrassas are just like any other schools which need an
investment of at least Rs 1 crore," said Zafrul Islam Khan of All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat.
However, many argue that till the time these institutes aren't recognized and affiliated to any education
board, modernization will not help. (Times of India 27/2/15)
Shiv Sena to Muslims: For special treatment, go to Pakistan (7)
MUMBAI: Hitting out at AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi for demanding reservation for Muslims in
Maharashtra, Shiv Sena on Tuesday said that if the minority leader wants his demands to be met on
religious grounds, then he should go to Pakistan and try his antics there. Terming Owaisi's speeches
"hateful", the Sena said that the Devendra Fadnavis government should file a case against him and start
legal proceedings. "(Asaduddin) Owaisi is insisting that Muslims should get reservation akin to the
Marathas. Such insistence had caused the separation of Pakistan from India. Hatred for Hindus
compelled a section of Muslims to take control over Pakistan. Hence Owaisi may try and get his demands
based on religious grounds fulfilled in Pakistan," said an edit piece in the Sena mouthpiece, 'Saamana'. It
added that the minority community will have to respect India as their motherland. "They (minority
community) will have to respect the Uniform Civil Code and stop demanding the continuation of Article
370 for Kashmir. Asking for reservations while continuing with religious rants will not work," it said.
"Owaisi says 'Muslims have suffered a lot and hence I speak up for them'. But will he give a count of the
sufferings of Hindus due to the terrorist activities of extremist Muslims? If extremists start communal
violence and terrorist activities after listening to his speeches... Owaisi's speeches should be termed as
hateful and action should be taken against him," the Sena said. Addressing a public gathering in Nagpur
on Saturday night, Owaisi, the 45-year-old Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad, had demanded reservation
for backward Muslims in government jobs and educational institutes in Maharashtra. Claiming that
"injustice" has been done to Muslims in Maharashtra, Owaisi had blamed the more than 50 years of
Congress rule at the Centre and the Congress-NCP and Shiv Sena -BJP governments in the state for the
prevailing backwardness of minority community members. (Times of India 3/3/15)
Muslim quota gone, Cong to stall session (7)
MUMBAI: The Congress has decided to stall proceedings in both houses of the legislature to protest
against the decision of the BJP-led government to scrap reservation for Muslims. "The budget session of
the state legislature is beginning from March 9. We feel that the BJP government is anti-Muslim, therefore
it allowed the ordinance to provide for reservation to Muslims to lapse. We will stall proceedings in both
the houses to press our demand for reservation to Muslims," newly appointed city Congress unit
president Sanjay Nirupam said recently. A former MP, Nirupam said the erstwhile Congress-NCP
government had provided reservation to Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions, but the
high court scrapped the reservation in jobs while upholding it in educational institutions. He said it was the
responsibility of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to issue a new ordinance to provide for the
reservations, but he allowed the previous reservation ordinance to lapse. On the controversy over the
development plan for the city, Nirupam said people from all walks of life had raised objections on certain
proposals, particularly development of the Aarey Milk Colony land. "We have made it clear to the
municipal commissioner and the chief minister that no decision should be taken in haste and that there
should be wider discussion on the proposals," Nirupam said. Nirupam said he had organized a daylong
workshop on the pros and cons of the proposed development plan on March 20. "We have invited leading
architects, engineers, city planners and nominees of NGOs for discussion on the development plan," he
said. (Times of India 8/3/15)
Maharashtra non-committal on Muslim reservation (25)
MUMBAI: A week after withdrawing 5 per cent reservation for Muslims in jobs and education in
Maharashtra, the State government has remained non-committal on reintroducing the ordinance providing
for the quota in the budget session of the Assembly which will begin from Monday. “The earlier ordinance
was lapsed and we didn’t cancel it. We are in discussion with experts about the issue. A decision will be
taken soon,” said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis addressing a press conference on the eve of the
budget session. To a question whether the government was planning to reintroduce the ordinance, Mr.
Fadnavis said no such decision was taken yet. “There are conflicting orders from the High Court. At the
same time, we are studying a judgment of the Supreme Court on this issue. Any step will be taken only
after consultation,” he said. (The Hindu 10/3/15)
Why foreigners cant pray at Taj mosque, asks Muslim body (7)
AGRA: Taj Mahal Masjid Intezamiya Committee, which claims to make arrangements for namaz in the
monument's mosque, has sought revoking a seven-year-old ban on foreigners offering Friday prayers,
especially from SAARC countries, at the monument. At present, only locals can offer namaz in the
mosque on Friday. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is responsible for Taj Mahal's
maintenance, has refuted the committee's claim of making arrangements for prayers at the Taj's mosque.
It also said that according to rules, only locals who have been traditionally offering namaz at the mosque
could be allowed. The department also. The committee has been raising this issue for many years, and
recently sought information under an RTI query regarding who can offer prayers at Taj. The reply stated
that a 2008 gazette notification mentions Taj will be open on Friday only for those "offering customary
afternoon prayers". The committee contends that it was nowhere written that foreigners cannot offer
prayers. Committee's chairman Syed Munawwar Ali said, "The ASI is discriminating between Indian and
foreign Muslims. Till 2002, foreigners were offering prayers here, but then ASI stopped it citing security
reasons, which is unfair." ASI officials, however, said from the time the Taj Mahal came under its
protection, only those who have been offering namaz have been allowed entry during Friday prayers.
Earlier, Taj Mahal used to be closed on Mondays for tourists and the archaeological body allowed entry to
local Muslims to offer namaz on Fridays. In 2001, the weekly closing day was changed to Friday and
locals were allowed to offer Juma namaz between 12pm and 2 pm. When contacted, ASI superintending
archaeologist N K Pathak said, "No new changes have been made in the rules. As far as foreigners are
concerned, they can offer namaz at two mosques located outside the monument complex at east and
west gates." (Times of India 11/3/15)
Muslims protest to get back collegeMohammed Wajihuddin (7)
MUMBAI: Kicking off its campaign to get the Ismail Yusuf College in Jogeshwari back from government
control, members of the Ismail Yusuf College Campus Bachao Sangharsh Samiti held a demonstration
outside the college on Monday. "The government must remove all encroachments, declare Ismail Yusuf
College a minority institution and hand over the college and its nearly 54 acre land to a suitable Muslim
trust to develop it as a world-class university," said Sudheendra Kulkarni, chairman (Mumbai), Observer
Research Foundation. The protesters announced a massive morcha at Azad Maidan on March 25.
"Today is the formal beginning of our movement. Sir Ismail Yusuf gave Rs 8 lakh in 1914 to set up an
institution of higher learning for Muslims though its doors have been open to all since its inception in
1924," said M A Khalid of the All India Milli Council. Amir Idrisi of the Association of Muslim Professionals
said efforts were made to start a dialogue with the government, but the latter seems adamant to go ahead
with its plan to establish a law university and an educational hub on the college premises. "We are not
against the law university but it should be established elsewhere, not on a piece of land which was bought
with an endowment fund to establish a massive institute of higher learning for Muslims," said Idrisi. He
announced that on Thursday, former Congress MLA Yusuf Abrahni will lead a group of activists to forcibly
occupy the college. Activist Sajid Shaikh said that a series of corner meetings have been planned to
mobilize people for the protest rally at Azad Maidan. (Times of India 17/3/15)
'Ghar wapsi' issue to figure at Muslim Personal Law Board meet (7)
Lucknow: The issue of 'ghar wapsi' programme by some Hindu organisations is likely to figure
prominently in the three-day meet of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) scheduled to be
held in Jaipur from March 20. "The Jamaits and the Board have already clarified their stand on the issue.
It's only a propaganda," AIMLPB General Secretary Maulana Nizamuddin said. He said that though the
matter has not been included in the general agenda, it would be raised in the meeting. "Thought should
be given whether the country will progress or get destroyed. What does this 'ghar wapsi' programme
mean?" he asked. "Tomorrow you will tell Christians to become Hindus, the next day you will tell Muslims
to become Hindus. Is it a joke? It's like insulting the entire community," he said. He said the agenda of the
meeting was general in nature and such contentious issues were not included in it. "It is a secular state
where all communities exist since long," he said. He said a campaign was being carried out against
Muslims, but generally such issues are kept out of the agenda. "But, if some questions crop up, the board
give its reply," he said. To a question, he dismissed as "politics" the ban on beef by the Maharashtra
government. "It's all politics," he said. "Whether it is Maharashtra or Kolkata, not only Muslims, but other
persons also eat beef," he claimed. He said the issue did not pertain to Muslims alone. But, the business
of many persons and companies would be affected due to the ban. (DNA 17/3/15)
All India Muslim Personal Law Board Hits Out at Modi Government, Questions Silence on 'Ghar
Wapasi'
Jaipur: The All India Muslim Personal Law Board today had some strong words for the Narendra Modi
government, as it questioned the Prime Minister's silence on controversial issues, including 'ghar wapasi'
- the campaign to convert Muslims and Christians to Hinduism. "Ever since Modiji came to power, the
Hindutva forces have become stronger," Abdul Rahim Qureshi, the General Secretary, said at the Board's
24th meeting in Jaipur today. "The 'ghar wapasi' programme is gaining ground and the VHP is polarising
the atmosphere and spreading anti-Muslim feelings... Ever since the new government has taken over,
there is a conspiracy to convert the country into a fascist state," Mr Qureshi said. The Board said there
was a need for the government to make all citizens feel secure in an atmosphere where their best
interests were safeguarded. Mr Qureshi also strongly criticised the Rajasthan government's recent
decision to make Surya Namaskar compulsory in all schools, and demanded the withdrawal of the
controversial order. "This is anti-Islam and the government should immediately withdraw the decision.
Islam does not permit for such practice," he said, adding, "This is absolutely wrong to impose such things
on Muslims." "Internal stability is necessary for the peace and development in the country and the
governments, both Central and states, should work in this direction instead of announcing such decision
which affects our religious freedom," Mr Qureshi said. The Board also rejected calls for amendments to
the Muslim personal law, saying such changes struck at the roots of religion. (NDTV 23/3/15)
Muslim population no issue, conversion is, says home minister Rajnath Singh (7)
NEW DELHI: Home minister Rajnath Singh, in comments that would run counter to the line often used by
hardline Hindutva elements, said on Monday he had no issues with the pace of growth of the Muslim
population in the country, but railed against religious conversions and exhorted minorities to take the lead
in pressing for an anti-conversion law. "It does not matter how many Muslims are there. If their population
is increasing, let it increase. We have no issues. But the cycle of conversions must stop," Singh told a
conference of state minority commissions in Delhi. The comments come at a time some hardliners in the
Sangh Parivar have expressed their annoyance at what they allege is the fast pace of growth in the
country's Muslim population and have exhorted Hindus to procreate more to counter this. India's Muslim
population probably rose to 14.2% in 2011 from 13.4% in 2001, the government yet-to-be-released
census data is expected to show. While Singh appeared conciliatory to Muslims, he struck a hard line
against religious conversions — a topic that has of late been sought to be linked with the Christian
community. Members of the Sangh Parivar have in recent weeks sought to link service done by Christian
institutions with religious conversions. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat last month stirred up a controversy
when, referring to conversions, he said there was a "motive" behind the service rendered by Mother
Teresa. Singh appeared to echo similar sentiments. "Why do we do conversions? If we want to do
service, let us do service. But should service be done for the purpose of religious conversion? Cannot we
decide that we will go worldwide to do service but conversion will not be our target but only to serve
humanity?" he asked. "Can't we live without respecting each other's faith. What is the necessity of
conversion. Can't a religion survive without involving in conversion?... People say conversions are done
by people on their own accord...that there is freedom for conversions. Do not do this (conversions). Leave
it," he added. The home minister said he was posing three basic questions. "First, is conversion
necessary? Second, can a religion not survive without conversions? Thirdly, if anybody tries to change
the demographic character of any country, will anyone tolerate it? In US or Europe, if I go and try to
change their demographic character, isn't it a crime on my part? Why should I do this? Let that country's
identity remain. That country has a culture, let it be. Why do we want to change it?" he said. Singh also
blamed the Congress government for creating an "atmosphere of insecurity" among minorities and said
the Narendra Modi government was reversing this. He termed the controversy around 'Ghar Vapasi', or
reconversion of minorities back into the Hindu faith, as "misunderstandings and rumours" and said a
solution needed to be found. The home minister lamented that the majority community had to ask for an
anti-conversion law and not minorities. "In other countries, minorities demand that anti-conversion law
should be made. India is the only country where it is not so. In our country, the state of affairs is such that
we have to say and demand that there should be a debate over anti-conversion law. Why is there such a
state of affairs? It will be good if you think over this and debate it," he said… (Times of India 24/3/15)
Muslim bodies want UP govt to challenge Hashimpura court order (7)
LUCKNOW: Various Muslim organisations, including All India Muslim Personal Law Board, today asked
the Uttar Pradesh government to challenge the verdict of a Delhi court in the 1987 Hashimpura massacre
case in a higher court. Additional sessions judge Sanjay Jindal in his March 21 judgement acquitted 16
Provincial Armed Constabulary personnel of charges related to the killing 42 Muslims who were picked up
from a village in Meerut, giving them benefit of doubt for want of evidence. Jamiat-Ulama-e-Hind would
decide their strategy in their upcoming meeting on March 28 while the Shia Personal Law Board will take
up the matter seriously at its meeting in the second week of April. AIMPLB general secretary Maulana
Nizamuddin alleged that the decision of the lower court, which came 28 years after the massacre, was a
result of failure on the part of the state government. He said the case should have been disposed of in
four- five months but due to "lackadaisical attitude" of the government the case was dragged for 28 years.
The ruling Samajwadi Party, however, said it would take a decision whether to challenge the lower court
order only after reading it thoroughly. "We will go through the order and then only take a view," said
Rajendra Choudhary, SP spokesperson. Nizamuddin said though the lower court had acquitted all the
accused, it had admitted there was a massacre in Hashimpura. "The government should challenge the
order in a higher court," he said. Echoing similar views, spokesman of Shia Personal Law Board Maulana
Yasoob Abbas said the court order has disappointed the family members of the victims. "We will strongly
take up the matter in our executive meeting likely to be held in the second week of next month," he said.
Jamiat-Ulama-e-Hind state chief Ashhad Rashidi also demanded that the government challenge the lower
court order. He said the government which itself accepts that only because of Muslim votes it came to
power, it should strongly take up any matter pertaining to the community. "The matter would be discussed
in Jamiat's Ijlas-e-Aam (biennial conference) on March 28 in Lucknow," he added. (Times of India
26/3/15)
By 2050, India to surpass Indonesia, will have largest Muslim population: Study (7)
WASHINGTON: Hindus will become the world's third largest population by 2050, while India will overtake
Indonesia as the country with the largest Muslim population, according to a new study. According to the
Pew Research Center's religious profile predictions assessed data released on Thursday, the Hindu
population is projected to rise by 34 per cent worldwide, from a little over 1 billion to nearly 1.4 billion by
2050. By 2050, Hindus will be third, making up 14.9 per cent of the world's total population, followed by
people who do not affiliate with any religion, accounting for 13.2 per cent, the report said. The people with
no religious affiliation currently have the third largest share of the world's total population. Muslims are
projected to grow faster than the world's overall population and that Hindus and Christians are projected
to roughly keep pace with worldwide population growth, the report said. "India will retain a Hindu majority
but also will have the largest Muslim population of any country in the world, surpassing Indonesia," it said.
"Over the next four decades, Christians will remain the largest religious group, but Islam will grow faster
than any other major religion," according to the report. The report predicted that by 2050 there will be
near parity between Muslims (2.8 billion, or 30 per cent of the population) and Christians (2.9 billion, or 31
per cent), possibly for the first time in history. There were 1.6 billion Muslims in 2010, compared to 2.17
billion Christians. "The number of Muslims will nearly equal the number of Christians around the world," it
added. If the trend continues, Islam will be the most popular faith in the world after 2070, it said. By 2050,
Muslims will make up about 10 per cent of the Europe's population, up from 5.9 per cent in 2010. Over
the same period, the number of Hindus in Europe is expected to roughly double, from a little under 1.4
million (0.2 per cent of Europe's population) to nearly 2.7 million (0.4 per cent), mainly as a result of
immigration, it said. In North America, the Hindu share of the population is expected to nearly double in
the decades ahead, from 0.7 per cent in 2010 to 1.3 per cent in 2050, when migration is included in the
projection models. Without migration, the Hindu share of the region's population would remain the same.
Buddhism is the only faith that is not expected to increase its followers, due to an ageing population and
stable fertility rates in Buddhist countries, such as China, Japan and Thailand. The projections considered
fertility rates, trends in youth population growth and religious conversion statistics. (Times of India 3/4/15)
PM Modi meets Muslim leaders, vows support (7)
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assured full support to Muslim community to deal with their
grievances particularly related to improving its social condition and educational standing. The PM
expressed his views on Monday during a meeting with a delegation of Muslim leaders which discussed
various socio-economic and political issues related to the community. “The Prime Minister gave a patient
hearing to the delegation and assured them of his full support in meeting grievances of all sections of
Muslim society,” a PMO statement said. The Muslim leaders promised to strengthen communal harmony
and national unity. The PM emphasised the need for empowering Muslim youth to enable them to play a
larger role in the nation building, it added. Mr Modi specifically assured the leaders that he would look into
their grievances on shrines, mosques and madrasas. The PM’s assurance came in wake of the
community leaders bringing to his notice issues related to properties of Muslim shrines, mosques and
madarsas. They also sought the government’s support in providing better facilities to Muslim youth
particularly in the field of education. Mr Modi promised his “complete assistance in ameliorating their
social conditions and addressing their educational requirements”, the statement said. On their part, the
Muslim leaders committed full support of the community to Mr Modi in meeting his objectives of ensuring
speedy economic growth, promoting communal harmony and peace, and strengthening national security,
the statement added. While expressing apprehensions about the trend of increased radicalisation and
emerging threat of terrorism, the leaders underlined the need for greater unity and collective efforts to
meet the challenge. Meanwhile, parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said there was
a lot of misinformation over isolated incidents of attack on some religious places and dismissed the
perception that minorities have become insecure under the NDA government. While addressing a
conference of business leaders here, Mr Naidu said,”Modi aaya sabko insecurity aaya. Haan kuch
political logon ko insecurity aaya. Hum log kya karen? (Since Modi has come, insecurity has come. Yes,
insecurity has come for some political people. What can we do about it?)” Mr Naidu said. Referring to a
“very condemnable” gangrape of a nun in West Bengal, the minister and said there was a lot of “hue and
cry” over it with the incident being linked to “hindutva” froces. “At the end of the day, the police have
arrested the accused people. The number one accused is from Bangladesh and belonged to a particular
community,” he said, adding, “Since that fact came out, nobody is speaking now”. Even in Delhi, he said,
there were five incidents which were wrongly projected. “Even a small incident of pelting a stone on a
place of worship, Church or Gurudwara or Mosque or Temple, it should be condemned by one and all,”
Mr Naidu said. The delegation of Muslim leaders from across the country — including Syed Sultan-Ul-
Hasan Chishti Misbahi (Sajjada Nashin, Ajmer Sharif), Hazrat Ghulam Yasin Sahib (Shahar Kazi,
Varanasi), Sheikh Wasim Ashrafi (Imam Tanzeem, Mumbai), Muhammed Hamid (National President,
Imam Tanzeem, Nagpur) and Allama Tasleem Raaza Sahib (Dargah Barelvi Sharif, UP), Syed Abdul
Rashid Ali (Syed Shahid Dargah Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh), Maulana Abu Bakr Basani (Nagori Sharif
Dargah, Rajasthan), Syed Ali Akbar (Taajpura Sharif, Chennai) and Haji Abdul Hafiz Khan (Imam,
Tanzeem Balaghat, MP) — were part of the delegation. (Asian Age 7/4/15)
Ensure Muslim youth keep off terrorism: PM Modi (7)
New Delhi: Following his meeting with prominent leaders of the Muslim community a couple of days ago,
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed national security advisor Ajit Doval to prepare a detailed
roadmap to ensure that Muslim youth stay away from radical and terror groups. Sources said even
though the NSA was already working closely with intelligence and security agencies to ensure that the
Muslim youth were not attracted to terror outfits like ISIS and Al Qaeda, sources said the government will
put in place a foolproof mechanism to bring these youth from the minority community into the country’s
“political and social” mainstream. Incidentally, the NSA was part of the meeting that PM had with the
religious leaders to discuss various socio, economic and political issues related to the community. As part
of the plan the government will give greater to emphasis to education for the Muslim youth, with special
focus on educating girls.Sources said the focus will not merely be on providing basic education to these
youth, but skilled training which will help them in securing proper jobs. We will ensure that such youth get
professional training so that they get employment and don’t get lured by radical or terror groups,’’ a senior
government official said. Even though the government has already announced its intent to modernise the
madrasas, but now the Centre in association with some voluntary groups from the community will closely
monitor the working of such educational and cultural centres. Intelligence and security agencies suspect
that subversive and radical specifically target the madrasas making them “ideal breeding grounds” for
young recruits. As part of the plan the PMO will also focus early disposal of grievances on shrines,
mosques and madrasas. A core team within the office of the national security advisor will work in close
co-ordination with community leaders to prepare this detailed blueprint. At the meeting the Muslim leaders
had also expressed apprehensions about the trend of increased radicalisation and emerging threat of
terrorism and underlined the need for greater unity and collective efforts to meet the challenge. (Asian
Age 9/4/15)
Shiv Sena faces flak over 'Muslims' rights' remark, complaint filed with minorities panel (7)
Mumbai: A day after Shiv Sena MP and editor of party mouthpiece Saamna, Sanjay Raut, stirred
controversy for his remarks that voting rights of Muslims should be revoked as the community has often
been used to play vote bank politics, the party is now facing flak from various political parties on Monday.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain slammed Shiv Sena and said that the
Constitution of India has given everyone the right to vote. “The BJP believes in 'sabka saath, sabka vikas'.
No one can deprive anyone from casting votes. The Muslims in India consider the country their
motherland,” he said. Condemning the statement, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav told ANI, “It is a habitual
thing for Shiv Sena to do. They always make communal statements.” Congress leader Abhishek Manu
Singhvi also said that what Shiv Sena is demanding is against the Constitution. “Fortunately, it is not
possible to do things that Shiv Sena is suggesting,” he was quoted by ANI. Senior Congress leader Mani
Shankar Aiyar accused the Shiv Sena of trying to divide the nation. "India has second largest population
of Muslims in the world and in couple of decades we will have highest number of Muslims in the world.
We should be proud of it. Shiv Sena is trying to divide the nation, they want to break it into pieces," Aiyar
said. The NCP had also condemned Shiv Sena yesterday with spokesperson Nawab Malik alleging that
the Shiv Sena wants to end democracy and bring in the rule of German dictator Adolf Hitler. "To snatch
away the right of voting from the Muslims is a threat to the democracy. If voting rights of the special
sections are snatched away, it only indicates that they want to end the democracy and bring in the Hitler
rule and the people will not accept it," he told the media. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut, has
justified his party`s stand and claimed that the condition of the community would never improve as long
as the vote bank politics continues in India. "If Muslims are only being used this way to play politics, then
they can never develop. Muslims will have no future till they are used to play vote bank politics and thus
Balasaheb had once said to withdraw Muslims voting rights. What he said is right," an editorial in Shiv
Sena mouthpiece `Saamana` said on Sunday. A complaint was on Sunday filed with the National
Commission for Minorities (NCM) against Shiv Sena MP and editor of party mouthpiece Saamna, Sanjay
Raut, for his remarks that voting rights of Muslims should be revoked as the community has often been
used to play vote bank politics. (Zee news 14/4/15)
Difficult days ahead for Muslims, Azam Khan says (7)
NEW DELHI: Stating that difficult days are ahead for the Muslim community, Samjawadi Party leader
Azam Khan on Wednesday said he is ready to leave India if any country offers him shelter. "The
circumstances being created suggest that difficult days are ahead for the Muslim community," Azam Khan
said adding, "I honestly say that if any country agrees to shelter me, I will leave India along with my
family." (Times of India 15/4/15)
Shiv Sena wants mandatory family planning for Muslims, Christians (7)
MUMBAI: After stoking controversy with its demand that Muslims be stripped of their voting rights, Shiv
Sena on Wednesday advocated compulsory family planning for Muslims and Christians to check their
"rising" population. "By only increasing population, one can try and convert the country into Pakistan, but
cannot give quality and healthy life to one's family," the BJP ally in Maharashtra said in an editorial in
party mouthpiece 'Saamana'. Sena backed the views of vice-president of All India Hindu Mahasabha
Sadhvi Deva Thakur on the issue though it did say that her choice of words may have been
wrong."Sadhvi Deva says that the increasing population of Muslims and Christians is dangerous for the
country and they should be, therefore, forcibly sterilized. She should have used the word family planning
instead sterilization," it said. Thakur had on Saturday said Muslims and Christians must undergo
sterilization to restrict their growing population which was posing a threat to Hindus. "The population of
Muslims and Christians is growing day by day. To rein in this, Centre will have to impose emergency, and
Muslims and Christians will have to be forced to undergo sterilization so that they can't increase their
numbers," Sadhvi had said. Sena today said, "Sadhvi is not as educated as the Owaisi brothers (of
AIMIM), thus may have chosen wrong words to convey her message. One can ignore her sterilization
words, but the fact is, their (Muslim, Christian) population and family planning remains a problem." Sena
said if All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisi is truly concerned about
the community, he should support the call for family planning and the cease of burqa-wearing tradition for
Muslim women. "Family planning will ensure that one can look after his family properly and provide quality
education to children," it said. The saffron party said by advocating sterilization of Muslims, it wants
'quality living' for them. "When we say Muslims should undergo sterilization, our intention is that they
should live happily," Sena said. Sena had earlier courted controversy by demanding scrapping of voting
rights of Muslims, saying the community has often been used for vote bank politics, evoking sharp
reactions from several political parties which accused it of trying to inflame passions and divide people.
(Times of India 15/4/15)
Muslims have drifted from faith: Modi aide Sareshwala (7)
Lucknow: A Muslim male remembers Islamic shariah only when he wants to avoid maintenance
allowance to his divorcee wife or when he wants to give minimum share of parental property, Zafar
Sareshwala, the Chancellor of Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) said Friday in a
statement that is bound to invite sharp reactions from the minority community. “Musalman mard ko
shariah ki do baar yaad aati hai ? Ek jab talaq deney key baad aurat ko maintenance na dena padey aur
doosra baap key inteqal key baad behen ko kaisey kam hissa diya jaye. These are two grim realities of
Muslim community. Males remember shariah on these two occasions only,” Sareshwala said while talking
to The Indian Express from Aligarh. Sareshwala, who is considered close to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, was in Aligarh to attend the 76th convocation of Jamia Urdu where he conferred with a honorary
doctorate. He also attended four other functions in Aligarh, including at AMU where he is President’s
nominee for selection committee of teachers. “The response during these meetings was overwhelming.
People here want to discuss the problems faced by the Muslim community,” he added. Sareshwala said
Muslims now a days do not “adhere to Islamic principles like giving rights to his neighbours or speaking
truth. Muslims have drifted from their faith and religion. A real Muslim is one who has pain for everyone in
his heart”. Sareshwala also lashed out at the “demanding nature” of Muslims whether it is for reservation
or various concessions. “We had come to give something to this country. We had come to give this
country the teachings of Islamic faith. We have left that task of giving and are now demanding things,”
Sareshwala – a member of the Tablighi Jamaat – said. (Indian Express 18/4/15)
Need law to ensure minimum interference in minorities’ affairs, says, AISPLB (7)
Lucknow: AISPLB, muslim personal law, Indian minorities, Rajiv Gandhi, Shamima Farooqui, Shahid
Khan case, lucknow news, city news, local news, lucknow newslineThe All India Shia Personal Law
Board (AISPLB) on Monday expressed its unhappiness over “repeated interference” by courts in Muslim
personal law and demanded that there should be “a law for minimum interference in the issues of Indian
minorities”. Speaking about the April 6 Supreme Court order in the Shamima Farooqui versus Shahid
Khan case, where the apex court had reiterated that a Muslim woman is entitled to maintenance by her
former husband till she remarries, AISPLB president Maulana Mirza Mohammad Athar said while they
agree with the judgment, there should also be a law to ensure minimum interference in minorities’ issues.
In its judgment, the Supreme Court has reiterated that civil law will prevail over any personal laws, which
in essence, helps divorced Muslim women whose right to maintenance was curtailed by Muslim Women
(Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act-1986 passed by the Rajiv Gandhi government in the wake of the top
court’s Shah Bano ruling. While the SC had ruled in favour of granting maintenance to divorced Muslim
women in the Shah Bano case, Rajiv Gandhi — ostensibly under pressure from Muslim clerics — had
passed the Act that essentially diluted the SC ruling. However, over the years, the courts, in turn, ruled in
favour of women and sidestepped the Act. Mirza said AISPLB has found a middle ground on the issue, as
rulings like April 6 lead to “restlessness within the Muslim community”. “On one hand, there is Section 125
of CrPC and the insistence of the top court on its applicability to divorced Muslim women, which entitles
them to maintenance pay, during and after iddat period (of three months and 10 days), by her former
husband, till the day she remarries. On the other, Islamic shariah law says that a man is entitled to give
maintenance pay only for the iddat period… after that he is free of any responsibility… But time and again
this issue has been raised, hence, we decided to find a middle ground,” he added. “We had passed a
‘nikahnama’ at our 2007 meet in Mumbai where clause number 17 read that a husband will continue to
provide maintenance to his former wife, even after the iddat period, until she finds a means to support
herself. We have been careful in our wording, saying that that it should be implemented in view of
humanitarian grounds and not religious grounds,” said Mirza. “While our nikahnama itself isn’t
compulsory, the SC ruling effectively binds a Muslim man to pay maintenance to his former wife after
divorce, till she remarries,” he added… (Indian Express 21/4/15)
32% of undertrials jailed in Maharashtra are Muslims (7)
MUMBAI: A disproportionately high number of undertrial prisoners in Maharashtra are Muslims. Data
compiled by the Union home ministry reveals that while Muslims comprise about 12% of the state's total
population, they make up nearly 32% of the undertrial population in prisons. Similarly, scheduled castes
and scheduled tribes form 12% and 9% of Maharashtra's population, but they account for 18.15% and
18.34% of the undertrial population. NCP's Rajya Sabha member Vandana Chavan, a former mayor of
Pune, had sought information relating to undertrials: on whether the government proposed to free them,
how many were detained for more than half the prescribed period of imprisonment, the number who were
eligible for release under section 436-A of the Criminal Procedure Code, and the sectarian breakup of
undertrials languishing in Indian jails. Union minister of state for home Haribhai Chaudhary informed
Chavan that of the 27,400 inmates in Maharashtra jails (as of December 31, 2013), 19,331 were
undertrials. Nationally, of the 4,11,992 prisoners inmates, 2,78,503 were undertrials. As per the statement
submitted in Parliament, after Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, Maharashtra had the maximum number of
Muslim undertrials in prisons. The state had 6,182 Muslims, 3,509 from scheduled castes and 3,545 from
scheduled tribes among its overall undertrial population behind bars. In Uttar Pradesh, 15,477 of 58,100
undertrials were Muslims and in West Bengal, the figure was 7,730 out of 16,471. Chaudhary said the
Centre had initiated several steps in respect of undertrial prisoners to reduce overcrowding in prisons. An
advisory was issued on January 17, 2013 to state chief secretaries regarding use of Section 436A of the
Criminal Procedure Code to reduce overcrowding of prisons. The said section pertains to the maximum
period for which an undertrial prisoner can be detained. It provides that if an undertrial has been in jail for
a period which amounts to half of the maximum imprisonment specified for that offence, then he can be
released by the court on a personal bond with or without sureties. On September 3, 2014, Union home
minister Rajnath Singh wrote to all the chief ministers on the same issue. In addition, all the state
directors-general of prisons have been asked to take necessary action as per the apex court order. An
advisory was issued on September 27, 2014 to the state chief secretaries on determining half-life of time
spent in judicial custody by undertrial prisoners under law. (Times of India 23/4/15)
Islamic world should follow India Muslim for peace: Dargah Ajmer (7)
Dargah Dewan of Ajmer, Syed Abedin Ali Khan has urged the Islamic world to follow Indian Muslims for
living in peace and concord. While presenting his annual message during Urs in Ajmer, Dewan expressed
concern over the growing sectarian violence in many Islamic nations. "The manner in which Shia and
Sunni Muslims or Barelvis and Tablighis are living in peace in India has no match in the world," said
Dewan Sahab. He attributed the cohesiveness among different sects of Muslims to the Indian
constitution, which has granted every individual all possible right to practice its rituals and traditions
responsible for this unmatched harmony. He stated that at a time when Shias and Sunnis killing each
other in countries like Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Bangladesh and Afganistan, Indian Muslims which constitute
the second-largest Muslim community in the world bears no such trouble. "The level of hatred in these
nations is such that they are not sparing Sufi shrines, mosques and places. It always pained us read
stories on how during Muharram sectarian violence takes hundreds of lives in countries like Pakistan, Iraq
and Afghanistan. India is the only nation where both Sunni and Shia observe Muharram together," said
Dewan, while addressing to the heads of various Sufi Shrines. What could be more enthralling is that in
Ajmer both Sunni and Shia community are living in public security and harmony for last 800 years, said
Dewan. Does any of the Islamic have such a clean record? Asked Dewan. (Times of India 26/4/15)
Those who ‘stall’ housing for Muslims have real-estate links (7)
Vadodara: Leaders of both the BJP and Congress, including Vadodara Mayor Bharat Shah, are among
those with substantial real-estate stakes in the city’s two locations — Sayajipura and Kalali — which have
been seeing protests over a proposal to relocate Muslim slumdwellers there. Some of these leaders were
part of the negotiations to get Muslim families to opt out of the relocation. Muslim families of Kalyannagar
slums failed to get plots in Sayajipura during two draw of lots, held in March and April. On April 30, the
Standing Committee of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) cleared a proposal in principle to
construct homes for the Muslim evacuees of Kalyannagar in Muslim-dominated Tandalja neighbourhood.
VMC officials cited “law and order” as the reason, pointing to protests by residents. Around 320 Muslim
families from Kalyannagar slums were to be moved to Sayajipura into houses built for them under the
Basic Services to Urban Poor (BSUP) scheme of JNNURM. The VMC had in October 2014 given a sworn
affidavit to the Gujarat High Court to relocate evacuees from Kalyannagar and Kamatipura slums to
Kalali. But the VMC retracted from the Kalali promise and, in March, Mayor Shah suspended a housing
draw at Sayajipura, thereby stalling the move to shift Muslim evacuees to the area from Kalyannagar
slums. On April 8, he skipped a second draw of lots, which selected 320 of the 481 Muslim families of
Kalyannagar slums to be moved to Sayajipura. None of them has got allotment letters till date. Kalpesh
Shah, the elder son of the BJP Mayor, is a partner in Earth Realty Group that has a high-end residential
project as well as flats and a commercial shopping complex coming up within 500 metres of both
Sayajipura and Kalali. Former mayor Shabdsharan Brahmbhatt of the BJP, who is a sitting corporator
from Tandalja, has real-estate interests in Kalali along with his brother. BJP MLAs Yogesh Patel
(Manjalpur) and Rajendra Trivedi (Raopura), who were involved in negotiations with representatives of
Muslim families, have real-estate interests close to the JNNURM BSUP projects. Another BJP MLA,
Manisha Vakil, in whose constituency Sayajipura falls, had approached Chief Minister Anandiben Patel at
the insistence of residents against Muslim relocation. Also with real-estate interests in the area is the
Congress’s Chandrakant Shrivastav, whose Yamuna Mills is located about 2 km from the relocation site
identified for Muslim families in Sayajipura. The son of BJP corporator Dadu Gadhvi, who first submitted a
memorandum to the VMC Standing Committee in March on behalf of Sayajipura residential colonies
against the Muslim families, has two residential projects under development within 2 km. The brother of
another BJP corporator, Ketan Brahmbhatt, is a partner with him in the projects… (Indian express 3/5/15)
Minorities panel to probe harassment of Muslim inmates’ in Bijnor jail (7)
Lucknow: Taking cognizance of reports about alleged assault on some Muslim prisoners inside Bijnor
district jail preventing them from offering Namaz, the Uttar Pradesh Minorities Commission has decided to
send a fact finding team to the district. Meanwhile, district administration claimed that Furqan, who is
lodged in jail on charges of helping six SIMI men who escaped after an explosion in Bijnor last year, is
fabricating such allegations and there is no truth behind it. On the other hand, the Commission claims that
it had sent a letter to the district administration seeking report into the allegations. “We had sent a letter to
District Magistrate of Bijnor seeking details of the incident within a week, but there has been no response
yet,” Shafi Azmi, member and spokesperson of the Commission, told The Indian Express. He said the
Commission is sending a fact finding team to Bijnor next week for probing into the matter. The
Commission took cognizance of reports in local newspapers carried last month, which alleged that
several Muslim prisoners had informed their relatives who further conveyed to some local clerics that they
were being harassed by the jail staff and some prisoners. They alleged that on April 9, there was an
attempt to stop them from offering namaz. They also claimed that they face objectionable comments on
their religion and go through physical assaults for being Muslims. The commission sent a letter to Bijnor
DM seeking report over the alleged incident by April 20. “As no reply came, we called up Bijnor DM and
apprised him about the matter. He assured us that the matter will be probed. Since then we are awaiting
for a reply,” Azmi claimed. A group of local clerics also met the DM and alleged that when Muslim inmates
offer namaz, the TV is switched on in full volume and they are harassed if they raise voice in this regard.
“We got a primary inquiry conducted into the allegations and it appeared true so we sent the notice to the
DM,” Azmi said. When inquired, Bijnor DM Bhupendra S Choudhary said, an inquiry has been conducted
by the ADM (administration). He denied about the harassment to Muslim prisoners on religious grounds.
“Only one particular prisoner has some problem, rest everything is normal,” he said. ADM (administration)
Vinod Kumar, who conducted the inquiry, too, said that only one prisoner is spoiling the atmosphere.
“Furqan, who is lodged in jail for allegedly providing shelter and logistic help to the SIMI men, spreads
rumours like this to vitiate the atmosphere. Other prisoners are afraid of him. There is no tension in jail
and no issue of stopping anyone from offering namaz,” he added. (Indian Express 5/5/15)
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut gets EC notice for his remarks on Muslims (7)
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Thursday issued a show-cause notice to Shiv Sena MP
Sanjay Raut for his April 12 remark that Muslims should be stripped of voting rights. The poll panel said
his comment, made in an editorial published in Shiv Sena's mouthpiece Saamna, prima facie violated the
model code of conduct in force then for the by-poll in Vandre East and Tasgaon Kavathe Mahankali
assembly constituencies of Maharashtra. Raut has been asked to file his reply to the show-cause notice
by 1 pm on May 11. According to the commission, his remark suggesting that Muslims should be
disenfranchised prima facie violated sub para (1) of Para 1 of the poll code, which restrains party leaders
and candidates from making communal appeals and statements that can create mutual hatred, and sub-
para 4 of Para 1, which debars "corrupt practices" and offences under the election law. The EC notice
cited Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act, which recognises promoting enmity between
classes in connecting with an election as an electoral offence, as well as Section 153A of the IPC
(creating communal hatred). The EC action follows a complaint filed by Shakeel Qureshi of Pune on April
16, in which he demanded that the recognition of Shiv Sena as a state party be cancelled. According to a
report sent to the EC by the Maharashtra chief electoral officer on April 20, Raut, in the April 12 editorial,
had said: "The day Muslims' voting rights are taken away, the mask of all secularists will fall off. That will
reveal (Asaduddin) Owaisi's sensitivity towards Muslims destitution and Muslims themselves should take
lead in this. This decision should not be political but a national decision". (Times of India 8/5/14)
Gunmen on bikes attack bus in Karachi, kill 43 Shia Muslims (7)
KARACHI: Gunmen on motorcycles killed at least 43 people from minority Shia Ismaili community in an
attack on a bus in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi on Wednesday, police officials said. "Six armed
men on motorcycles opened fire on a bus at Safoora Chorangi, Gulistan-e-Johar area of Karachi, killing at
least 43 passengers," a police official said. Television channels carried pictures of a pink bus covered in
bullet holes and lines of waiting ambulances. The death toll could further rise as about 20 others are
seriously injured. The injured and dead were shifted to various hospitals by rescue workers. The gunmen
stopped the overloaded bus, entered inside it and open fire indiscriminately, the police said. Taliban have
claimed responsibility of the attack. Police and Rangers arrived at the scene and started manhunt. More
than 60 people were on the board the bus which was carrying the people of Ismaili community from Al-
Azhar Garden area of the city to their place of worship near Aysha Manzil, police said. Ismaili community
is a branch of Shia Muslims and they are considered very peaceful people. The attack came a day after
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited Kabul and declared that enemies of Afghanistan are also enemies of
Pakistan. Pakistan has seen a rise in sectarian violence in recent years particularly against minority Shias
who represent around 20 per cent of the country's Muslim population. Taliban splinter groups have
bombed several mosques belonging to religious minorities this year. In March, suicide bombings outside
two churches in Lahore killed 14 people and wounded nearly 80. Days later, a bomb after Friday prayers
wounded 12 people outside a minority Bohra mosque in Karachi. In February, 20 people were killed in an
attack on a Shia mosque in the northeastern city of Peshawar, and 60 were killed in a January attack on a
Shia mosque in the southern province of Sindh. (Times of India 13/5/15)
Road signs with Muslim names defaced in Delhi, Hindu outfit owns responsibility (7)
New Delhi: Signages of roads named after Muslim personalities such as Emperor Akbar and Firozshah,
among others, were found defaced late Wednesday. The names have been blackened and posters of
right-wing group — Shiv Sena Hindustan — were pasted on them. The posters read, ‘Bharat mein
Islamikaran manzoor nahi. Safar mein mushkilen aaye himmat aur badti hai. Koi agar raasta roke toh
zaroorat aur bhardti hai. Jai Hind! Jai Bharat! (Islamisation will not be tolerated in India. Our courage only
grows when our journey meets difficulties. Our need only grows when our path meets with obstacles)’.
The names of Rajinder Singh (national president), Charan Singh (national general secretary), Dinesh
Kumar (national secretary) and Vinay Sonkar (secretary) of Shiv Sena Hindu-stan were also on the
poster. Outfit president Rajinder Singh said around 17 members, in three teams, carried out the
“operation” between 11 pm and 1 am on the intervening night of May 13-14. Asked if the group feared
any police action for the defacement, Rajinder said, “Let them file a complaint. If the law of the land finds
us guilty, we are ready to face the punishment that violating the law entails. We have not caused any real
damage. It was a symbolic protest. We had written to former PM Manmohan Singh a couple of times,
protesting against the use of Muslim names for roads in a country called Hindustan. All Hindus look up to
a leader like our Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are hopeful that he will pay some heed to our
concerns.’ Sonkar said his organisation was a splinter group of the Shiv Sena. “We parted ways with the
Shiv Sena because it was too limited to Maharashtra and its activities never ventured beyond the state.
We have built our base in around 12 states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Delhi. Our Delhi unit has
around 1,300 members and we often meet to carry out our nationalist agenda,” he said. “Senior leaders
held a meeting on Wednesday and discussed several of our issues, including the plan to deface signages
of roads named after Muslims. Our group members carried out the task. We have a problem with roads in
the city not being named after our leaders like Subhash Chandra Bose and others who fought for
Independence. The names of unpatriotic people adorn our pathways,” Sonkar said. The area falls under
the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the civic body has lodged a police complaint. “We have
already filed a complaint and an FIR is being registered in the case. We are in the process of replacing
the vandalised boards,”NDMC spokesperson Jagjiwan Bakshi said…. (Indian Express 15/5/15)
Muslim body slams communal elements for instilling fear among minorities (7)
NEW DELHI: One of India's largest Muslim organizations on Saturday said the community would fight
efforts by communal forces to create fear among the minorities even as it urged the Centre and states to
firmly deal with such elements. Reading out the declaration of its general session held at Ramlila Maidan,
Jamiat Ulema-I-Hind chief Maulana Arshad Madani said, "The community that could fight against the
British who believed sun never sets in their empire, will not cow down in fear of something that small
groups are trying to create within the country." He, however, said the community won't overreact even
when provoked. Amid huge applause, Madani said lakhs of Muslims like him are Indians "by choice and
not by chance". He said there was a choice before Muslims to shift to Pakistan, but most of them stayed
back and fought for the country's independence. Madani said the communal elements, both in
government and outside, have carried out campaigns as if "our religion, culture, constitution and identity,
nothing is safe". The declaration said the government is fully aware of such anti-Muslim tirade, but has
maintained "studied silence"."It puts a question mark on the credibility of its popular slogan 'sabka saath
sabka vikas'. We want the government to respond in action and not in words," Madani said. Taking
potshots at Modi administration on issues of communal incidents, Madani said the government's failure is
being mocked upon and country's dignity is tarnished when foreign guests sermonize the government, a
reference to Barack Obama's address at a town hall meeting in Delhi. However, he was quick to add that
such foreign guests have no right to teach lesions of secularism to India as "they have killed thousands of
innocents" in other parts of the world. Setting the larger goal for thousands of volunteers who had
gathered at the outfit's 32nd general session, the Muslim leader said for the next 20 years each member
of the community must ensure that no child is deprived of education and training. (Times of India 17/5/15)
Bihar Muslims donate land for world's largest Hindu temple (7)
PATNA: Muslims in Bihar, in a stellar demonstration of communal harmony, have donated land to help
build the world's largest Hindu temple which will have the capacity to seat a staggering 20,000 people.
"Muslims have not only donated land, they have also provided land at a nominal rate for construction of
the world's largest Hindu temple. Without help of Muslims, it would have been difficult realise this dream
project," Acharya Kishore Kunal, secretary of the Patna-based cash-rich Mahavir Mandir Trust that is
undertaking the ambitious project, told IANS. Kunal, a former Indian Police Service officer, said that
Muslims have come forward to ensure that the temple comes up soon. The construction of the temple will
commence in June at Janki Nagar near Kesaria in East Champaran district, about 150 km from here. It
will cost over R.500 crore. "It is usual for Hindus to donate land for temple, but it is unusual for Muslims to
donate land for the construction of temple," he said and added that Muslims should be lauded for joining
hands with Hindus to donate land for a pious cause. Kunal said that more than three dozen Muslim
families have their land in the middle of the proposed location of the temple and some Muslims families
have land along the main road that connects to the project site. "Some Muslims donated lands and others
helped and supported us to purchase their land for the temple. If Muslims had not come forward, the
temple project was sure to have got delayed..." He said that Mahavir Mandir Trust has obtained 200 acres
of land. "Hindus and Muslims have donated about 50 acres of land and the remaining has been
purchased." Earlier, some Muslims had helped build a Hindu temple dedicated to Goddess Durga in Gaya
district, another temple was dedicated to God Shiva in Begusarai district and in Sitamarhi district.
Mumbai-based Valecha Construction Company will construct the temple, which will be 2,500 feet long,
1,296 feet wide and 379 feet high. "The temple will be earthquake proof (since it) is near the Nepal
border," Kunal said. Gurgaon based Radheyshyam Sharma, director of Indgenious Studio Pvt Ltd, will
look after the architectural aspects. He said the Virat Ramayan Mandir will be taller than the world famous
12th century Angkor Wat temple complex in Cambodia, which is 215 feet high. The complex will comprise
18 temples with high spires and its Shiv temple would have the largest Shivling in the world, another
distinction. He said the temple would have a seating capacity of 20,000 people in the hall facing the main
temple having the idols of Ram, Sita, Luv and Kush. According to him, no temple in the world has such a
huge seating capacity. He said the temple was to be named "Virat Angkor Wat Ram Mandir", but later its
name was changed following objections by people in Cambodia. Angkor Wat was built during king
Suryavarman's rule and is today a Unesco World Heritage site. (First Post 20/5/15)
Cops file case after Mumbai firm tells job-seeker 'we hire only non-Muslims (7)
MUMBAI: A Mumbai-based diamond jewellery export firm faces action for religious discrimination after it
declined to entertain the job application of a youth on the grounds that he was a Muslim. The job-seeker,
Zeshan Ali Khan, a business management graduate from Mumbai, had applied for a position in Hari
Krishna Exports Pvt Ltd, a leading exporter of diamond jewellery, as marketing executive but was
shocked when he received the response from the firm stating that it hires only "non-Muslim candidates."
Mumbai Police have lodged a case against the firm on the youth's complaint. "As per the law, there is
punishment of 3 years. After investigation it will be revealed who is actually related to offence," police
inspector Suryakant Jagdale said. After the rejection letter sparked a controversy, the firm said it was an
error on the part of one of its staff and it never practised religious discrimination. "I just completed my final
semester exams of MBA last week and like other classmates have been looking for a job. I came across
an update regarding a recruitment drive undertaken by leading diamond and jewellery exporter and
thought it would be a great start for my career," Khan said. "I along with my two classmates applied for
the job. I forwarded them my resume on 19th May, 2015 at 5.45pm and exactly 15 minutes later I got a
reply from the HR in charge of the firm that my application has been rejected because the company only
hires non-Muslims," Khan added. "At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting foreign
countries and inviting them for investment and pushing ahead the 'Make in India' campaign, the leading
export houses are rejecting candidates for their religion," he said. A Mumbai diamond jewellery export
firm rejection letter to a Muslim job applicant. (Photo: ANI/Twitter) In its reply to Khan, the company said,
"We regret to inform you that we hire only non-Muslim candidates." Khan later narrated his experience on
a social networking site, following which and received a 'regret' mail from the company after his post
generated sharp reactions. "As a company, we would like to reiterate that there is an error done by one of
the newly joined HR trainees. Company functions without being biased with any caste, religion and
gender," a company representative said in a posting on Facebook. "It was a blunder and personal mess
created by one of our trainees who has no decision making power. We have 61 employees in our office
here including one Muslim in the HR team," Hari Krishna Exports Private Ltd said in the mail. Taking note
of the incident, activist Shehzad Poonawalla wrote to the National Commission for Minorities urging it to
look into the issue. In response, Naseem Ahmed, Chairman of the NMC said, "We have received the
petition. If there is any truth in this, it is unfortunate. An inquiry shall be conducted," he said. (Times of
India 21/5/15)
'Indian Muslims are nationalists who oppose terror' (7)
LUCKNOW: Contending that terrorism should not be associated with any particular religion, home
minister Rajnath Singh today said Muslims in India are nationalists who have always opposed terrorist
elements. He lauded India's Muslims for not allowing fundamentalist groups like ISIS to influence them.
Responding to questions here after an event, he said terrorism should not be associated with a particular
religion. "Muslims in India are nationalists. They have always opposed such (terror) elements. They have
opposed and demoralised them," the Union home minister said. He said several countries in the world are
facing the menace of terrorism and they should fight unitedly against it. To a question regarding naxalism,
Singh said, "though I don't believe in the figures, if one focusses on last 10 to 15 years, then there has
been a decline of 20 per cent to 25 per cent in the last one year." With regard to questions being raised
by opposition over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign visits, Singh said all his predecessors have
travelled abroad but the "warm welcome" accorded to Modi showed that the country's goodwill and
prestige is rising. "The questions being raised over PM's foreign visits are unfortunate. All PMs including
Manmohan Singh have undertaken foreign visits. The warm welcome being accorded to PM Modi is
evidence that the country's goodwill and prestige is rising. The world has started taking India seriously,"
Singh said on the sidelines of a programme organised by Mahamana Madan Mohan Malviya Mission.
Earlier, addressing the function, he said great personalities should not be associated with any particular
party and Mahamana should have been conferred with Bharat Ratna long back for the contribution he
made. By establishing Banaras Hindu University, Mahamana made an important contribution in linking
traditional knowledge with modern science, he said. He also discussed about personality and contribution
of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In another programme when asked about Mumbai serial
blast mastermind Dawood Ibrahim, Singh said he had already made a statement in Parliament. (Times of
India 24/5/15)
No flat for her in Mumbai because she is Muslim (7)
MUMBAI: Growing up in Gujarat post-2002 riots exposed her to religious prejudice and forced
ghettoisation. So when Misbah Quadri moved to Mumbai, she hoped the city, known for its cosmopolitan
culture, would treat her better. However, the 25-year-old communications professional is today knocking
on the doors of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) after she was denied a flat in the city just
because she is a Muslim. After a hard search, Ms. Quadri found a tidy 3-BHK apartment at Sanghvi
Heights in Wadala. Her new flatmates — two working women, in their early twenties and Hindu — found
her on Facebook. However, a day before Ms. Quadri was to shift, the apartment’s broker warned that the
housing society did not accept Muslim tenants. Even if something worked out, the broker told her, she
would have to sign a “no-objection certificate” declaring that if she faced any harassment from her
neighbours because of her religion, the builder, the owner and the broker “would not be legally
responsible.” She was also asked to submit her resume. Though she disagreed with the terms, she
moved in because the notice period at her previous flat expired and her flatmates supported her and she
hoped for a compromise later. But within a week, the agent contacted her again. “He threatened to call
the cops and throw me out of the flat. It got very ugly.” When she approached the representative of the
builder, she was told that it was “a policy” of the company not to have Muslim tenants. She was then
served an ultimatum to vacate the house. Ultimately, she was forced to leave the flat. Incidentally, the
other women had to pay a price for sheltering a Muslim; they have vacated the house unwillingly. (The
Hindu 27/5/15)
Adani hires MBA grad who was denied job for being a Muslim (7)
AHMEDABAD: All's well that ends well. Zeeshan Khan, who made national headlines after he was denied
a job by a Mumbai-based diamond firm because of being a Muslim, has decided to join the Ahmedabad-
based Adani group. "I received about a dozen offers following the religious discrimination I had to face.
My mail box is flooded with solidarity messages," says Khan, 22, who was in Ahmedabad to complete
formalities at Adani's corporate office. "Among all the offers I got, this was the best," says Khan, who will
join the group's Mumbai office as an executive trainee. When asked why he chose to join Adani, he said it
was one of the biggest integrated infrastructure companies in the country. "We encourage talent
irrespective of caste, creed and religion. We found Zeeshan a competent candidate and hence a job was
offered," said an Adani spokesperson. In the third week of May, Khan had sent a email application to Hari
Krishna Exports Pvt Ltd for a marketing job. Within 15 minutes, he received the reply: "We regret to
inform you that we hire only non-Muslim candidates." Khan and his friends put out a screenshot of the
mail on social media and it went viral.Khan, who did his MBA in Mumbai, approached the Mumbai police
and a case was registered against the company under section 153B of the IPC, which deals with national
integration and provides for a jail term of up to three years for the guilty. Earlier this week, Khan received
a call from the HR department of Adani group. "I cleared the interview and was offered this job," he said.
(Times of India 1/6/15)
Restore reservation for Muslims: NCP (7)
Mumbai: Taking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to task on his recent statement about the Muslim
community, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has demanded restoration of reservations to the
community in Maharashtra, which had been scrapped by the state government. The party has also
demanded free education for underprivileged sections of the community and its representation in the
government in all BJP-ruled states. Mr Modi on Tuesday appealed to Muslim leaders to judge him on the
basis of his actions and performance, not by what his opponents have been saying about him, after
meeting with a 30-member delegation of Muslim clergy and professionals. “I give you my word, I will
respond if you knock on my door at midnight,” said Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, chief imam of the All India Imam
Organisation, on behalf of Mr Modi, after the meet. Responding to his remarks, NCP spokesperson
Nawab Malik on Thursday said that if the PM is seriously thinking about the welfare of the community, he
should start taking action rather than depending on statements. “The Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP
government in Maharashtra has scrapped reservation for Muslims in government jobs and educational
institutions that was provided by the Congress-NCP government. We demand restoration of the facility
immediately,” Mr Malik said. “Similarly, the betterment of the community can be made possible by
involving it in the decision-making process. Thus, Mr Modi should start giving representation to the
community in the government in all BJP-ruled states, or the Prime Minister’s statements can be seen as a
mere damage-control exercise,” added NCP leader. NCP has made serious allegations about the Shiv
Sena over on its alleged changed stand on the Jaitapur nuclear power project. Party spokesperson
Nawab Malik said that Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray was in London on the day that senior Sena
leader and environment minister Ramdas Kadam said they were not against Jaitapur nuclear power
project. “Mr Kadam has recently said that Shiv Sena is not opposing the project but the locals are. This
has created doubt among people as the Sena president was in London on the same day.” (Asian Age
5/6/15)
Suryanamaskar against Islam: Muslim law board (7)
Lucknow: "Surya namaskar should not be made mandatory in government schools," because Muslims
bowed only before ‘Allah.’ The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) will launch a nationwide
campaign against making ‘surya namaskar’ and yoga compulsory in schools. The board’s executive
council took the decision when the Modi government’s plan to observe International Yoga Day on June 21
and related issues came up for discussion at its meeting on Sunday.At the executive council meeting of
the All India Muslim Personal Law Board here on Sunday, many members spoke up for a proactive role
by the board on issues concerning the community. Executive council member Maulana Khalid Rasheed
Firangi Mahali told The Hindu that the board decided to constitute a committee, headed by Maulana Wali
Rahmani for the purpose. “The board’s view on ‘surya namaskar’ and ‘yoga’ would be put forth by the
committee along with the explanation why they go against the beliefs of the Muslims, and why they
should not be imposed on their children,” the Maulana said. Another board member Kamaal Farooqui
said that it was against Islam to salute the sun. “Surya namaskar should not be made mandatory in
government schools,” because Muslims bowed only before ‘Allah.’ “The board has the option to move the
court and to launch a movement against the proposal,” he said. The meeting of the 51-member working
committee, held at Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulema here, deliberated on several other issues, including the
decision to install a Majlis-i-Amal (a committee to implement the board’s resolutions, its aims and
objectives). Taking the support of other organisations, not necessarily those of Muslims, and people
belonging to other faiths on issues related to the community was also brought up by some executive
council members. Sunday’s meeting which ratified the decisions taken at the board’s annual convention
held in Jaipur in December 2014 decided to name Maulana Rahmani as the acting general secretary and
constitute a team of spokespersons for presenting the board’s views. Maulana Syed Nizamuddin will
continue as general secretary. This was disclosed to journalists by board spokesman Maulana Abdul
Rehman Qureshi, though there was no official briefing. In fact, it was Maulana Rahmani who made a
forceful plea for setting up a panel of spokespersons for giving instant reactions because by the time the
official response (from the board’s spokesman) came, it was too late. The decision to name
spokespersons was taken after it was felt that there should be more interaction with the media. The issue
was raised at the meeting by Qasim Rasool Ilyas, who said the media played a pivotal role and hence
should be kept informed of the board’s activities. (The Hindu 8/6/15)
Muslims can take Allah's name in place of shlokas: Minister (7)
NEW DELHI: After dropping 'Surya Namaskar' from the official yoga programme to "avoid controversy",
the government on Thursday said chanting 'shlokas' during 'International Yoga Day' was not "compulsory"
and appealed to Muslims to participate in the event.Shripad Naik, minister for Ayush, the coordinating
ministry for the event at Rajpath on June 21, said Muslims can "take the name of Allah instead of reciting
'shlokas'" during the event. While some minority groups have objected to the holding of the event by
government, especially inclusion of Surya Namskar, representatives of some Muslim organizations who
met Naik today said those opposing yoga were "enemies of humanity" and yoga has nothing to do with
religion. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had said a committee which decided the common yoga
protocol had not included Surya Namaskar "because they wanted easy asanas (exercise) in it, which can
be performed by anyone."Naik on Thursday said, "We did not include Surya namaskar to avoid
controversy. And, moreover, it's difficult to do it. But Surya Namaskar is not religious. We want the whole
event to go smoothly." "Shlokas are not compulsory. Shlokas are merely prayers but it is not compulsory.
They can even take the name of Allah instead of chanting shlokas. I request the Muslims to participate
and unite the country," Naik told reporters after meeting a delegation of Muslim organizations. In the wake
of International Yoga Day on June 21st, prominent city socialites and Yoga practitioners performing Yoga
postures as a flash mob in Bengaluru on may 31, 2015. (TOI photo by K Sunil Prasad) Opposition has
been voiced by some organizations, including the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, against
performance of Surya Namaskar, saying it is against their faith. "We did not make anything compulsory.
Even the HRD ministry has merely appealed to the educational institutions.Noting that yoga is a matter of
pride and has "nothing" to do with religion, the minister said that yoga unites people and is done for
fitness. "If people aren't fit there won't be any development. The protests are misleading. Muslims would
be co-partners not just participants," he said. Meanwhile, Daudi Bohra community members who met the
minister welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative and said the event does not have any
religious connotations. "There's yoga in namaaz but namaaz isn't yoga. Those who oppose it are enemies
of humanity because yoga is for the well being of humans," Maulana Syed Kaukab Mujtaba Abidi,
president of Majlis Ulema e Hind (Uttar Pradesh), told reporters. (Times of India 11/6/15)
Study shows NCR homeowners turn away Dalits and Muslims (7)
A study on discrimination in urban housing rental preferences, to be published in a forthcoming issue of
Economic and Political Weekly, shows high levels of exclusion of Dalits and Muslims in the five
metropolitan areas of NCR. The team of researchers, led by Prof S K Thorat, chairman of the Indian
Council of Social Science Research, and comprising scholars such as Anuradha Banerjee, Vinod K
Mishra and Firdaus Rizvi, covered attempts to get houses on rent in Delhi, Faridabad, Ghaziabad,
Gurgaon and Noida between January and March 2012. The methodologies included contacting the
“home-providers” via telephone or meeting them face to face. In both the methodologies, the home-
seekers had the same credentials but for their names that indicated their caste and religion.The
telephonic audit had a total of 1,469 home-seekers, 493 each bearing upper-caste Hindu, Dalits and
Muslim names. While not one of the 493 high-caste home-seekers received a negative response, about
18 per cent of Dalits and 31 per cent of Muslims faced outright rejection, found the study. Together those
receiving either a negative response or a positive one with conditions attached worked out to 41 per cent
in the case of Dalits, and around 66 per cent for Muslims. tenantsThe face-to-face audit covered 198
home-seekers, with 66 high-caste Hindus, Dalits and Muslims each. While 97 per cent of upper-caste
Hindus got a positive response, 44 per cent of Dalits and 61 per cent of Muslims faced rejection. Together
those receiving either a negative response or a positive one with conditions attached worked out to 51 per
cent in the case of Dalits, and 71 per cent for Muslims. In other words, the chances of Dalits and Muslims
finding a house fell in the case of face-to-face contact. It also means that a significant number of Dalits
and Muslims have to spend much more to stay in accommodations in NCR than their upper-caste
counterparts. “This indicates a clear case of market failure,” says Thorat, “where even prosperity does not
allow you to buy your way out of discrimination… The studies do reveal that Muslims are even worse off
than Dalits as far as the rental housing market goes.” “Non-monetary motive often prevails among
landlords renting out houses,” says the study, which chose Delhi for the research as it is often considered
amongst the most migrant-friendly and cosmopolitan cities in India…. (Indian Express 16/6/15)
Muslims to participate in SoBo event (7)
MUMBAI: Several Muslim activists have pledged support to the celebrations of International Yoga Day on
June 21 and they will participate in the event "Yoga by the Bay', organized by TOI-backed Equal Streets
Initiative. "Yoga has many health benefits and it should not be linked to any religion. We will take part in
the event on June 21 on Marine Drive to celebrate International Yoga Day," said M A Khalid, general
secretary of the All India Milli Council. Activist Firoz Mithiborewala said that 117 countries, including
several Muslim nations, would be celebrating it and it would send a wrong message if Muslims opposed
it. "This is a proud moment for India that the world has acknowledged yoga's importance. Even if it
originated in Hinduism, there is no harm in adopting something from other cultures as long as it doesn't
impinge on somebody else's religious rights," said Mithiborewala. Salim Alware of Indian Muslim
Intellectual Forum said that Muslims would do yoga minus surya namaskar and without uttering Om.
(Times of India 19/6/15)
On International Yoga Day, Muslims resist, embrace occasion (7)
NEW DELHI: Even as the nation set new records on the first International Yoga Day on Sunday, there
were mixed reports of participation by Muslims in yoga celebrations across India. Muslims mostly chose
to stay away from the events in West Bengal, Jabalpur and Ujjain. However in Kerala's Malappuram
district, Bhopal, Nagpur and Hyderabad, they enthusiastically participated in yoga programmes. Politically
volatile Hyderabad turned into a huge yoga ground with politicians joining hands with denizens to be part
of the world's first International Yoga Day celebrations. In the Old City, yoga enthusiasts also assembled
before the historic Charminar to perform Surya Namaskar before the break of dawn. The universal appeal
of yoga saw the participation of Urdu schools in Nagpur despite the longest Ramazan fasting period in
three decades. Zaffar Khan, president of Urdu Schools Headmasters Association, said, "We stopped
eating food at 4.05 am today and won't be having another morsel till 7 pm. Every day the fasting period is
almost 15 hours but that was no reason for skipping Yoga. My staff members too joined in and in our
school campus we did Yoga exercises." Defying stiff opposition from religious outfits, hundreds of
Muslims, especially youth joined yoga celebrations all over Malappuram district. Inaugurating the the
Pukayur yoga session, Muslim League MLA KNA Khader attacked yoga opponents in his inaugural
speech terming them ignorant about the relevance of yoga. Another Muslim League MLA P Ubaidulla
inaugurated the yoga session organised by Nehru Yuva Kendra with around 500 participants. At the
Aligarh Club, it was yoga with a difference - in place of the mats, participants just jumped into a pool!
"International Yoga Day was a good excuse to do something different. We picked 'water yoga' and we
intend to make it a regular part of our fitness regimen. Water yoga also has a special appeal for being so
novel," said Javed Mahmood, coach at Aligarh Club, who has been a state-level swimming champion. In
Mumbai, activist Firoz Mithiborewala said that he did yoga. "Instead of uttering Om, I took the name of
Allah. There was no surya namaskar and I did it comfortably. I saw a sense of bonding and solidarity
among the practitioners. It was a moment of pride when so many people did yoga, a form of exercise
which originated in India. I am glad I was part of the historic even," said Mithiborewala. In Bhopal, Syed
Rubab Fatima, 47, who has been practising yoga since 2000, led the international yoga day celebrations
at the sprawling Lal Parade Grounds, sharing the dais with chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. A
devout Muslim, she offers namaz five times a day and also does surya namaskar, breathing in with the
name of Allah…. (Times of India 22/6/15)
VHP, Muslim personal law board spar over Yoga Day (7)
NEW DELHI/LUCKNOW: The hotheads of All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and Vishwa
Hindu Parishad (VHP) got into a sharp altercation on Tuesday with Sadhvi Prachi reacting acerbically to
the Muslim body's charge that the Union government had selected June 21 for the International Yoga Day
as it is RSS founder Keshavram Baliram Hedgewar's death anniversary. "They should connect
themselves with the traditions of India, the culture of India... there's no need for any objection. If they are
objecting, then they should go to Pakistan. People who are objecting to it have no right to reside in India,"
the sadhvi said when asked to react to AIMPLB's opposition to Yoga Day.On Monday, AIMPLB's
executive member Maulana Ather Ali had called the Yoga Day a conspiracy to enforce "Brahmin dharma
and Vedic culture" all over the country, with the board writing to its members and asking all Muslim
organizations to close ranks against the "Hindutva forces".For the first time, the board asked its members
to engage clerics who deliver Friday sermons to object to 'Surya Namaskar' and yoga as these don't
comply with Muslim religious beliefs."India's pluralistic ethos is under assault from Hindutva forces. We'll
do everything required to save our religious beliefs," Maulana Ather Ali had said. His comments came
days after BJP MP Yogi Adityanath's said those opposed to 'Surya Namaskar' should go "drown in the
sea" amidst protests by Muslim groups over participation in the June 21 event. On Tuesday Prachi
intoned: "They (AIMPLB) have India's food and sing songs of Pakistan. Yoga works like a binding factor.
It's not related to a single religious belief. Democracy does not tell you to object India's traditions and
cultures.".. (Times of India 24/6/15)
UP to Take Muslims, Hindus Together for Pilgrimage (7)
LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh government has chalked out a first-of-its-kind plan to take a group of
Hindus and Muslims on a joint pilgrimage. The 'dharmarth karya' department has issued a government
order (GO) in which 10 Muslim and Hindu devouts from each district will be taken on a pilgrimage in a
single trip, including a visit to Pushkar and Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan. Pushkar is holy for Hindus while
Ajmer Sharif is venerated by Muslims as well as people of other faiths. Principal Secretary (Religious
Works) Navneet Sehgal told IANS that the process of receiving applications and subsequently sorting
them out has begun in all the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh. "The idea is not only to provide better travel
opprtunities to the residents of UP and the elderly but also to promote communal harmony," the official
said. The tour will be conducted by the state government, under the ongoing Samajwadi Shravan Yatra -
a state sponsored pilgrimage started a few months back, with help of the Indian Railway Catering and
Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).A special train with arrangement for 1,044 berths has been booked for the
pilgrimage. The proposed date for the pilgrimage is July 23 and the department is working to ensure that
the 'yatra' takes off on time, officials say. This time the state government has also made online
registration facilities available for people. The devout will have to submit documents required for availing
the trip along with an application. The applications are invited till July 10 after which these would be
sorted out and travel tickets issued. In the first round, 900 devotees were taken to Haridwar and
Rishikesh in Uttarakhand. In this trip to Ajmer Sharif and Pushkar Teerth Raj in Rajasthan, the pilgrims
would be getting air-conditioned luxury buses after the train journey to travel to their destinations. The
pilgrims would be provided budget lodging and given a travel kit. "Other than this, they would be given
morning tea, breakfast, lunch, evening tea - only on the train journey - and a nutritious dinner," said
Sehgal. (New Indiasn Express 26/6/15)
New proactive group within unsettles Muslim law board (7)
New Delhi: There is growing disquiet in the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) over the
emergence of a “proactive” group which wants to “act”, along with members of the majority community, to
“safeguard” Muslim interests. The announcement of the Majlis-e-Amal or implementation committee has
been described as routine but there are several in the board — it positions itself as a spokesperson of
Muslim opinion in India and the chief custodian of Muslim personal law and the Shariat — who believe it
is being formed to open a channel with the Prime Minister. At a meeting of its executive in Lucknow on
June 6-7, the Majlis-e-Amal, headed by Wali Rahmani, a cleric based in Munger in Bihar who is also the
board’s working general secretary, took a call to “act” with members of the majority community to
“safeguard” Muslim interests.The last time a committee was tasked with protecting the constitutional
rights of Muslims was in 2010 — it was asked to deal with specific grievances with the Waqf Act and
some judgments seen as intruding into Muslim personal law. Rahmani has emerged as the face of the
new “active” board — Rabey Nadwi, the board chairman, is in his 90s and age has also caught up with
Maulana Nizamuddin of Biharsharif, the general secretary. Earlier this month, Rahmani reached out
directly to Muslim organisations, institutions and imams of mosques, asking them to maintain vigil against
attacks on Islam’s teachings. He also alleged that the celebration of the International Day of Yoga by the
government on June 21 was part of a conspiracy to link the exercise to the RSS. Within the board, there
is suspicion about the agenda of the Majlis-e-Amal. Because in March, the usually sedate meeting of the
board was disrupted in Jaipur over the presence of “non-members” — Zafar Sareshwala, a businessman
who is also chancellor of the Hyderabad-based Maulana Azad National Urdu University and is considered
close to the Prime Minister, could not enter the meeting because several members protested. There are
some who believe the actions of the committee will find place in the run-up to the Bihar assembly
elections. Qasim Sayyed, editor-in-chief of Rozanama Khabrein, said: “By appearing to be very active
and pro-Muslim, the board actually wants to polarise the Bihar polls and is being used as fuel for that
purpose. What is the sense in raising these things? Is this the time to raise the temperature and be hot-
headed? They want to do this and also cosy up to Modi by demonstrating that they are the true Muslim
representatives.”… (Indian Express 29/6/15)
Maharashtra to de-recognise madrasas not teaching primary subjects (7)
Mumbai: Madrasas which do not teach primary subjects such as English, Maths and Science would be
considered as "non-schools" and children studying in them as "out of school" students, Maharashtra
government today said. "Madrasas are giving students education on religion and not giving them formal
education. Our constitution says every child has the right to take formal education, which madrasas do
not provide," State Minorities Affairs Minister Eknath Khadse told PTI. "If a Hindu or Christian child wants
to study in a madrasa, they will not be allowed to study there. Thus, madrasa is not a school but a source
of religious education. Thus we have asked them to teach students other subjects as well. Otherwise
these madrasas will be considered as non schools," Khadse said. He added that Principal Secretary of
Minority Affairs department Jayshree Mukherjee has written a letter to Principal Secretary of School
Education and Sports Nand Kumar in this regard. Khadse said the School Education department has
planned a survey of students that are not taking formal education on July 4. "Students who are studying in
madrasas that do not provide formal education will be treated as out of school students. Our only aim
behind doing this is to ensure that every child of the minority community gets a chance to learn and come
into the mainstream, get good paying jobs and have a prosperous future," Khadse said. The minister said
that out of a total 1,890 registered madrasas in the state, 550 have agreed to teach the four subjects to
students. "We are even ready to pay madrasas for giving students formal education and are ready to
provide them teaching staff as well," Khadse said. (Deccan Herald 2/7/17)
RSS shakha spooks NE Delhi Muslims (7)
NEW DELHI: Tension is simmering in northeast Delhi's Sriram Colony over holding of an RSS shakha in
a local park. Residents of the area, which is dominated by Muslims, claim that the shakha activities are
disrupting their prayers this Ramzan. They also fear further confrontation on the occasion of Eid. The
local RSS unit has allegedly planned a bigger congregation on the festival day, which is likely to be
observed on June 18-19. The locals gather in the park on Eid every year and offer prayers. But this year,
they fear, they may not be allowed to do so if the RSS shakha is underway. Brinda Karat, senior CPM
member, met Delhi Police commissioner B S Bassi, along with some members of the minority community,
to voice their concern. "The police commissioner said he will look into the matter and do the needful," she
said. The Delhi prachar pramukh of RSS, Rajeev Tuli, denied the claims of the minority community. He
said RSS shakhas are being held in the park for more than three decades. "Recently, some local people
threw stones when the shakha was on which left two participants injured," he said. Tuli claimed the
rumour of simmering communal tension is being spread by 'mischievous elements'. The park, which is at
the centre of controversy, is surrounded by houses of Muslims. Locals said the minority community
constitutes a majority of the population. "A lot of religious and community activities have been organized
in this park before. But we haven't witnessed such tension ever," said Zishan Mohamad, a college student
residing in the area. The residents have asked for police protection but they claim no action has been
taken. "We have been living in harmony for many years. It's only recently that a lot of people from outside
have started taking part in the RSS sessions," said Aijaz, another resident. (Times of India 4/7/15)
‘Educated Muslims do not need sermons from Shiv Sena on family planning’(7)
MUMBAI: Muslims, especially those who have small families, reacted sharply to Shiv Sena's remarks that
Prime Minister Narendra Modi should "ensure that Muslims accept the necessity of family planning".They
slammed the Sena's "slanderous and provocative" remarks in its mouthpiece Saamna on Monday which
asked the Sangh to pressure the government to strictly impose family planning. "Educated Muslims know
the benefits of small families; they don't need sermons from Shiv Sena on family planning. Educated
Muslims plan their families carefully and don't go for many children," said Noor Ahmed, owner of the
popular Colaba-based eatery Baghdadi who has two sons—Taufique (30) and Moiz (24). While Taufique
has graduated in hotel management, Moiz is an IT professional. "I studied till just SSC as I had to run my
father's business. But my wife and I decided to keep our family small and provide the best education that
we could afford to our children," said Ahmed. As education deepens among the community and economic
condition improves, Muslims have realized the importance of family planning. "When our son Asjad was
born five years ago, we felt blessed. My wife and I decided that he would be our only child. We didn't
need any lecturing to understand how a small family is financially and physically healthy. The emphasis
should be on creating awareness and improving people's educational and economic condition, not
making divisive statements," said real estate consultant Asad Shaikh from Mira Road. His wife
Kehkashan added: "As I have one child, I can tutor him myself. This was our own decision because of our
education and knowledge, and not due to politicians' pressure." Mechanical engineer from Bandra
Mahmood Khan (65)has two daughters—one is a brand manager in a pharmaceutical firm while the other
is employed with a multinational. "Why is the Sena targeting Muslims when population is a problem with
every section which is poor and illiterate? Sena should pull up mahants, yogis and sadhvis who exhort
Hindus to produce many children to 'counter' Muslim population. Muslims are not overtaking Hindus as
Sena would like us to believe," he said. Senior executive with an MNC Muzaffar Kalimullah, who has two
kids, said the Sena should desist from making inflammatory statements. "The Parivar has often accused
Muslims of practising polygamy. The accusation is wrong; the community prefers monogamy and and
most Muslims want to keep their families small." (Times of India 8/7/15)
25 per cent Muslim inmates have no lawyers (7)
Mumbai: It has emerged that more than 25 per cent of Muslim prisoners in Maharashtra do not have a
lawyer to represent their cases. This was revealed in a report published in 2011 by the Tata Institute of
Social Sciences (TISS). Four years on, the government has taken cognizance of the report and promised
to work on it. (The study was focussed on the inmates from the Muslim community and so the
comparative data is not available.) The study says the education level among them was also low with
26.8 per cent being illiterate and 48 per cent not having any employable skills. The low education
background may have forced them to become low earners as 42.7 per cent of them earn between `2,000
to `5,000 only per month, the study noted. A number of prisoners have reportedly pointed out that the
police were prejudiced against them, which made them vulnerable to the corrupt system. The report,
based on a survey conducted in 15 prisons across the state in the year 2010 on the request of the state
minorities commission, has thrown light on the socio-economic conditions of the prisoners and come up
with various statistical data of Muslim inmates in the state. It has cleared certain misconceptions about
Muslims and seeks to prove that they are vulnerable to crimes due to their poor economic and social
background. At the time of study, there were 3,086 Muslim prisoners in 15 jails across Maharashtra of
which 2,154 (69.7 per cent) were under trials and 932 (30.2 per cent) were convicts. Of the 3,086 Muslim
prisoners, 339 inmates were interviewed for the study. “At least 25.4 per cent of the respondents did not
have a lawyer to represent them in their case. Among 148 respondents, 70.2 per cent had financial
support from their family. This indicates that most respondents are receiving support from their families as
far as legal fees are concerned. This reinforces the finding that most respondents are not connected to
criminal gangs; otherwise they would most likely have had lawyers financed by these gangs,” the survey
said. Prof. Vijay Raghavan of the Centre for Criminology and Justice, School of Social Work at TISS, who
carried out the study along with his colleague Dr Roshni Nair, highlighted the need to increase the
honorarium paid to legal aid lawyers. “We have suggested to increase the honorarium for legal aid
lawyers in order to provide effective legal aid to under trial prisoners,” he said. It has emerged from the
study that 52.3 per cent of respondents’ bail applications were rejected and only 25.6 per cent were
granted bail. “Of the respondents whose bail was rejected, 48 per cent did not know the reasons behind
the rejection,” said the survey. In most of the cases, it was difficult for the inmates to find suitable sureties
to get released on bail. Judiciary is sometimes reluctant to release under trial prisoners on personal bond
and they end up stuck in prisons, Mr Raghavan said. Noting that the education levels were also low
among the Muslim inmates, it said, “26.8 per cent of them were illiterate, 38.3 per cent had education till
primary level and only 0.6 per cent could pursue post graduation. Also, 48 per cent of the inmates have
no skills.” The study further said, 31.9 per cent of the inmates have technical skills like carpentry,
mechanical skills, AC repair, refrigerator repair, fabrication, fitter skill, tailoring, computer or machine
operating skills, driving, electrical repair, interior designing skills, welding, plumbing, electronics repair,
painting, etc. Majority of the inmates who had technical skills were neither technical graduates nor
diploma-holders and had learnt the skills through on-the-job training, the study said. There are mainly two
categories under which Muslim inmates were charged: bodily offences and offences against property.
The study found that 52.8 per cent of the inmates were charged under sections relating to offences
against human body i.e. charges of murder, attempt to murder, assault, rape, kidnapping, etc. This
implies that majority of respondents are charged under violent offences. Analysis of case studies and the
interviews revealed that most of these violent offences were the result of inter-personal disputes arising
from relationship problems or property-related issues. “This trend matches with the reasons for violent
crimes committed by most people, especially in rural areas”, Mr Raghavan said. 26.3 per cent of the
inmates are arrested under the sections relating to offences against property i.e. theft, robbery and
dacoity, the study revealed. (Asian Age 11/7/15)
Campaign demanding 12% quota for Muslims takes off (7)
HYDERABAD: Let down by the promised 12% quota for Muslims in education and employment not
finding a mention at chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's Dawat-e-Iftar held on Sunday, a group of
activists launched a campaign on Monday asking for reservation. Stating that about 1.07 lakh vacancies
are expected to be created in the state in the near future, Aariz Mohammed of the Muslim Empowerment
Movement (MEM), noted that the Muslim community would stand to lose its 12 per cent share 12,929 jobs
across categories unless the Telangana government chalks out firm plans before issuing a notification. "It
was on July 16 last year that the chief minister had promised reservation. However, at the Iftar party at
Nizam College grounds on Sunday, the issue was conspicuously absent in the speech," Mohammed told
TOI on Monday. Explaining the process behind creating these reservations, he said that only a Backward
Class (BC) Commission could recommend them. "The BC Commission based on data takes a decision
on reservations. However, no new commission has been constituted thus far. Further, the 4 per cent
reservation issue is still with the Supreme Court. The Telangana government should ensure the
implementation of 12 per cent reservations," he said. For this, there is a need to establish beyond doubt
the backwardness of Muslims as this is being challenged in courts of law. Activists said that with different
groups, apart from Muslims, such as SCs and STs demanding a combined reservation of around 26 per
cent and the BCs asking for around 50 per cent, the government should work towards comprehensive
reservation policy. It should also provide empirical evidence pertaining to the backward socio-economic
conditions of these communities, especially the Muslims. Others like Ali Asghar said that apart from rolling
out a reservation policy, the government should also keep its promise of providing free education by
means of the KG to PG scheme. In addition to this, the government must ensure maximum utilization of
budgetary allocations. "While Rs1,030 crore was allocated to the MWD last year, rules for various welfare
and development schemes were not prepared even till the end of the financial year," he said. Though
there was a hike in the allocation of pre-matric scholarships in the scheme, it was not notified in FY 2014-
15 and the disbursement of scholarship amounts under the central government scheme for the same year
began only in May 2015, after the academic year ended, he claimed. The MEM is scheduled to embark
on the awareness campaign by organizing meetings, creating posters and representing the matter to the
government. (Times of India 14/7/15)
Odisha: Muslims take part in Rath Yatra festival in Kendrapara (7)
Kendrapara: For 67-year-old Shaukat Ali, it has become customary to catch a glimpse of the triad of
deities- Jagannath, Balabhadra and sister Subhadra- as they emerge out of their temple abode every
year. Ali says he is an ardent participant in the annual festivities because of tradition and mutual respect.
“I along with family members celebrated Eid festival on Saturday. Later in the day, I went to the grand
road to watch the car festival. Every year, we never miss the car festival,” quipped Ali. “When I was a
teenager, I first witnessed the event. Since then, it has become an annual ritual for my family. Hindus
appreciate our participation in the festival. The trend has passed on to the next generation. Now my grand
children watch the pulling of chariot every year,” remarked Ali. Like him, many from the Muslim
community play a part in chariot festival with melting of religious barrier. As the chariot slowly makes its
way through the streets, the grand event continues to evoke enthusiasm among Muslims. And this spirit
of amity is not restricted to the rath yatra alone. Hindus also participate in festivals observed by Muslims.
“Hindus join in our Eid and other festivals. The two communities also attend each other’s marriages and
other ceremonies,” said Mir Obeda, a local resident. “Kendrapara is enriched with legacy of communal
amity and brotherhood,” said Mohammad Akbar Ali, former chairman, Kendrapara municipality, Odisha.
Muslims comprise around one/third of population in urban areas here. Leaving aside stray cases of
disharmony, both the ommunities respect each other’s religious practice, he said. Though there is a strict
restriction on non-Hindus from entering the world famous temple in Puri, there is no bar on them from
participating in the car festival,” said Nrusingha Patri, a servitor. “I actively participate in rath yatra. I have
pulled the chariot. I derive immense pleasure in doing so,” said Shabir Khan from Jayipura locality
Kendrapara. (Indian Express 20/7/15)
Muslim professor denied accommodation (7)
New Delhi: A Delhi University professor, who teaches English, has appealed to the chief minister to help
her in finding an accommodation as she has been turned away for being a Muslim. Reem Shamsudeen is
a visually-impaired assistant professor at a college affiliated with Delhi University. After the summer
vacation got over in July, Ms Shamsudeen, along with her mother, was supposed to shift to a rented
house. “Despite paying the advance rent to the landlady, when we arrived with our packed bags, she
denied giving us the keys saying that she cannot rent out her flat to a Muslim,” the 30-year-old professor
alleged. Before moving to Delhi in February, she was in Hyderabad for eight years. “I did my MA, MPhil
and Ph.D from English and Foreign Languages University. Never for once have I experienced this level of
discrimination on the basis of my religion.” Hailing from Kerala, Ms Shamsudeen is presently on ad hoc
basis and has recently joined the Delhi University. “This issue isn’t just about me. It is the case of
hundreds of Muslims and people from other minority groups who undergo this kind of harassment and
discrimination.” Through a video, the professor has requested Mr. Kejriwal to look into the matter and help
her get justice. “I believe the State you administer and the Delhi you promised accommodates every other
citizen. I hope no students or other migrant in the city will have to go through this shameful and inhuman
experience in future.” However, this isn’t the first time that cases of Muslims denied accommodations in
the city have come to the fore. Surveys have pointed to various forms of bias, where residents display an
aversion to those belonging to other castes and religions being in their neighbourhood. Even the Rajinder
Sachar Committee in its recommendations in 2005 sought the setting up of an Equal Opportunity
Commission to provide a legal mechanism to address complaints related to discrimination in matters such
as housing. But the Commission was never set up. (The Hindu 24/7/15)
UP beautification plan near Babri site irks Muslims (7)
LUCKNOW/AYODHYA: The Akhilesh government has chalked out an elaborate plan to improve
amenities and beautify the areas around the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya. However,
even before the government can implement its plan, Muslims, particularly the litigants in the title suit,
have opposed the proposal saying any maintenance activity at and around the disputed site would violate
Supreme Court's order for maintaining status quo and also hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims. The
state government recently sanctioned funds for the repair and rebuilding of the barricades and some
temporary constructions around the site to give it a fresh look. Two separate orders to this effect (copies
are with TOI) were issued on July 8 for the police department to make necessary arrangements. A senior
state government official confirmed the proposed beautification plan and said it would not violate the
'status quo' order issued by the Supreme Court. The entire work has to be completed before March 2016.
Opposing the proposal, Khaliq Ahmad Khan, nominee of Maulana Fazlur Rahman, one of the main
litigants from the Muslim side in the Supreme Court, told TOI: "It is not a picnic spot. It is a disputed land
and the title suit is sub-judice before the Supreme Court. There was a mosque before December 6,1992,
which was pulled down unlawfully by a gathering of communal mob, so beautifying it will hurt the
sentiments of Muslims worldwide. The government should only ensure the security of the site and not try
to turn it into a tourist attraction." Senior lawyer and vice chairman of Babri Masjid Action Committee,
Mushtaq Ahmad Siddiqi, said, "The Supreme Court in its order of March 30, 2003, has made it very clear
that status quo would be maintained both on the disputed site and acquired land. So, why is the
government so keen on beautifying such a disputed place?" Apart from the repair and beautification, the
government has also sanctioned three noiseless generators of 124 KVA each to be installed at the site so
that proper lighting arrangements could be made. The government has sanctioned Rs 33 lakh for the
generator sets and Rs 76 lakh for the repair and maintenance and temporary constructions around the
disputed site. This is the first attempt by any government since the Supreme Court had asked to maintain
status quo at and around 2.75-km disputed site after the Babri Masjid demolition. So far, only soiled
tarpaulin covering the site has been changed from time to time for protecting Ram Lala idols kept inside.
(Time of India 25/7/15)
Muslim localities in city neglected: BJP (7)
MEERUT: The minority wing of BJP on Monday staged a protest at Commissionary Chowk here,
demanding that the city's civic bodies pay more attention to residential areas inhabited by Muslims. The
party said Muslim areas are forgotten after Eid is over. The sanitary condition in these localities is
deplorable, they said. "Muslims have become an economically backward community in this state and they
live in relatively backward areas. There is a basic cleanliness problem in these localities. The
administration takes token measures during the month of Ramzan and Eid but the situation goes back to
square one after festive occasions," said minority wing district president Dilshad Ahmed. "Muslim
localities in Meerut are rife with disease that emanate from the lack of cleanliness. Encroachment is a
major problem here and the administration has done nothing to address the problem. If something is
broken in these areas, it remains broken. Nobody bothers to fix it. The road from Pilokhadi Pull to Samar
Garden is broken and it hasn't been fixed. Even the drains in this area are choked. Morever, there are
heaps of garbage in the area that are a breeding ground for diseases. Since these problems will intensify
in the monsoon, the administration must take immediate steps," he added. When asked about the state of
Muslims in BJP-ruled states, Ahmed said, "Muslims in Gujarat are happier than Muslims in UP. However,
I am certain that things will improve for Muslims in the state since the BJP is going to come to power in
UP after the assembly elections of 2017." (Times of India 27/7/15)
Congress seeks ordinance on job quota for Muslims (7)
HYDERABAD: Welcoming the Telangana Government’s move to fill 15,000 vacancies, Leader of
Opposition in Legislative Council Md Ali Shabbir demanded that the Government immediately issue
ordinance to provide 12 p.c. quota each for Muslims and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in those jobs. At a press
conference here on Monday, Mr. Shabbir reminded that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, during
election campaign, promised to provide over one lakh jobs. He reduced the figure to 50,000 after he
came to power. A year later, he assured to fill 25,000 vacancies and finally, he signed files pertaining to
only 15,000 jobs. “We don’t know how many posts would actually be filled. But we welcome the move,” he
said while demanding that Mr. Rao should honour the promise of giving 12 p.c. quota for Muslims and
STs in jobs,” he said. He said once the vacancies are filled, Muslims and STs would be permanently
deprived of opportunity to get Government jobs. Therefore, Government should issue and ordinance
giving reservation to Muslims and STs , he said. (The Hindu 28/7/15)
India home to 180 million Muslims: Indian official (7)
Muslims account for 180 million of India’s 1.1 billion people, Indian Deputy National Security Advidor
Arvind Gupta announced on Saturday. The number was revealed in a meeting between Gupta and
Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, Egyptian grand Imam of al-Azhar and a prominent figure in the Muslim world.
“Al-Azhar is an international institution, respected by the whole world, and we are interested to cooperate
with it and to learn about its vision to counter extremism and terrorism,” Gupta was quoted as saying by
the International Islamic News Agency. Similar figures for the number of Indian Muslims were revealed
during last year’s general elections, leaving India to stand as the world’s third-largest Muslim population
after Indonesia and Pakistan. Official figures indicate that Muslims, who make up around 13% of India’s
population, are lagging behind in literacy and have complained about job discrimination. They account for
less than 7% of public service employees, only 5% of railways workers, around 4% of banking
employees, and there are only 29,000 Muslims in India’s 1.3 million-strong military. Conditions of the
Muslim world and Al-Azhar’s role in dealing with the course of variable events in the Muslim world, came
under discussion during the meeting. Gupta was said to be all praise for Al-Azhar and his efforts in
fighting the Islamic State. (The Express Tribune 1/8/15)
Cong Muslim workers to run ‘Kanwar Sewa’ camps on highway (7)
MEERUT: In a confidence-building measure, the Youth Congress will post its Muslim workers at 'Kanwar
Sewa' camps on highways in western UP. The camps will provide services such as food, water and first
aid to devotees. Youth Congress national secretary Sitaram Lamba told TOI that the party is trying to
"repair the secular fabric" of western UP. "Right now, only a few small camps have been set up at some
locations but we are planning to set up many more camps along the highway. These will provide food,
water, rest and first aid to devotees who are undertaking the Kanwar Yatra. The workers who will run
these Kanwar Sewa camps will primarily be Muslims," Lamba said. Lamba said the aim of these camps is
to bridge the gap between the two communities that developed after the communal riots of 2013 in
Muzaffarnagar. "The secular fabric of the region was ruptured in 2013 and we are trying to repair it. We
know that communal forces will try to widen this gap for political gain considering the impending the state
assembly elections. We are trying to pre emptively counter any such move. ," he said. Speaking about the
other major issue that the Congress has on agenda for the region, he said that reservation for Jats and
communal harmony would be the two linchpins of our campaigns. "The way I see it, the two issues are
linked very closely to each other. Jats were never supporters of the BJP. It was only after the
Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013 that the saffron party started to gain some ground with the community. There
was a simple divide and rule policy at play. Jats and Muslims, two communities who had hitherto co-
existed in peace, were pitted against each other. This was an attempt by the BJP to make inroads with
the Jats. Seemingly, they were successful at first till the Jats started to see their betrayal. The NDA
government has completely forgotten about them but the Congress still stands with them." Lamba said
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi is likely to visit western UP soon. "We don't have a fixed schedule
or itinerary yet but he plans to visit west UP while campaigning for the panchayat polls. If we notice,
incidents of communal violence in the region rise as elections come closer. In a vulnerable time, a leader
of Rahul Gandhi's stature needs to go to the people and spread the message of communal peace. We
will carry out our two-fold campaign under his leadership," he said. (Times of India 5/8/15)
Modi govt giving 'roti' to minorities in place of 'topi': Najma Heptulla (7)
Patna: Prime Minister Narendra Modi might not be wearing skull cap and skipping 'Iftar' parties but his
government, unlike others in the past, was "sincerely" doing work to provide livelihood to minority
communities, Union minister Najma Heptulla on Saturday claimed. "Everybody in the past wore 'topi' but
Prime Minister Narendra Modi government is the first which in place of 'topi' is working sincerely to
provide 'roti' to minority communities," she told reporters. The Union Minority Affairs Minister launched
'Nai Manzil' scheme in poll-bound Bihar today in a bid to reach out to minority Muslims in the election.
She did not give much credence to the Prime Minister not attending an Iftar party recently hosted by
President Pranab Mukherjee. "In truth the 'Iftar' parties hosted by the rich are mostly photo-op events.
Does anybody organise such 'Iftar' parties in 'garibo ki basti' (areas of poor)", she asked. In an apparent
dig at the Congress, Heptulla said its leaders "wore" 'topi' and gave "Sachar committee report" but "none
of its recommendations were sincerely implemented" to improve the lot of the minorities. On the other
hand, Narendra Modi government had made seven promises to minorities on coming to power and six of
them which involves Minority Affairs ministry were "achieved", the senior BJP leader said. The Minority
Affairs minister said Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD president Lalu Prasad claimed
themselves as champions of Muslim causes but in reality they "paid only lip service" to their upliftment.
"Truth is that Muslims in Bihar today are economically worse than dalits," she claimed. On the 'Nai Manzil'
scheme, one of the promises of the Prime Minister, and which was announced by Union Finance Minister
in his budgetary speech, she said, this scheme will help out-of-school or drop-out students of schools and
madrasas get formal class 12 and class 10 certificates so that they get jobs. Such students would be
offered bridge courses and the given certificates for class 12 and class 10 from distance education
system. At the same time, they will also be provided basic training in manufacturing, engineering,
services and soft skills. Heptulla said her ministry took pioneering initiative and helped a "large number" of
Muslims open bank account to avail the Prime Minister's ambitious 'Jan Dhan' yojna. The Union
government provided 86 lakh students of minority communities scholarship for pre-matric and matric
level, she said. (Zee news 8/8/15)
‘Just 4 of 26 hanged since ’91 Muslims’ (7)
NEW DELHI: Just four of the 26 persons executed in India since 1991 belonged to the Muslim
community, and yet a perception has been created by some media channels in the aftermath of the
hanging of Yakub Memon that members of the minority community are being targeted, said government
sources. An internal report by the I&B ministry has taken exception to the "tenor of discussion'' in the four
channels — Aaj Tak, ABP News, NDTV India and NDTV 24X7 — and argued it was a "serious threat to
national security'' and had "sown seeds of distrust between communities.'' The common thread in their
reporting was that Supreme Court had been unfair to Memon. The ministry feels that, at the very least, an
explanation should be demanded from these channels. "Repeated examples of the death sentence of
Beant Singh being commuted are being cited. Truth is both of them are on death row. Similarly in the
Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, it was the Congress government that delayed consideration of the
mercy petition that led to SC converting their death sentence to life imprisonment,'' said a source who had
reviewed the report.The channels have been charged with telecasting content that was denigrating to the
President, judiciary, could incite violence and against national security. The ministry has prepared
grounds for justifying their action against the channels pointing out that two Hindi channels broadcast
wanted gangster Chhota Shakeel's interview without editing out comments that clearly suggested
unleashing of communal violence and made disparaging comments on the judiciary."The world has seen
what you did with Yakub Memon... We don't believe in your judiciary. This was justice based on revenge.
You people took revenge from one person...'' Chhota Shakeel told Aaj Tak. And he told ABP News: "The
world has seen how you have executed an innocent man... After Babri Masjid people had taken action
and many things had happened. For every action, there is a reaction... there are many people besides us
(who can take action).''The anchor on NDTV India described the order to hang Memon as "unfortunate''
and said that the courts only found merit in the prosecution's case while NDTV 24X7 in an interview of
lawyer Majeed Memon broadcast remarks against the Indian judicial system. Memon was quoted
commenting on the pardon given to accused Usmann Jaan Khan saying, "If you show this pardon to any
person outside India, UK authorities or US authorities or the best brains in the world as far as criminal law
is concerned, they will laugh at you. They will laugh at you; they'll say is this justice? Usmaan Jaan Khan
has played a role in this whole operation 10 times more than Yakub.''The ministry has also pointed out
that former Congress minister Manish Tewari's claim that no notices were issued under UPA government
was incorrect.,,, (Times of India 11/8/15)
Attempts being made to impose vedic culture on Muslims: AIMPLB (7)
Lucknow: Charging that efforts were being made to impose Hindu culture on other religions through
introduction of yoga in schools, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board has sought support of other
community leaders to launch a campaign against such attempts. The Board would decide its strategy in
its convention to be held in Bhopal tomorrow. Working general secretary of AIMPLB Maulana Wali
Rahmani charged that as part of a conspiracy an effort was being made to "imprint Hindu culture in the
mindset of children of other religions, including Muslims".He alleged that this was being done by making
yoga mandatory in schools. Rahmani said AIMPLB would launch "Deen aur Dastoor Bachao Tahreek"
against this attempt to force "vedic culture" in which religious leaders and followers of different religions,
including Hindu, Sikh and Christian, would be associated. "We believe that by associating leaders of
different religious this campaign will become successful. Special deliberation will be made on this issue at
the AIMPLB meeting tomorrow," he told PTI. Charging that Brahmin religion was being implemented on
new generation, he said, this is a threat to both 'Deen-e-Islam' and the Constitution. "Under Article 28 of
the Constitution any religion and its tradition could not be forced on others," he said. Rehmani said that
the board was of the clear view that every person should follow his religion strongly, but it should not be
forced on others. He said Imams of different mosques, madrassas, teachers, students and those who
agree with the objections and apprehensions of the board have been invited in the convention. Earlier the
AIMPLB had accused the NDA government of violating the Constitution and implementing the RSS
agenda by introducing practices such as yoga. Reaching out directly to Muslim organisations and Imams,
the apex body representing Muslims in the country, had said that the community should remain "cautious"
as there are organisations that are "attacking" Islamic beliefs. The AIMPLB had slammed the
government's move to push for yoga, saying its a violation of the Constitution, which does not allow
promotion of religious activities by the government. "In the present scenario, the government and under
its garb several organisations and individuals are today violating the Constitution," Maulana Wali
Rehmani, the working general secretary of the AIMPLB, had said in a letter sent to various Muslim bodies
and individuals. He had alleged that the celebration of 'Yoga Day' and introduction of 'Surya namaskar'
and Vande Matram in the schools were aimed at implementing the RSS agenda. (eccan Herald 16/8/15)
Panel to study status of Muslims in Telangana (7)
HYDERABAD: The recently constituted Commission of Inquiry (CoI) will look into social, economic and
educational status of Muslims in Telangana, commission chairman G Sudhir said on Tuesday.
Addressing the media, Sudhir, a retired bureaucrat, said that the nine Terms of Reference (ToR) entailed
that the commission conduct a detailed study on the socio-economic status of Muslims. "We will have to
do a see what kind of problems there are and the level of attainment," he said. Explaining the
methodology of data collation, Sudhir explained that information from the both agencies of the state and
Centre would be taken. Relevant data with the Census of India, National Sample Survey Organisation,
Centre for Economic and Social Studies will also be used, he added. The CoI will also invite suggestions
from the public. The CoI will embark on a tour of the districts of the state in the first week of September to
understand the level of implementation of schemes and to interact with government officials and others.
Here, the commission will visit Muslim populated areas and study development vis-a-vis neighbourhoods
populated by members of other communities. The CoI has been given a timeframe of six month to
complete the study. Seeking to explain the need for carrying out the study by asking questions,
commission member and development economist Amirullah Khan said, "Data suggests that urban
facilities across the country have improved. But have they also improved in Muslim-dominated areas?
Every community in the last 10 years has seen an increase in enrolment in primary education. Muslim
beneficiaries are as good as any other community. But by the time they are 11 or 12 years old, there is a
70 percent dropout rate. Is this the case in Telangana? The drop out rate among boys is more than that in
girls in the Muslim community. It would be interesting to see find out why this is happening," he said. The
CoI will also study the trends in healthcare and political representation in the Muslim community. "All over
India, health is not good. But there has been meagre improvement. It is only in the health indicator that
Muslim children are better. But they join levels of other communities as they grow up. What is the reason
for this positive handicap and why is it lost," Khan, who was also a member of the Kundu Committee,
said. Taking questions from TOI on whether the commission's recommendations would stand in courts of
law as only a Backward Class Commission has the constitutional right to recommend reservations, Khan
said that CoI would ensure that it presents a strong report which will support welfare measures.
Commission members also cited the prevailing 69 percent reservations in education and employment for
backward classes in Tamil Nadu as a precedent. Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was
intent on providing reservations to Muslims, he added. Other members who spoke were Tata Institute of
Social Science professor Abdul Shaban, also a member of the Mahmood-ur-Rahman Committee in
Maharashtra, secretary, tribal welfare GD Aruna and MA Bari. (Times of India 19/8/15)
AIMPLB to hold all-India meet of Imams against 'imposition' of yoga, surya namaskar (7)
LUCKNOW: The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) will ask Imams of mosques to educate
Muslims about attacks on Islamic beliefs and how to counter them by taking up such issues in their
sermons before Friday prayers. The Board will take up the proposal at a clerics' meet scheduled to be
held in Amroha in UP in September. The AIMPLB considers yoga and surya namaskar as issues that are
against Islamic beliefs. "The idea behind the move is to inform the community about the attempts being
made to attack the Islamic beliefs, what is wrong about such attempts, and how a Muslim should resist
such moves in a peaceful, democratic and lawful manner," said Kamaal Farooqui, AIMPLB office-bearer
and head of the organising committee for the event. Farooqui, who is a native of Amroha, said, "The
event will be attended by Imams from all over India." The Amroha event will implement the agenda of the
AIMPLB working committee meeting held in Jaipur earlier this year, which called for an awareness
campaign among Muslims on issues related to Sharia and attempts to attack Islamic beliefs. "Muslims
should always remain cautious as there are organisations that are attacking Islamic beliefs and trying to
impose Brahmin dharma. All this yoga, surya namaskar and Vedic culture are part of Brahmin dharma
and totally against Islamic beliefs," AIMPLB working secretary Maulana Wali Rehmani had said in a letter
to the Board members after the Jaipur meet. Elaborating on some issues which are against Sharia,
AIMPLB executive committee member Zafaryab Jilani said, "Muslims should know why surya namaskar
and yoga are being opposed, what does Islam say about such issues and how one should counter
attempts to force Muslims to perform surya namaskar in a lawful and peaceful manner." "By incorporating
such issues in the khutba (sermons) that are delivered before the Friday afternoon prayers, common
Muslims will take them seriously," said Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Mahali, another member of the
Board's executive committee. (Times of India 21/8/15)
92% of Muslim women in India want oral triple talaq to go: Study (7)
NEW DELHI: Should unilateral, triple talaq be banned? An overwhelming number of Muslim women in the
country think so. In a first of its kind study, the women have unequivocally voiced their dissent against the
discriminatory practice of triple talaq with 92.1% seeking its ban. Oral talaq delivered through new media
platforms like Skype, text messages, email and Whatsapp have become an increasing cause of worry for
the community. A study conducted across 10 states by NGO Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA)
— working for reforms in Muslim personal law — found that a majority of the women were economically
and socially disadvantaged, over half had been married before the age of 18 and had faced domestic
violence.The study, which interviewed 4,710 women between July and December 2013, reveals that
91.7% of the respondents opposed a second marriage by their husbands. About 73% women surveyed
were from families that earned less than Rs 50,000 annually and 55% were married before they reached
18. An overwhelming 82% had no property in their name and 78% were homemakers, indicating absence
of income. Over 53% reported having faced domestic violence in their lives while a majority was poorly
educated. In 2014, of the 235 cases that came to women Sharia adalats that we run, 80% were of oral
talaq,'' author of the study Zakia Soman said, adding that women were forced to bear the brunt of the
practice. Most women (93%) were in favour of an arbitration process before divorce and 83.3% believed
that codification of Muslim family law would help get justice. Codification of Muslim personal law has been
resisted by the community citing religious interference. Responding to this, Soman said, "Government has
molly-coddled and appeased those groups which have taken upon themselves to speak for the
community. It is our constitutional right. For groups that cite religious freedom as an argument, it is at the
expense of women's rights.''Co-author Noorjehan Safia Niaz said, "An overwhelming number of women
demands reforms in Muslim personal law. They want an elaborate codified law based on the Quranic
justice framework to cover matters such as age of marriage, divorce procedures, polygamy, maintenance
and custody of children.''BMMA plans to take the issue up with the government, Law Commission and the
National Commission for Women (NCW). (Times of India 21/8/15)
Bengal beats India in Muslim growth rate (7)
KOLKATA: In three districts of Bengal, Murshidabad, Malda and North Dinajpur, the Muslim population
has surpassed the Hindu population, the Census 2011 data on Population by Religious Communities
released on Tuesday, reveals. Moreover, if in India the Hindu population has dipped by 0.7 per cent, in
Bengal it is much higher at 1.94 per cent. Correspondingly, if the Muslim population has increased by 0.8
per cent, in Bengal the growth has a higher rate - 1.77 per cent. In Bengal's 9.12 crore population, Hindus
still comprise 6.4 crore people or 70.53 per cent of the population. Muslims comprise 2.4 crore population
or 27.01 per cent. Compared to the 2001 Census data, this is slightly higher. For a decade earlier, the
Hindu population in Bengal was 5.8 crore and Muslim population was 2 crore. Bengal's population then,
too was far lesser, at 8.01 crore. The only thing constant then and now is the asymmetrical spread of
Bengal's population by religion. Three districts which the Muslims have overshot the Hindus at
Murshidabad (47 lakh Muslims; 23 lakh Hindus), Malda (20 lakh Muslims; 19 lakh Hindus) and North
Dinajpur (15 lakh Muslims; 14 lakh Hindus). For Adhir Chowdhury, Berhampore's Congress MLA and
state Congress president, it doesn't pack a punch here. "If Anatanag district is highest in number of
Muslims by percentage; Murshidabad is the highest by headcount. Infact, history says in Murshidabad the
national tricolor was unfurled two days after August 15, 1947, for they had all but taken it that they would
cede to East Pakistan. So I am not much surprised by the outcome," he says. Trinamool Congress MP
Sultan Ahmed reasons, "I would like to interpret this due to the proximity of these districts to the Muslim-
dominated districts of Kishangunj, Purnia and Katihar in Bihar. The BJP may cry itself hoarse raising the
Bangladeshi immigrant bogey but had it been true, this would have been the picture in Nadia and North
24-Parganas, too." In North 24-Parganas, the country's most populous district with 10,009,781 people,
Hindus account for over 73-lakhs and Muslims over 25-lakhs. In Nadia, Hindus account for 37 lakhs while
Muslims 13 lakhs. "The incremental increase, which is in sync with the growth of population in Bengal
buries the illegal migration theory, once for all," Ahmed asserted… (Times of India 26/8/15)
Muslims grow 10% more than Hindus and Christians in Kerala (7)
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Muslim population in Kerala has been growing at a faster rate compared
with the Hindu and the Christian population. A TOI analysis of the 2001 and 2011 religion-based census
data showed the state's Muslim population grew by 12.23% while the other two communities (Hindus up
by 2.23%, Christians by 1.38%) lagged far behind. The Muslim population rose from 78.63 lakh to 88.73
lakh. The Hindu population went up from 1.78 crore in 2001 to 1.82 crore in 2011. The Christians in the
state had a marginal rise, from 60.57 lakh to 61.41 lakh in the last decade. Experts attribute the Muslim
proclivity for a bigger family to a spectrum of factors, including affluence, early marriage, adherence to
joint-family system and strong religious belief. International population expert P Arokiasamy said the
corresponding fall in proportion of the Christians may be due to fall in fertility rate. "The fertility rate of the
Christians started falling much earlier than other religions and thus the population growth is minimal or
has declined in some parts of the country. The delayed marriage and adherence two-child norm are the
other reasons,'' he said. The largest Muslim population is in Malappuram district. Ernakulam district has
the largest number of Christians while the highest concentration of Hindus is in Thiruvananthapuram
district. (Times of India 27/8/15)
Muslims want education, jobs and development (7)
BHAGALPUR: The tone and tenor of minority community members present in good number at the PM
Narendra Modi's rally was different. They talked about education, enhancing technical skill, employment
opportunities and development in Bihar. At the same time, they didn't feel comfortable talking about
infamous 1989 Bhagalpur riots after nearly 26 years. They, instead, dismissed the riots as a non-issue
which the political parties should not raise to bully any community. Communal harmony and peaceful
coexistence with state's development was the buzz word for them, now. They were seen discussing
'vikas, vishwash, vichar aur pradesh mey kaisi sarkar (development, trust, understanding and what kind of
government in the state needed). TOI talked to a cross-section of the minorities to elicit their points of
view vis-a-vis assembly election in the state. Md Manjoor Ali, a Bhagalpur local, said "aman-chaain aur
vikas hi mudda hai aur hum log bacchon ko acchi shiksha dena chahte hain (communal harmony and
development are the issues and we want good education for our children)". MBA graduate Syed Zeejah
Hussain, who works in a private company and is a social activist, said development is very important for
every section of the society, including minorities. Communal feeling fades away with education and
development. It is a heartwarming situation that every politician now talks about development, he added.
Dr Imtiyazur Rehman, a leading neurosurgeon, said 1989 riots memories have faded away and new
generation has come up. "We all want development and education. We want quality education for our
children, he said. Md Arif said earlier people used to vote on different counts, but now the focus is on
development, employment, electricity, roads, law and order, etc. It is for sure that developmental issues
are on the forefront and other issues have taken a back seat, echoed Hasnain Ali. Md Jumman, an old
man sitting at the meeting ground, said, "Hum gareeb hain kya bolen, lekin tarakki hogi, aman chain hoga
toh sabka bhala hoga. Abhi tak toh sirf log bewakoof banatey aaye hain." (Times of India 1/9/15)
Ansari's words have weight, govt must plumb depths of Muslim exclusion (7)
Addressing a jubilee meeting of the All India Majlis-e-Mushawarat, the vice-president offered an eloquent
assessment of the condition of Indian Muslims. He referred to the “shadow of physical and psychological
insecurity” that they experienced at the time of Independence — and spelt out the deprivations they
endure today. Mr Ansari carefully referenced governmental assessments like the Sachar Committee
report which said that on most socio-economic indicators, Muslims were on the “margins of structures of
political, economic and social relevance” and, in many cases, their condition was worse than that of the
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.Mr Ansari said their principal problems related to identity and
security, education and empowerment, equitable share of the largesse of the state and a fair share in
decision-making. Reiterating social democratic principles, he said the default by the State in terms of
exclusion ought to be corrected by the State and argued that affirmative action is a prerequisite for
achieving the objective of sab ka saath sab ka vikas. This proposition may not materialise anytime soon,
particularly since the ongoing Patidar agitation intends on doing away with reservations altogether. That
said, the Centre must heed Mr Ansari and ensure that Muslims are accorded the full measure of their
rights as citizens. The Post Sachar Evaluation Committee noted in 2014 that Muslims continue to ‘live in
areas that are denied public services of any kind and have considerably lower incomes than their
counterparts among all socio-economic groups’. The State is regrettably yet to plumb the extent of
Muslim exclusion. There is, for instance, no religion-specific data about public service recruitment. All we
know is that the share of minorities as a whole in 37 central government ministries and departments
increased from 4.49% in 2006-07 to 7.74% in 2012-13, far lower than the share of the Muslim population,
which was close to 14% during the period. Mr Ansari spoke also about internal factors constraining
Muslim development and about the need to be anchored in modernity and yet critically engaging it. But
his primary point about State responsibility remains, which should take the first step by gathering and
publicising religion-based data in order to improve services. Most social sector programmes do not
identify beneficiaries by socio-religious categories. Schemes meant for minorities will not be effective
unless that changes. (Hindustan Times 3/9/15)
Muslim Board to campaign against imposition of Brahminical culture (7)
Hyderabad: The All India Muslim Personal Law Board, the apex body of Indian Muslims, has decided to
launch a nationwide campaign against attempts by the government to impose Brahminical culture and
vedic dharam. Voicing concern over the threats posed to the religious and cultural identity of minorities
and other groups, the board announced the launch of the 'deen aur dastur bachao' (save religion and
constitution) campaign. The board has also involved other minority groups and organisations from the
depressed classes in the campaign. Stating that an "alarming" situation was prevailing in the country,
AIMPB general secretary Moulana Sajjad Naomani told a news conference here on Saturday that the
attempts to impose a Brahminical social order and rituals like yoga, surya namaskar and Vande Mataram
were against the Indian Constitution. "This is not bothering just Muslims but also all other social and
religious units. As the largest minority, the board took up the responsibility to take all along and launch a
movement to save our faith and constitution," he said. As part of the campaign public meetings, seminars
and symposiums would be organised to bring about public awareness and to demand implementation of
the constitution in letter and spirit. The board also plans to wage a legal battle by challenging the
imposition of Brahminical rituals. It will also challenge in the Supreme Court the orders of the Madhya
Pradesh and Rajasthan high courts, which ruled that rituals like surya namaskar should be optional.
"Even optional is against the constitution. Imposing culture of a particular community on all is not fair," he
said. When asked if the board would also make a representation to the prime minister or home minister,
he said this was not on their agenda for now. Naomani said it is shameful that Prime Minister Narendra
Modi says one thing and then does something else. "We have no objection to what he is saying. What all
he is saying is good but there is so much difference in what he says and what he is doing. Our movement
is against his actions not his statements," he said. The Muslim leader said minorities can't be deprived of
their religious and social identity in the same of development. "On one side you talk of development and
on the other you want to deprive minorities of religious and social identity and you take actions and make
legislations for this," he said. He also took strong exception to the prime minister's meetings with the RSS
leaders and said this was a government of India and not a government of Hindus and Brahmins. "Muslims
can never compromise on their faith come what may. The community is disturbed with the
developments," he said while pointing out that India is a secular democratic country and the constitution
guarantees religious freedom. Naomani said some forces were bent upon distracting the community from
its fundamental faith and way of life. He cited examples of large scale changes in the education system
and changes in the syllabus of schools and colleges. The board leaders claimed that efforts were being
made to amend the laws, which may affect Muslim personal laws. "The communal forces are upbeat with
the support of people at the helm of affairs. The growing communalism is not only a danger to the Muslim
community but also to other religious, cultural and social groups. This communalism will hamper the
growth and well being of the people," the board said. AIMPB secretary Moulana Vali Rehmani and other
key figures including AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, Abdul Raheem Qureshi and Moulana Khalid
Saifullah Rehmani were also present. (Business Standard 5/9/15)
Muslims criticize Saamna for 'go to Pak' remark, say they are part of India's ethos (7)
MUMBAI: Muslim leaders have termed the 'Muslims can go to Pakistan' remark in Sena mouthpiece
Saamna as provocative and derogatory."The Shiv Sena and all other Hindutva outfits who keep saying
that Muslims have an option to go to Pakistan need to re-read history. Muslims had an option in 1947 but
those who remained in India did so because they preferred pluralistic India over exclusivist Islamic
Pakistan. Our forefathers fought for the country's freedom and we have contributed to its progress.
Saamna should resist from raking up an outdated issue," said Jamiatul Ulema-e-Hind (Maharashtra)
president Maulana Mustaqeem Azmi. He added that calling Indian Muslims Pak sympathizers was
Hindutva's favourite pastime and sensible people laugh at this "idiocy" as Indian Muslims are completely
integrated to India's multicultural ethos. Community leaders also attacked the Sena for trying to turn a
dietary issue into a communal flashpoint. "Muslims rejected Jinnah's diabolical two-nation theory because
they loved and continue to love this country. We don't need certificate of patriotism from fascists. Instead
of pitting two minorities—Muslims and Jains—against each another, Saamna should raise the issue of
farmers whose distress has only accentuated due to the beef ban and will face more hardship if mutton is
also banned frequently," said MIM legislator Waris Pathan. Congress MLA Amin Patel said: "India is our
motherland and no one can question our patriotism. A party which has little regard for law and order has
no right to say that Muslims have Pakistan as an alternative country. Just as Hindus and Jains and others
who were born here have no other country, Muslims too believe that their destiny lies in India and not
Pakistan which became Islamic only in name but has nothing Islamic about it. Muslims will go nowhere
and continue to contribute to India's growth." (Times of India 11/9/15)
Quran copies found burnt in Panipat (7)
KARNAL: Tension prevailed in Panipat on Tuesday as around ten copies of holy book of Quran were
allegedly burnt by unidentified miscreants in the industrial city on Monday. A large number of Muslims
gathered at Panipat secretariat and demanded action against those responsible for the act. While
assuring a strict action against the culprits, deputy commissioner Sameer Pal Srow has appealed to all
sections of the society to maintain peace. Irfan Ali, a Muslim leader from Panipat, told Hindustan Times
over phone on Tuesday that 10 to12 copies of the holy book were found missing on Monday from a shop
hired by Muslims living near Kutani road for community recitation of the holy book. The set was allegedly
found burnt in a tandoor kept at an adjacent dhabha. He alleged that Ram Singh, a local resident,
quarrelled with some Muslims on last Thursday and had threatened them. However, he clarified that
Singh was in an inebriated condition and the community had not pointed a direct finger at anyone for
hurting its sentiments. "We had duly registered the incident of verbal duel and it is up to the police to
verify if Singh had any direct or indirect role behind the crime. But it is a matter of fact that Ram Singh
was providing free water service to the Muslim gathering before our prayers," said Ali.
He said that on Monday, it was found that holy books kept at the place of community prayers were
missing and later these were traced in a burnt condition at a nearby dhabha. Police sources said as the
dhabha owner came to his shop he found fire in the tandoor outside. On sifting through the ashes, he
found traces of the holy book. "The material used in the printing and binding the holy books does not get
burnt completely. The quality led us to trace the book remains from a heap of ash," said Ali. He said that
some people from various communities might try to give communal colour to the unfortunate incident, but
the local Muslims had made an appeal to everyone to maintain peace. Meanwhile, the Panipat DC met a
Muslim delegation and assured them administration's full support. In a statement, the DC said that a
police complaint had already been registered and nobody would be allowed to disturb communal
harmony in the district. "The administration urges various sections of the society to contact the district
authorities for any complaint. They should not allow anyone to take political mileage out of this
condemnable incident," said the DC. (Hindustan Times 15/9/15)
‘Ban-fatwa culture’ growing under Modi regime: Congress (7)
NEW DELHI: Congress on Wednesday warned that "ban-fatwa culture" was growing under the Modi
government and threats to icons Rajnikanth and A R Rahman were symptomatic of the trend over the last
15 months. AICC spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said over the past few months, Indians had been told
"what to wear, celebrate, eat, watch, who to walk with in the park, if they can hold hands, what religion
people should follow, how to pray and what to teach".He said there was an exponential rise in bans and
fatwas, pointing to unprecedented killings of rationalists like Dabholkar and Kalburgi, and asked if this
was the 21st century India that Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised countrymen. Singhvi said the
blame fell squarely on the "pseudo-religiosity of RSS which sees India, the most diverse place on earth,
through the prism of homogenous paradigm of religion and language".Congress said the actions of outfits
claiming to be the guardians of Islam were equally condemnable. "The threats to Rahman and Rajnikanth
are two sides of the same coin -- extreme intolerance which is the anti-thesis of the idea of India," he said.
Singhvi lamented that while ministers and members of the ruling BJP and shadowy outfits of the RSS had
repeatedly indulged in inflammatory statements, there was not even a pro-forma admonishment from the
PM, "forget about actions or punishment". (Times of India 17/9/15)
Education for All, Muslims Can't be Kept in the Dark (7)
Bihar invariably features in every discourse on education and it is usually not for the right reasons. With
its glorious history and traditions of knowledge quest, institutions of global repute, enlightened luminaries
like Lord Mahavira and Gautama Buddha, and rulers like Ashoka the Great, the current education
scenario in Bihar saddens practically everyone, except the politicians in power! Decline and degeneration
is apparent at every stage and aspect of education. On Teachers’ Day, around 600 citizens of Bihar met
in a seminar on Taleem Ki Taqat, the deliberations focusing on how the Muslim community could
extricate itself from backwardness, unemployment, poverty and, above all, a sense of desperation and an
oft-mentioned sense of victimhood. Speakers, achievers in their own field, rather uniformly emphasised
how essential it was to develop self-image and acquire self-assurance in being partners in the progress of
development. It emerged prominently that the Muslim community is keen to let their children get modern
education, along with the traditional Dini Taleem. Instances were cited how innovative efforts to reach
mosques with proposals to teach science and mathematics in addition to religious education were
accepted without any hesitation. An innovative imam from Chennai narrated how concerned he felt for the
community as for decades no youth qualified in the Civil Services Examinations from Tamil Nadu. He
began with a batch of 60 and every year, young Muslim boys and girls are doing well in examinations. He
exhorted the community to act, not complain or expect someone else to come and solve their issues. He
was greatly applauded when he exhorted the community to move out of the shackles of minority-ism and
reservations. Instead, they must rise to realise their full potential as dignified Indians. Another speaker
said the least they deserved from the state governments were ‘truly functional schools’! That alone could
have transformed the socio-economic profile of the community within 10 years. He felt that it would have
brought greater benefits to the community than what the Sachar Committee or Ranganath Misra reports
could do. A functional school means qualified teachers with half of them being women, necessary
infrastructure with computer education provisions in place, and working toilets for boys and girls, drinking
water, regularity and punctuality, and the mother tongue as the medium. Is India not resourceful enough
to provide even this much to its minorities and weaker sections? Those who shout hoarse to drive away
the communal forces from Bihar and thrive on casteism and communalism in the garb of secularism must
account for at least one factor: Why have they not provided even primary education of good quality to
Muslims in Bihar? Has this been a deliberate political ploy to perpetuate poverty amongst a large section
of Indian citizens? The audience response during the deliberations and also afterwards was indeed far
different from the prevailing perceptions. Several youths appeared convinced that the first priority is
universal elementary education that focuses on quality and skill orientation. It should also impart human
values, and basics of all religions indicating their commonalities. That would inculcate the spirit of working
together and develop respect for diversity. This is what India needs in these times of global turmoil and
terror created by religious fanatics. Which other country can match the record of India in people living
together and according equal respect to all religions? In Bihar, every classroom is a multi-religious
ensemble and this is the strength of Bihar. A young person told one of the speakers, “Sir, we shall now
ask for schools that are equipped to teach and impart skills. We feel ashamed that now we are known for
fake degrees, copying in examinations and the entire education system being in a shambles. Bihar shall
regain its glory and primacy in ideas, knowledge and wisdom through the doors of its primary schools!”
Let everyone wish him success. There can be no better way of celebrating Teachers’ Day. (New Indian
Express 19/9/15)
85% of rural landowners are Hindus; Muslims account for just over 11%: Report (7)
New Delhi: An overwhelming majority of rural, landowning households in the country are Hindus — with
their number growing between 2004-05 and 2011-12 — while Muslims constitute only a small minority, a
new government-endorsed study has found. According to the ‘India Rural Development Report 2013-14’
by IDFC, whose foreward has been written by Rural Development Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh,
nearly 85 per cent of rural, landowning households in 2011-12 were Hindus, and this percentage
increased from 2004-05, while Muslim households constituted just over 11 per cent with the figure having
declined in the same period. In 2006, the Rural Development Ministry under then minister Jairam Ramesh
had inked an agreement for the publication of an annual India Rural Development Report by the IDFC
Rural Development Network. This is the second edition of the report. In 2011-12, while Hindus accounted
for 84.2 per cent of rural landowners, Muslims and other minorities constituted 11.2 per cent and 4.6 per
cent respectively. The figure rose for Hindus in the period between 2004-05 and 2011-12, with a
corresponding decline in the share of the other religious communities. In 2004-05, 81.8 per cent rural
landowners were Hindu households. While Muslims and other minorities accounted for 12.7 and 5.4 per
cent, respectively. Among social groups, data showed that over 40 per cent of rural, landowning
households belonged to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), with the percentage having increased
between 2004-05 and 2011-12. In 2004-05, 41.2 per cent of rural landowners were OBCs, 30.7 per cent
were ‘others’, 19.7 per cent were SCs and 8.4 per cent were from the Scheduled Tribes. The share of
both SCs, STs grew in 2011-12, but at a pace slower than than that of the OBCs. In 2011-12, OBCs held
44.2 per cent land in rural areas, and the figure for ‘Others’, SCs and STs was 23.7 per cent, 20.9 per
cent and 11.2 per cent respectively. In terms of employment status in the farm sector in rural India (above
15 years of age), 61.5 per cent of Muslims were self-employed in 2011-12, as against 65 per cent of
Hindus and 72.1 per cent of other minorities. The corresponding figures in 2004-05 were 62.7 per cent,
63.8 per cent and 68.5 per cent, respectively. The gender break-up for self employed rural people in the
farm sector, however, showed a slightly different picture. In 2011-12, 65 per cent of Muslim women were
self-employed, as against 63.6 per cent of Hindu women and 74.7 of those from other minorities. Among
men, 60.3 per cent of Muslims belonged to this category, as against 65.8 per cent Hindus and 70.5 per
cent from other minorities. In the non-farm sector, 50.8 per cent Muslims were self-employed in 2011-12
— 71.1 per cent women as against 45.8 per cent men. However, among Hindus, 37.6 per cent were self-
employed, with a less stark gender variation at 37 per cent for men and 39.6 per cent for women. The
high numbers for Muslim women in this category was attributed partly to their “restricted mobility” by this
report. It also showed that rural poverty remained “high” among STs and SCs. (Indian Express 23/9/15)
Indict Muslims who wed off minor girls: Gujarat high court (7)
AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat high court has held that the special law - Prohibition of Child Marriage Act
(PCMA) - will prevail over the Muslim Personal Law in cases where Muslims marry off their minor
daughters. Promoters of such marriages will face legal proceedings. The question was whether action
can be taken against people who promote or permit marriage of a Muslim girl less than 18 years because
the Sharia laws permit a girl to take decision about her marriage when she attains the age of puberty, at
around 15. Justice J B Pardiwala on Wednesday ruled that all those who promote or permit such child
marriages are liable to be prosecuted under the central law that bans such early nuptials. The case in
question before the high court was from Gaekwad Haveli police station, where abduction and rape
charges were leveled against Yunush Shaikh (28) who had eloped with a 16-year old girl living in his
neighbourhood. Before elopement, they had also got married in December last year. The girl's father
lodged an FIR and sections 363, 366, 376 of the IPC, provisions of Prevention of Children from Sexual
Offences Act (POCSO) were invoked apart from the PCMA. Looking at the provisions of Personal Laws
and IPC, Justice Pardiwala dropped charges of abduction, luring and rape. However, the HC said that
even in cases of child marriage involving Muslims, the provisions of PCMA cannot be overlooked and
action must be taken against those responsible, said Shaikhs' counsel Soeb Bhoheria. In reaching this
conclusion, the judge spoke of numerous citations from other high courts, the Supreme Court as well as
from laws of other countries. He also extensively cited the Islamic texts besides relying on an article
written by former SC judge Markandey Katju. The HC observed about rigidity on part of Islamic authorities
in interpretation of ancient laws, "Those who have not allowed to change the Muslim Personal Law have
done a great disservice to the community. At the same time, it is also true that as the social condition in
the nation and throughout the world continues to change. The reality of life is that even without a code on
personal law of Muslim in so far as the marriage is concerned, the child marriage is going into oblivion.
Education, changing pattern of the family structure, the structure of the family in the context of reality of
the world, and economic necessities are on their own precipitating the situation. The members of the
community have realized the evil consequences of getting a Muslim girl married at a tendered age of 16
or 17 years." (Times of India 25/9/15)
Decoding the data: Bihar’s Muslim vote, oscillating between diversity and uniformity (7)
There are two features that politically distinguish the Muslims of Bihar. They participate in all kinds of
political processes while retaining their socio-religious identities. Although this form of political
participation is not exclusively Bihar-centric as Muslims in other parts of India, too, are actively involved in
various kinds of politics, the enthusiasm with which politics as a sanctified activity is imbibed in the
cultural universe of Muslim communities of Bihar is certainly unique. Secondly, the upsurge of Pasmanda
politics in the 1990s, which raised the question of internal power structures among Muslims, has
transformed the debate on affirmative action in the country. Thus, it is imperative to ask: do Muslims vote
as a political community in Bihar? A CSDS-Lokniti survey of 2014 offers some interesting trends. It shows
that over 60 per cent Muslims (including OBC Muslims) went with the Congress-RJD alliance, while 21
per cent went with the JD(U). Muslims, as was expected, overwhelmingly rejected the BJP. This is also
true about the Yadav votes. The RJD again emerged as their first choice. Is it thus appropriate to say that
the Yadav-Muslim alliance has resurfaced as an important configuration to counter the Modi-BJP? If that
is the case, can we say that “defeating” the BJP or securing “secularism” might provoke Muslims to act as
a political community in an electoral sense? bihar graphIn the 2010 assembly election, Muslim OBCs
simply went with the Congress. However, it did not affect the Muslim support of the RJD as both general
and OBC Muslims continued to support it. What is most interesting is the noticeable Muslim backing to
the BJP, which emerged a significant choice for both categories of Muslims. However, a very different
political picture comes up in 2014. Though Muslim OBCs did go with the JD(U) to a significant extent, the
RJD was the first choice for most Muslims. These figures lead us to a general inference that Muslims in
Bihar do act collectively as an electoral group. However, this general conclusion needs to be qualified.
Two possible interpretations can be drawn. It is true that the BJP’s aggressive politics and Modi-centric
campaign played a role in organising Muslims at the state level. But this reconfiguration was not
unidirectional. Muslims, it seems, did not follow any active agenda in trying to defeat the BJP. The Muslim
vote was divided among the political formations that offered various socially cohesive alternatives.
Secondly, we must note that the big electoral ideas — development, poverty eradication and even
protection of secular values — actually translate at a constituency level. Muslims voters, like other social
groups, perceive these slogans in their own locally constituted political universe and respond to them
accordingly. The fragmented Muslim vote share secured by various parties in 2014 demonstrates this
aspect well. Modi’s anti-Muslim image or BJP’s pro-Hindu politics, in this sense, is not necessarily
received by Muslims at constituency level in a homogenous way…. (Indian Express 29/9/15)
NCRB data: 21% undertrials lodged in jails are Muslims (7)
New Delhi: Muslims make up for over 21 per cent of all undertrials lodged in various jails in the country
even as their population is just over 14 per cent of the country’s total population, the latest data on
prisons by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) showed. An analysis of NCRB’s prison data of
states with significant Muslim population also revealed that in some states the ratio of percentage of
Muslim undertrials in jails to that of the population is almost 2:1.In states such as West Bengal,
Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan, Muslims have almost double the share in undertrial population in
prisons than their actual share in population. In Bengal, where Muslims make up for 27 per cent of the
population as per to the 2011 Census, they account for 47 per cent of undertrials in jails. The figure is
shocking as it shows that almost half of all undertrials in Bengal are Muslims. The situation is worse in
Maharashtra. With a population share of just 12 per cent, Muslims make up 26 per cent of all undertrials
in jails. Gujarat fares just as poorly with Muslims making 23 per cent of all undertrials in the state against
a population share of just 10 per cent. In Rajasthan, percentage share of Muslim undertrials in jails (18
per cent) is double their share in the population (9 per cent). Jharkhand and UP, both with sizeable
Muslim population, have disproportionate Muslim representation in jails. While the minority political outfits
often blame police bias, sociologists cite poor socio-economic condition of Muslims as one of the
reasons. In north India, Bihar fared well. With a significant population of Muslims at 17 per cent, the state
had 18 per cent jail inmates from the community. Kerala was the only Hindu-majority state with a
significant Muslim population that bucked the trend. Against a Muslim population of 27 per cent, the state
had only 23 per cent undertrials coming from the community. In Karnataka, the representation of Muslim
undertrials in jails (13 per cent) was exactly proportional to their population. Andhra Pradesh (united) had
15 per cent Muslim undertrials in jail against 10 per cent share in the population. The data also showed
Delhi and Madhya Pradesh in poor light. With 13 per cent Muslims in Delhi, the community accounted for
22 per cent in jail. In MP, with a share of 7 per cent in population, Muslims made up for 13 per cent of all
undertrials in the state. (Indian Express 5/10/15)
Surge in attacks on Muslims in UP, say activists (7)
AGRA/MEERUT: In a three-part video that went viral in June this year, a group of Hindu men can be seen
beating and parading a Muslim youth in Shamli, announcing "this fate awaits all cow slaughterers".
Dozens of onlookers watched the man, later identified as Riyaz, being thrashed with a belt. In the video's
third part, police arrive on the scene and arrest the victim instead of his attackers. Thousands have
shared the video uploaded on June 27 — a topic of heated discussion on social media. On February 19,
in Saharanpur, Jahangir (24), died after a group of Hindu youths assaulted him. On June 15, one Haidar
Ali was severely beaten up, tied to a motorcycle and dragged for several metres in Pilibhit, allegedly after
a scuffle with Hindu youths. Mohammad Akhlaq's murder in Dadri has the country talking,butMuslim
groups say attacks againstthem have seen a steep rise in UP of late. According to Mashkoor Alam,
coordinator of NGO Action Aid thathas provided data to National Commission for Minority Rights, the
number of such attacks in the past year stands at 130. The home ministry, too, said UP saw over 100
"communal riots" last year. In December 2014, Union MoS for home Kiren Rijiju told Lok Sabha 90 people
were killed in 561 incidents of communal violence across India till October 2014. Of these, the maximum
— 25 — were killed in UP. The national crime records bureau report of 2014 has stated western UP had
the highest instances of riots in the state. Muslims across the restive belt have been saying trade in beef
or its consumption are increasingly being used as an excuse to assault the minority community. Or there
is the sensitive issue of 'love jihad' used as a ruse. On June 28, a 25-year-old man waskilled and about a
dozen injured in cross-fi ring after communal clashes in Rampur-Maniharan locality of Saharanpur that,
eyewitnesses said, were triggered by a "molestation" incident. Before that, on May 4, five members of
Tablighi Jamaat, a religious movement that started as an offshoot of the Deobandi movement in 1927 and
has now spread to millions across countries, were attacked in a Delhi-bound train in Shamli. Tension
erupted in the region after a mob clashed with police at the local Kandhla police station. Such attacks are
concentrated in west UP but not confi ned to the region. The Muslim community observed a peaceful
bandh in Faizabad on August 24 to protest a case of alleged arson in which unknown miscreants are said
to have hurled petrol bombs at a place of worship. Some unidentified persons tried to set a mosque, also
the local office of Jamiat Ulema Hind, on fi re on August 17. An FIR was lodged but no arrests followed.
Maulana Khalid Rashid, from Lucknow's Firangi Mahal, said fear among Muslims is apparent these days.
"PM Modi should discourage this kind of politics. Vitriolic comments of Yogi Adityanath and Sakshi
Maharaj affect the youth and we have 20-yearolds attacking us." The police partly blame social media for
the "mischief". State ADG Daljeet Singh Chaudhary told TOI, "Some groups constantly try to foment
communal tensions... Trouble mongers excessively use social media to disturb peace. To counter it, we
have set up a social media monitoring lab in Meerut." (Times of India 3/10/15)
Better-off Muslims targeted: Report (7)
NEW DELHI: A ground report prepared by a team of faculty and students of JNU and Hindu College has
raised questions over the temple priest who went missing after Akhlaq's lynching in Dadri. The report
terms the incident "an extension of the new genre of low intensity, high impact communal tension
targeting better-off Muslims and instilling fear of brute power of the majority community." The report also
raised concern over banning media from Bisada village. On October 2, a team of Janhastakshep, led by
academics Vikas Bajpai from JNU and professor Ish Mishra of Hindu College along with students, went to
Bisada to investigate the incident. Releasing the report, Rahul Jalali, president of Press Club of India,
slammed the political class for playing politics over the incident and banning media. "There has been a
pattern since the last few months of targeting media. This is an extension of the same intolerance." The
team found a prospering of dubious 'senas' in the area of which some are Rashtravadi Pratap Sena,
Samadhan Sena and Ram Sena. "It is our opinion that these organizations have been consistently laying
the preparatory ground for an event like the lynching," the report states. Bajpai said, "The village dates
back to around 500 years and there has been no overt communal tension. The appearance of a mob
amid all harmony is disturbing." (Times of India 7/10/15)
PM Modi skirting ‘real issue’: Congress (7)
New Delhi: The main Opposition Congress party on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
“skirted the real issue” in the wake of the Dadri lynching incident while appealing to Hindus and Muslims
to work together to fight poverty. “The Prime Minister has skirted the real issue. He has appealed to
Hindus and Muslims to fight against poverty...By this statement, he has not condemned Dadri incident
and those in BJP playing the communal card on the issue,” AICC spokesperson R.P.N. Singh said. Asked
about his reaction on the Prime Minister’s statement, Mr Singh said, “Why can’t the PM ask Hindus and
Muslims to live in peace?” and deplore those MLAs, MPs, party (BJP) office bearers and Union ministers
who continue to spread communal venom. While the PM is not disapproving the Dadri lynching,
Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav broke his silence on this issue saying it was a “pre-
planned” conspiracy hatched by three persons of a particular party and that they were also behind the
2013 riots in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district. While non-BJP chief ministers are maintaining
silence on this issue and a debate on cow slaughter, eating beef, the return of Sahitiya Akademi Award
by Ashok Vajpeyi and Nayantara Sahgal in the middle of the Bihar elections is not a good development
for the government. The Congress said hardliners in the BJP cannot be checked as they are backed by
the top. The non-BJP chief ministers, especially Mamata Banerjee, Naveen Patnaik and Jayalalithaa,
have not reacted strongly to the Dadri lynching yet. Although the CMs of the Congress and Left too are
not vocal on this issue, their parties have taken a clear position on it. Though Uttar Pradesh chief minister
Akhilesh Yadav has spoken about it, R.P.N. Singh views that the Samajwadi Party and the BJP are
working in tandem in Uttar Pradesh thinking that the communal polarisation would ultimately help them in
elections. He also asked why hardliners in the BJP, including ministers and MPs, continue to raise
polarising issues; is it not because they are backed by the top? Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mufti
Mohammad Sayeed on Wednesday asked the Centre to take steps for curbing such incidents. (Asian
Age 9/10/15)
22 Indians among world’s influential Muslims (7)
The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre (RISSC), an international non-governmental institute based in
Amman, Jordan, has brought out "The Muslim 500: The World's 500 Most Influential Muslims" 2016
edition, which lists out these influential men in 13 distinct categories. Incidentally, this is the seventh
annual publication from the Centre, an affiliate of the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought. The
RISSC points out that there are 1.7 billion Muslims across the world today, making up approximately 23
percent of the world's population. Being citizens of their respective countries, they also have a sense of
belonging to the 'Ummah', the worldwide Muslim community. The annual publication sets out to ascertain
the influence some Muslims have on this community, or on behalf of the community. It defines an
'influential person' as one who has cultural, ideological, financial and political power or otherwise make a
change that would have a significant impact on Muslims. Such an impact can either be positive or
negative, depending on one's perspective…. (Times of India 11/10/15)
“Don’t call buffalo meat beef, it confuses most”, says Muslim body (7)
Bhopal: A Muslim body in Bhopal has said that buffalo meat shouldn’t be termed as beef, because it
creates confusion among the minds of a large section of Hindu populace, gives a wrong impression to the
society and leads to communalism. The Bharatiya Muslim Sangh, a body of Muslim clerics, has decided
to launch a campaign and tell people that Muslims don’t eat beef because of Hindu sentiments and there
should be complete ban on cow slaughter and export of beef in India. “Indian Muslims don’t consume
beef. Even Mughal rulers prohibited cow slaughter and the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar had
said that anybody guilty of cow slaughter would be punished with death sentence”, said Noor Ullah
Yousufzai, the general secretary of the body. Yousufzai said that many people unknowingly use the term
‘beef’ for buffalo meat which is widely consumed in India, but use of the term beef for buffalo meat leads
to confusion. “In foreign countries, they might use the word beef for cow, buffalo and bullock’s mutton, but
in India, it affects sensibilities and people feel that beef is being served in hotels in Muslim dominated
localities, which is not the case. This is buffalo mutton. This is a very serious issue and so the word
buffalo meat should be used”, Yousufzai said. “We will print posters, send letters to politicians, approach
Hindu organisations and will use social media to clarify this”, he added. The Sangh, a non-political group,
said when ‘buffalo meat’ is consumed, it is termed beef, which is wrong. It said that even Darul Uloom,
Deoband has issued fatwa against cow slaughter. (Hindustan Times 13/10/15)
Beef row an ‘artificial crisis’, Indian Muslims don’t eat cow meat: Mark Tully (7)
Agra: Renowned veteran journalist Mark Tully today called the controversy over beef that has taken
centrestage in the country a "manufactured" issue and an "artificial crisis", adding that very few Indian
Muslims ate cow meat in any case. Tully, who has covered major landmarks in Indian history during his
stint with the BBC, from Indo-Pak conflicts to the Bhopal gas tragedy and Operation Blue Star, Indira
Gandhi's assassination and its aftermath, said, "I have been living in the Nizamuddin area in Delhi for
more than a decade, in what is the national capital's most densely populated Muslim area, but never
came across any Muslim who preferred to eat cow meat." Commenting on the peace-loving nature of
Indians, Tully said, "There are communities who eat the flesh of canines, but they respect the sentiments
of people like me, who are animal or dog lovers. Similarly, Muslims in India too respect the sentiments of
other communities and avoid food cultures which may hurt others." Condemning the Dadri lynching
incident, Tully said, "The entire incident was based on a rumour and the Indian government should bring
justice to the victims, while media should bring nothing more than truth." Tully was in Agra for the SAARC
Nations Summit organized by Folklore Research Academy (Amritsar) to give a lecture on challenges
before South Asia and the role of India and Pakistan. Speaking to the audience of nearly 600 in which
Steve Jacob, Pankaj Pachauri, Bangladeshi journalist Munni Shah, Suba Rao, Qamar Agha, Jatin Desai
and many more writers, journalists and activists from SAARC nations were present, Tully said, "Conflicts
between two nations can only be solved by public diplomacy, in which citizens are given the right to
decide." Responding to a question on the recent incident in Mumbai, in which members of the Shiv Sena
attacked Sudheendra Kulkarni and smeared his face with black ink, Tully said, "It was a disgraceful act
and brought shame to a country which is known for its tolerance and unity in diversity." He added that the
post-Emergency period, after the 1977 elections, was the best period for India and Morarji Desai was one
of the many good prime ministers he had come across. M(Times of India 17/10/15)
Mumbai Police thrashed two young Muslims, asked them to go to Pakistan (7)
Residents of Mahim, two 19-year-olds Asif Shaikh and Danish Shaikh were allegedly detained and
tortured by a few Bandra police officers on suspicion of being Pakistani terrorists or ISIS agents on
Saturday, a leading daily reported. Asif who works as a gym trainer was with Danish near Bandra
Reclamation on the way back home from Bhabha Hospital, when they were allegedly picked up by the
police. Victims' relatives and neighbours allege that both Asif and Danish were detained and grilled for
over three hours and were beaten badly. They were even asked to "leave India and go to Pakistan" by the
police, they said. Asif was hit with belts and batons and Danish slapped and punched, after which the
police finally made a call to their parents to take them back. It is not clear whether the detention of Asif
and Danish was made an official entry in police records. Asif's photo published in the news report shows
the brutality he was treated with, but the police is yet to make comment on the incident. (DNA 18/10/15)
No uniform civil code please: Muslim women's group (7)
New Delhi: A Muslim women's group on Tuesday opposed attempts to impose a uniform civil code but
said "a gender just reform" was needed in the Muslim personal law. Any move to introduce a uniform civil
code without taking into account the constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion would be wrong, the
Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan said. "Article 25 the constitution gives the right to all, including
minorities, to have personal laws based on respective tenets of different religious communities," the group
said in a statement. "Under this provision, we demand a gender just reform in the Muslim personal law
based on the Quranic values of equality and justice, in line with article 25 of the constitution." The group
pointed out that the Supreme Court observation on the need to bring about a gender just legal framework
was not aimed at imposing anything on different communities. "As per the BJP manifesto, the NDA
government wants to impose a family law on all communities with the intention of national integration," it
said. "It is important to point out that national integration cannot happen by a common family law but by
treating all citizens equally. "There can be no imposition of any kind as this would impinge on the religious
freedom and secularism principles enshrined in the constitution. Nor would different socio-religious
communities accept this. "Like all religious majority and minority community in India, Muslims must also
have a codified Muslim personal law based on its religious text. "Just as there is a Hindu Marriage Act for
Hindus, just as there is a Indian Christian Marriage Act for Christians, just as there is a Parsi Marriage
and Divorce (Amendment) Act for the Parsis, Muslims too should have an amended Shariat Application
Act to ensure a law for the Muslim community which is in consonance with the Islamic and constitutional
values of justice and equality." The group said the recent targeted violence on minorites "have led to an
atmosphere of insecurity and deep sense of fear within the Muslim community and amongst all minorities.
"Any talk of a uniform civil code is only adding to the strongly felt sense of hurt and alienation. "This
atmosphere of intimidation does not help the cause of women's demand for justice at all. "It appears that
for the fringe right-wing groups, uniform civil code is another stick to beat the community with," the group
said. (Deccan Herald 21/10/15)
Muslims groups hit out at 'communal' acts (7)
GUWAHATI: Condemning the recent incidents of cow body parts being recovered from temple premises
in different parts of the state, three Assamese Muslim organizations cautioned that such incidents prove
how vested groups are trying to create communal clashes in the state for political gains. The three
organizations - Sadou Asom Garia Yuva Parishad (SAGYP), Asomiya Muslim Kalyan Parishad (AMKP)
and Ujoni Asom Muslim Kalyan Parishad - in a joint statement said the incidents were orchestrated as
part of a conspiracy ahead the 2016 assembly election. "We condemn the incidents of desecration of
temples by throwing cow body parts. People of the state have to maintain communal harmony at all cost,"
said AMKP president Rahamsa Ali. SAGYP president Abdul Hamid warned that unless these communal
forces are nipped in the bud, the situation in coming days may turn more violent. The three groups also
alleged that the AIUDF has failed to champion the causes of indigenous Assamese Muslims. (Times of
India 21/10/15)
Muslim body asks govt. to allot land for burial (7)
MANGALURU: The Muslim community residing in and around Jeppu in the city categorically stated that it
has sought allotment of about 26 cents of vacant government land at Attavar-Nandigudda for a burial
ground and not burial land being used by other communities, including the Hindus. J. Sadique, president
of Muhyideen Juma Masjid and Dars, Noorul Islam Madrasa, Jeppu, in a release here said that the
government may also allot any other suitable land other than the Nandigudda land as every human being
is entitled for an honourable burial. Recently residents of Jeppu, Attavar and surrounding areas under the
banner of Vishwa Hindu Parishad had held a demonstration protesting the decision of the government to
allot certain portion of the land in Nandigudda for Muslim burial ground. Following the protest, the
assistant commissioner of Mangaluru Revenue Sub Division heard both the parties and reserved his
order on the issue. Mr. Sadique said the government burial land in Nandigudda has been offered to
various communities, including 2.32 acres to Hindus, 59 cents to Brahmo Samaj, 2.28 acres to Christians,
1 acre to Mescom, 7 cents to Syrian Christians, 10 cents to Jehovah’s Witnesses and 43 cents for roads.
There remains another 26 cents of government land which has been vacant, which the Muslim
community has claimed, he said. Mr. Sadique said Jeppu area houses about 50,000 Muslims, while the
available burial ground is on just 21 cents of land, which is being used for over a century and the
community is facing a severe shortage of space. (The Hindu 29/10/15)
RSS seeks review of population policy to counter Muslim growth (7)
Ranchi: The RSS on Saturday sought a review of the population policy to counter “severe demographic
changes” in India, flagging what it considers a high rate of growth among Muslims in the country. The
Hindutva outfit – considered the ideological mentor of the ruling BJP at the Centre – passed a resolution
on the contentious issue at its three-day national executive in Jharkhand’s capital. The RSS and its
affiliated organisations have been citing the last census figures to claim that the Hindus are facing the
threat of being swamped by Muslims, though the minority community accounts for only 14.2% of the
country’s population while their population is growing at a slower rate. The Hindu population was pegged
at 79.8% of the population by the religion data of Census 2011. “The share of population of religions of
Bharatiya origin has slipped from 88% to 83.5% between 1951-2011 censuses while Muslim population
has increased from 9.8% to 14.23% in the intervening period,” said the resolution, a copy of which was
released to the media. The RSS considers the Hindus as Bharatiyas (Indians) to make a distinction with
Muslims and Christians whom the organisation claims arrived with “invaders” like the Mughals and British.
Expressing concern over the “demographic imbalances”, the RSS urged the Centre to reformulate the
national population policy keeping in view the availability of resources in the country and future needs, the
same idea floated by the outfit’s top leader Mohan Bhagwat in his Vijaya Dashami speech in Nagpur on
October 22. It also pointed out alleged abnormal rise in population of Muslims and Christians in some
Northeast states like Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. “The Muslim population growth rate has been
higher than the national average in border states of Assam, West Bengal and Bihar indicating unabated
infiltration from Bangladesh which is corroborated by the Upamanyu Hazarika commission report and
judicial pronouncements from time to time,” the resolution read, adding that the infiltrators were usurping
the rights of the natives and resulting in socio-cultural and economic tensions. The organisation said that
the “unnatural growth of Christian population in many districts of the country indicates targeted religious
conversion activity by some vested interests” and threatening the unity, integrity and cultural identity of
the country. RSS leader Krishna Gopal said though India was one of the early countries in the world to
announce as early as 1952 that it will have population planning measures, it was only in 2000 that a
comprehensive population policy was formulated and a population commission was formed. In January
this year, BJP leader Sakshi Maharaj had asked all Hindu women to bear four children to protect the
religion, which was slammed by women rights activists and minority organisations. (Hindustan Times
1/11/15
Rajasthan: Highest school dropout rates among Muslims, SCs/STs (7)
Jaipur: Children of scheduled caste/scheduled tribes and Muslim communities in Rajasthan are the worst
affected in cases of school dropouts, a report of a joint survey by district information system for education
(DISE) and independent bodies has revealed. The survey report was presented by educationalist Ganesh
Nigam at the two-day national consultation on right to education (RTE) organised jointly by United
Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)and Ajit foundation on Saturday. According to the report, the annual
average dropout rate at primary level for the state was at 8.39% in 2013-14 and 18.50% for the Muslim
community. Similarly, the dropout rate was higher in SC and ST communities with 9.57% and 10.04%
respectively. In the upper primary level, Muslim dropouts form the highest average with 20.59% as
compared to the state average of 6.03%. SC and ST communities mark steep averages of 7.51% and 7%
respectively. Muslim students have the lowest transition rate (from primary to upper primary level of
education) with 70.46% as compared to the state average of 88.23%. SC/ST kids have lower transition
rates of 87.70% and 81.60% respectively. “Children of SC/ST and Muslim communities have the lowest
attendance in schools. Unless education is inclusive to all communities, the RTE act is nothing but a
failure,” said Nigam. “Government schools provide free education. But disdain by teachers and an
inactive administration force parents to pull out their kids from schools. Economic disparity is the biggest
reason behind this trend,” said Sayyed Masood Akhtar, state president, Rajasthan Madarsa Education
Helpers’ Association (RMEHA). “Access to public schools is anyway very limited to this community due to
poverty but the dropouts can join madarsas,” said Saeed Ahmed, additional director, Madarsa Board.
Dalit activists, however, believe that social disparity is the reason behind the increasing dropouts among
the SC/ST and Muslim sections. “Teachers have a negative mindset against the deprived sections and
discourage children at the initial level. Children of Valmiki community have stopped going to school as
they were asked to be manual scavengers there,” said PL Minroth, chief functionary, center for Dalit
rights. The report adds that Muslim girls constitute 22.90 % of annual average dropout rate at the upper
primary level as compared to that of boys at 18.77%, citing lack of safety assurances from the
government and societal bodies as the reason for this trend. “Numerous reasons including patriarchy,
lack of safety and poverty are responsible for this trend. Parents are not usually willing to send their
daughters to distant schools. If more female staff are included in government schools, then we can
certainly improve this figure,” said Ameen Kayamkhani, patron, RMEHA. (Hindustan Times 3/11/15)
Clerics take on joblessness among Muslims (7)
BAREILLY: The clerics of Dargah Aala Hazrat have decided to launch a campaign on the last day of the
annual Urs-e-Razvi to combat unemployment in the community. In invitation posters to the annual Urs
next month, visitors have been told to give the total amount of zakat money (mandatory alms) to one
unemployed and poor person for setting up a business, rather than distributing it among scores of poor
people. The posters of invitation have been sent to followers of the Barelvi school of Islamic theology
across the world on behalf of Hazrat Subhan Raza Khan alias Subhani Miyan, chairperson of the shrine.
The poster mentions that the rate of unemployment among youth, and not just in the community, has
been rising. India is counted among poor and backward countries of the world because of the high
unemployment, the poster explains. "However, nothing could be a better service to the country than if our
community could come together to combat unemployment. Every person attending Urs should promise
that they will donate the zakat to an unemployed and needy person, to assist him in setting up a
business," Subhani Miyan told TOI. A mandatory donation in Islam, equal to 2.5% of a follower's wealth,
is collected from all those whose wealth and income exceed 52 tolas of silver a year. This is called zakat.
Maulana Mohammed Ehsan Raza Khan, the Sajjadanasheen (hereditary head) of the shrine said, "If an
unemployed person becomes employed, he would be able to help other poor people. However, if the
same amount is distributed among many poor people, it will not help in eradicating poverty." Besides the
invitation posters which have been printed in Urdu, pamphlets in English and Hindi are also being readied
for distribution among visitors to the Urs, set to begin from December 6. "On the last day of the Urs,
December 8, we will ask other clerics and followers to agree that they follow this advice for fighting
unemployment among Muslim youth. We will ask them to raise their hands to confirm that they would give
their zakat to an unemployed youth," said Mufti Mohammed Salim Noori, who will be among the speakers
at the event. Noori said that instead of waiting for the government to create job opportunities, the
community must begin to help itself. The clerics have also planned a special workshop for Muslim
women, to make them better aware of their rights on December 6. On the second day of the Urs,
December 7, a conference will be organized to counter proposed changes to Muslim Personal Law and
ensure better security for Indian Muslims. The 97th Urs-e-Razvi of Aala Hazrat Imam Ahmed Raza,
founder of the Barelvi movement, will be organized from December 6-8. Lakhs of followers routinely
converge at Bareilly for this annual event. Nearly 50,000 clerics from across the country are expected to
congregate at the Urs this year. (Times of India 8/11/15)
Bihar verdict: More Muslim MLAs, fewer women (7)
Samastipur MLA Akhtarul Islam Shaheen entered RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s home on Patna’s 10 Circular
Road Tuesday and casually checked the schedule for the grand alliance legislature party meeting.
Though he wore a relaxed look, he made it clear how much his victory meant to him. The high-profile seat
had pitched him against BJP heavyweight Renu Kushwaha, whom he defeated by 34,000 votes.
Shaheen said he should get credit for winning by that margin. In the previous election, Shaheen had
defeated Ramnath Thakur, Karpoori Thakur’s son and currently a JD(U) Rajya Sabha MP. Shaheen is
one of 24 Muslim MLAs freshly elected in Bihar, the highest since the bifurcation of the state. The 2010
assembly had 19 Muslims. The highest ever was 34 in the undivided Bihar of 1985, making up over 10½
per cent of the then assembly of 325 members. The current 24 Muslim MLAs represent just under 10 per
cent of the 243-member assembly. Eleven of them, or nearly half the 24, are from Shaheen’s RJD,
including Abdul Bari Siddiqui and Faraz Fatmi from the Mithilanchal belt where the grand alliance routed
the opposition on the strength of a Muslim-Yadav combination and an apparent shift from among the
upper-caste Brahmin vote, considered a BJP constituency. Put together, the grand alliance has 22
Muslim MLAs, which will give it flexibility of options while selecting Muslim ministers. The Congress has
six Muslims among its 27 MLAs. Its Muslim representation is higher than that of the JD(U), which has five
among its 71. The JD(U)’s five include Mujahid Alam who toppled sitting MLA Akhatarul Imam in a contest
of Muslims in Kocha Dhaman. Iman had won the seat as an RJD candidate in 2010 but has since moved
to Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM and is that party’s face in Bihar. Of the two Muslim MLAs outside of the
grand alliance, one is with the BJP and one with the CPI(ML) — Mahboob Alam from Balrampur. The
CPI(ML) won two other seats. The BJP’s MLA is Mohammed Javed, who retained his seat, Kishanganj.
Another sitting BJP MLA, Saba Zafar, failed to retain Amour, which went to Abdul Jalil of the Congress.
The BJP had fielded only these two Muslims, leaving it to its allies to represent that community. None of
the five MLAs elected from the BJP’s three partners is a Muslim. Prominent Muslim faces among the RJD
MLAs include Iliyas Hussain (former minister), Faisal Rahman, Shamim Ahmed and Faiyaz Ahmed, apart
from Siddiqui and Fatmi. The JD(U)’s Muslim MLAs include Sarfuddin who defeated HAM’s Lovely Anand
with a narrow margin, Sarfaraz Alam and Naushad Alam, besides Mujahid. Most of the JD(U)’s and the
Congress’s Muslim winners are from the Seemanchal region. “The Congress is happy about having
rediscovered its old cadre vote of Muslims, upper castes and Dalits,” said Prem Chandra Mishra, AICC
media panellist RJD national spokesperson Manoj Jha said his party maintained a very good social
combination in winning 80 of the 101 seats it contested. (Indian Express 11/11/15)
Education is most critical to uplift Muslims: Mufti Mohammed Sayeed (7)
CHENNAI: Armed with the previous UPA regime's Sachar committee findings on the socio, economic and
educational status of Muslims, Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed on Saturday
said educational backwardness was the main reason for the community's inability to progress
economically. The CM was here to participate in the United Economic Forum's two-day trade summit. "I
have always believed that education is most critical to uplift our community," he said. "I do not find any
stark contradictions between the need for religious education and the importance of having a secular
modern outlook in today's world," he added, recalling that he had studied in a Madrassa and graduated in
law from Aligarh Muslim University. The decline in the socio-economic and educational status of Muslims
in the sub-continent began as early as in 18th century. It was pioneers and geniuses like Sir Syed Ahmed
Khan (the founder of Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College, which went on to become AMU), who
showed that education was the path to development, Sayeed said. Another visionary leader and one of
the greater scholars of the religion, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, understood the importance of education
and believed that Muslims could carve out a distinct niche for themselves in secular and diverse India.
Azad was chosen by Jawaharlal Nehru to be Independent India's first education minister and pioneered
modern education system by setting up institutions and bodies. The PDP leader recalled the
recommendations of the Sachar Committee, which pointed out 'clearly' that the status of Muslims is lower
than the status of SC/ST in many areas. The United Economic Forum's trade summit saw MoUs signed to
the tune of Rs 2,439.5 crore in sectors like power, infrastructure and industrial park, warehousing,
logistics, infrastructure, real estate, education and tourism. (Times of India 15/11/15)
Karnataka Muslim groups condemn Paris terror attacks (7)
Bengaluru: Muslim associations in Karnataka have come together to condemn the terror attack in Paris
by alleged Islamic State militants as “an attempt to destroy world peace and stability”. In a joint statement
representatives of eight Muslim organizations in Karnataka have stated that the Paris attacks “have
nothing to do with Islamic teachings”. The “religion of Islam does not tolerate any such violence against
human lives and property, let alone sanctioning it,” says the statement. “We express deep shock and
sense of grief at this loss of lives and convey our heartfelt condolences to the kin and the families of the
victims of this barbaric act,” the statement said. “It is time that we, the peace-loving citizens of society
stand shoulder to shoulder to root out the terrorists and the terrorism to save the world and ensure
continuance of peace and stability around the world,” the statement said. The statement has been signed
by Maulana Syed Mustafa Rifayi Jeelani, founder member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board;
Maulana Iftikhar Ahmed Qasmi the President of the Jamiatul Ulema Hind, Karnataka; Maulana
Muhammad Maqsood Imran Rashadi, Khateeb and Imam, Jama Masjid, Bangalore; Maulana Ejaz
Ahmed Nadwi, Jamiat Ahle Hadith, Karnataka; Masood Abdul Khader, convener, Federation of
Associations of Karnataka Muslims; Alhaj Ameer Jan, Charmin Jamia Hazrath Bilal, Karnataka; Alhaj
Atharullah Shariff, President, Jamaat e Islami Hind, Karnataka zone, and Alhaj Shahid Ahmed, General
Secretary, Milli Council, Karnataka. (Indian Express 16/11/15)
Muslims skip ‘namaz’ to attend Nitish show (7)
PATNA: A large number of Muslims from different parts of the state were present at Gandhi Maidan when
Nitish Kumar was sworn in as chief minister of Bihar for the fifth time on Friday. As Muslims offer "juma
namaz" every Friday, their presence in large numbers at the oath-taking ceremony came as a pleasant
surprise for the three Mahagathbandhan allies - RJD, JD(U) and Congress - which rode to power on
massive support from the minority community. "We are happy that Mahagathbandhan has won the
election. We supported this alliance to live in peace," said a Muslim present at the event. Tahir Mansoor,
who had come from Benipur in Vaishali district, appeared quite energetic. He reached the venue three
hours before the oath-taking ceremony began. "I have lots of expectation from the new government.
Ensuring quality education should be the top priority of the government," he said. Mohammad Mansoor, a
social worker from Kawa Chicknouta village in Vaishali district, echoed Tahir's tone. He said many Urdu
medium schools are running without teachers. "The new government should focus on recruiting Urdu
teachers," he said. Ali Raza, a septuagenarian from Patepur in Vaishali district, said Nitish government
should set up free coaching institutes in villages to help poor students prepare for competitive
examinations. Mohammad Tanvir Alam, 42, who had come from Sikkat panchayat in Katihar with seven
of his neighbours, said he supported the Mahagathbandhan for Nitish Kumar's clean image. Mohammad
Asim, 18, who is preparing for engineering entrance examination, said, "It is but natural that the new
government will work for the welfare of the minority community. As a young Indian, I want no
discrimination on the basis of religion or caste." Four Muslim legislators took oath as ministers on Friday.
They included Khurshid alias Feroz Ahmad from JD(U), Abdul Bari Siddiqui from RJD, Abdul Ghafoor
from RJD and Abdul Jalil Mastan from Congress. Altogether, 24 Muslim candidates had emerged
victorious in the recently concluded Bihar assembly election. (Times of India 21/11/15)
Inclusiveness keeps Indian Muslims from joining Islamic State: US envoy Richard Verma (7)
MUMBAI: The inclusive model of the country has kept Indian Muslims from joining terror outfit Islamic
State, US ambassador to India Richard Verma said here on Monday. "India has been a model of
inclusiveness," Verma told reporters when asked why have so few Indian Muslims joined the Islamic
State. To a query on his assessment of threat perception of the dreaded terror group to India, Verma said
it is for Indian officials to address that question. "But as President (Barack) Obama said, this is a serious
threat and we intend to intensify our strategies and it will require diligent efforts from all levels," Verma
said. For countering terrorism in mega-cities, governments must create an ecosystem of cohesion and
inclusivity, the US ambassador said. "We have to get to the root causes of unrest. As cities grow bigger
here is a potential that certain sections of population become disaffected and frustrated. So there is an
importance of good governance," he said. The US Ambassador also spoke of India-US cooperation on
terrorism front including "shutting of the terror outfits finances and networks" (Times of India 23/11/15)
Palwal clash 'classic example of intolerance': Riot victims (7)
CHANDIGARH: Members of the Muslim community have termed the violence at Tikri Brahman village in
Palwal in July, as a "classic example of the intolerance and intimidation meted out to people of minority
community in Haryana".In an affidavit filed before the Punjab and Haryana high court on Thursday, they
have said that if the true genesis of the riot is not exposed, the consequences may be a multiplication of
similar planned attacks on minorities. A number of mostly Muslim houses were set on fire by an angry
mob on July 5 after some youths allegedly passed lewd remarks on a woman who had gone to fetch
water at a hand pump on the outskirts of the village. It all started with a minor scuffle between the youths
but soon blew up into a full-scale riot. Countering the status report of Haryana police, submitted before
the high court on November 5, the victims have claimed that the state police fabricated facts to show the
violence as an altercation when it was "actually a planned and sustained attack on the minority
community". "It is shocking to see that the investigating agency has termed it altercation," submitted the
victims on Thursday. The case is pending before the high court after Mohammad Haneef and four other
residents of Tikri Brahman filed a petition, seeking a CBI probe in the violence. In the status report, police
had termed the violence as an altercation between villagers, which was projected by some anti-social
elements as a communal riot. The report also claimed that the main intention of the incident was loot. A
document signed by the "peace committee" of the village on October 10 was also produced, claiming all
was well in the village. The cops claimed that the petition had been filed just to take undue benefit in
upcoming panchayat polls. Questioning the police investigation, the petitioners submitted that documents
of the Palwal fire brigade reveal that all 17 houses set on fire in the violence belonged to Muslims while
no property of other communities was touched. "Had there been any incident of setting ablaze the houses
of the majority community by the people of the minority community, the same would have been reflected
in the damage report of the Fire Department," the petitioners have told the court. "The failure of the
investigating agency to collect this document in their investigation is not inadvertent but deliberate, and
consistent with the partisan and tainted investigation." The petitioner also denied holding of meeting of the
peace committee and submitted that the signatories of the joint statement mostly belonged to the majority
community. (Times of India 27/11/15)
Centre awaiting UP Govt’s report on Dadri lynching: Naqvi (7)
New Delhi:The central government is awaiting a report it had sought from the Akhilesh Yadav
dispensation to ascertain factual position and action taken by the state in the Dadri lynching incident, the
Lok Sabha was told on Wednesday. “As law and order is a state subject, a report has been called for
ascertaining the factual position, comments and action taken by the state government, which is still
awaited,” nion Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said in a written reply to a
question. The minister was asked if the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) had, in its report on the
incident, stated whether the killing was “pre-mediated” and if the episode was a result of planning in which
a “sacred” place like temple was used for “exhorting” people of a community to attack a “hapless” family.
He was also asked about the Ministry’s reaction to the Commission findings and steps it took/proposes to
take on the panel’s recommendations. Naqvi did not give direct answers to the queries but confirmed the
Union government had received the NCM report with its observations on the episode. He said the Union
Home Ministry had on October 5 issued an advisory to the state government stating that there is “zero
tolerance” toward any attempt to “weaken the secular fabric and exploiting religious emotions or
sentiments”. “Also the MHA has called on the states to take strictest action as per law against such
elements without any exception whatsoever,” Naqvi added. A three-member team of the Commission led
by its chairman Naseem Ahmad had visited Bishada village near Dadri in Uttar Pradesh and interacted
with family members of Mohammed Ikhlaq, who was lynched following rumours of beef eating in
September this year, the authorities concerned and locals. In its report compiled in October this year and
put up on its website, the NCM had stated the lynching strongly appeared to be the result of “planning
under which people were incited using a temple”. The minority panel had also described in the report as
“disturbing” the “irresponsible comments” by politicians who paid visit to the village after the incident. The
NCM said it will be “quite an understatement” to say the killing was merely an “accident as has been
claimed even by some persons in authority”. (Hindustan Times 2/12/15)
Man arrested for ‘derogatory remark’ against Prophet (7)
Lucknow: THE Lucknow police Wednesday arrested a man who allegedly passed derogatory remarks
against Prophet Muhammad, after students of Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband and other
members of Muslim community staged a protest demanding action against the person, who claimed
himself to be associated with the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha. SP, West, Ajay Kumar confirmed the
arrest of the person, identified as one Kamlesh Tiwari. The SP told mediapersons that Tiwari had
circulated a paper allegedly containing derogatory comments against Muslims. The officer, however,
denied Tiwari was associated with Hindu Mahasabha. At Deoband, hundreds of Muslims staged protest
against the alleged remarks. They were joined by students of Darul Uloom Deoband seminary. Chairman,
Municipal Board Deoband, Maviya Ali however controlled the situation keeping the protesters confined to
Darul Uloom Chowk. In the commotion, a loudspeaker fell on Ali’s head causing heavy bleeding. This
sparked rumours among the protesters that Ali got hurt in stone-pelting but the matter was brought under
control with prompt clarification. “There were young students and I got hurt by a loudspeaker, there was
no stone pelting. They were pacified after assurance that Tiwari has been arrested. Situation is normal
here,” Ali told The Indian Express. (Indian Express 3/12/15)
70,000 clerics issue fatwa against terrorism, 15 lakh Muslims support it (7)
BAREILLY: On the last day of Urs-e-Razvi of Dargah Aala Hazrat, nearly 70,000 clerics came together
and passed a fatwa against terrorist organizations, including IS, Taliban and al-Qaida. These are "not
Islamic organizations," the clerics said to a sea of followers, adding that the members of these outfits
were "not Muslims". Around 15 lakh followers who visited the Urs put their signatures to a document
circulated at the Urs, protesting terrorist strikes. Mufti Mohammed Saleem Noori, one of the clerics who
passed the fatwa told TOI on Tuesday, "From Sunday onwards, when the annual Urs began, members of
Dargah Aala Hazrat have been distributing forms among followers seeking signatures to show that those
signing stand against terrorism. Nearly 15 lakh Muslims have recorded their protest. Around 70,000
clerics from across the world, who were part of the event, passed the fatwa." Noori said he would like to
request the media to stop calling terrorist groups "Muslim organizations".Hazrat Subhan Raza Khan,
chairperson of the influential Dargah Aala Hazrat, said that following the Paris attacks, it was decided that
a fatwa should be passed at the Urs this year, so the message went out loud and clear that the Muslim
community condemns terrorism. "It is written in the Quran that killing one innocent person is equivalent to
killing all humanity," said Mohammed Ehsan Raza Khan, Sajjadanasheen (hereditary head) of this shrine.
Mohammad Farogh-ul Quadri, secretary-general, World Islamic Mission, UK, said, "I condemn the
barbaric terrorist attack in Paris on innocent civilians and call for an international ban on the radical
extremist IS and its counterparts with different names across the world." The 97th death anniversary (Urs)
of Mujadid Imam Ahmed Raza Khan Qadri, founder of the Barelvi school of Islamic theology, was
observed here between December 6 and 8. Clerics also opposed the move by France and other countries
to bomb Syria, saying innocent people, including women and children, have died in such strikes. They
said the powerful western nations should focus on stopping terrorists, but not at the cost of taking the
lives of innocent people. Dargah Aala Hazrat has been campaigning against terrorism for the last one
year. On Eid this year, clerics here announced that if a man involved in terrorism is killed, "namaz-e-
janaza" would not be read during his funeral services. This prayer is an important part of the last rites in
Islam. The madrassa run by this shrine recently introduced a specialization within the Hadith course, titled
'Islam and terrorism', for graduate students. As part of the coursework, students compare the original
Quran text with translations offered by terrorist groups, to understand how religious texts could be
misinterpreted… (Times of India 9/12/15)
Home minister urges Muslims in MP to exercise restraint (7)
Bhopal/Indore: Protests by Muslims across the state against Kamlesh Tiwari, a Hindu Mahasabha leader
from Uttar Pradesh who allegedly made derogatory comments about Prophet Mohammed, seems to have
alarmed the Madhya Pradesh government. However in Indore, a saffron brigade organised a
demonstration demanding sedition charges against the people who allegedly raised slogans in favour of
Pakistan. On Thursday, home minister Babulal Gaur in Bhopal appealed to the members of the
community to “exercise restraint.” The minister said the statement was made in Uttar Pradesh, not in
Madhya Pradesh. “They must understand that Madhya Pradesh has nothing to do with the reported
remarks against Prophet Mohammad. It all took place in Uttar Pradesh. Hence, I would like to make an
appeal to Muslim community members to maintain peace and order in the state,” Gaur said. His appeal
comes a day after a law and order review meeting with chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and several
senior officials. Gaur told Hindustan Times over the phone that there was “no propriety behind Muslims
protesting in Madhya Pradesh for something that took place in another state, especially when action had
been taken against the person who made the remark.” Kamlesh Tiwari was arrested by Lucknow police
on December 3 after his statement against Muslims and Prophet Mohammad led to widespread
spontaneous protests in UP and elsewhere in the country. The Hindu Mahasabha also distanced itself
from Tiwari, claiming that he was not a member of their organisation and that their name had been
misused by him. On December 8, hundreds of Muslims gathered at Iqbal Maidan in Bhopal demanding
action against the leader of a fringe Hindu outfit. Similar protests were organised by members of the
community in Indore, Dhar, Raisen, Harda and a few other parts of the state. In Indore, a section of
protestors pelted stones on shops and vehicles on Tuesday. Meanwhile in Indore, a saffron brigade on
Thursday organised a demonstration demanding sedition charges against the people who allegedly
raised slogans in favour of Pakistan. On Tuesday, thousands of Muslims gathered at Regal Square
demanding action against Kamlesh Tiwari leading to traffic jam and stone-pelting. In retaliation, the Akhil
Bharat Hindu Mahasabha took out a demonstration on Thursday, denouncing what they termed as the
Muslims’ efforts to vitiate the atmosphere of the city. However, this time round, the number of police was
more than the protestors. The Mahasabha members alleged that those protested at the Regal Square
had raised slogans in favour of Pakistan, and submitted a memorandum to senior police officers, claiming
that SIMI operatives were provocating the sentiments of the Muslims. A senior police official said local
intelligence was focusing on the radicals of community and a list had been made in this regard. The
police said they have lodged four cases against five people who had organised the demonstrations at
Regal Crossing on Tuesday. Police are also keeping a close eye on social media, including Facebook, to
find the people who can disturb peace of the city. Not more than five persons are allowed to present
memorandums to officials. (Hindustan Times 10/12/15)
Muslims stage silent protest march over Tiwari remark in Ajmer (7)
AJMER: Hundreds of Muslims staged a silent protest march against the derogatory remark on Islam
religion by Kamlesh Tiwari of Hindu mahasabha after the prayers at dargah on Friday afternoon. The
protesters also went to the district headquarters and gave memorandum in the name of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi demanding stern action against Tiwari. The protesters included khadims, maulanas and
also common Muslim devotees who had came to attend the special prayer on Friday. Showing concern
over the remark, they staged a protest. "Sufi Moinuddin Chishty gave the message of brotherhood and
harmony and to maintain these teachings we request people of India not to hurt sentiments of anyone
related to religion," said a maulana. The delegation while handing over the memorandum to the
administration also demanded a law in the country to put a brake on speeches made by religious leaders
of any community. They said that harmony is key to the nation and, therefore, teachings of Sufi Khwaja
Moinuddin are contemporary. The protest march started from Nizam gate of the dargah after the special
prayer. After passing through different roads of the city, it reached the district headquarters. Looking at
the march, HHigh security was deputed to control the situation. Devotees also joined the protest and said
that they wanted to give a message to the country in a peaceful way that hurting anyone is not a step
towards development. On this occasion, Maulana Mehandi Miyan said that the act of Tiwari of insulting
the apostle of peace and brotherhood has left the people deeply hurt. Tiwari had on Thursday remarked
about Islam in Varanasi. He added that they condemned the speech of Tiwari and demand the PM to ban
Hindu mahasabha. The protest was supported by hundreds of khadims and they also offered prayers
after the special namaz for peace and harmony in the country. One of the groups also appealed to the
youth not to get annoyed over the messages running on different social sites. Looking to the march, some
organizations also came out in support of the protest and condemned the hate speech atmosphere in the
country. Sources said that different meetings were held in khadims and also of maulanas on the
discussion on the hate speech and later they decided to have a protest march on Friday. Sources said
that the CID of state police noted the strength and numbers and sent the report to the state government.
(Times of India 12/12/15)
Muslim reservation: Oppn stages walkout (7)
Nagpur: MLCs belonging to Congress and NCP staged a walkout from legislative council on Tuesday
alleging that the BJP-Shiv Sena government was not intent on providing 5% reservation to Muslims.
Minority affairs minister Eknath Khadse hit back at them questioning why the two parties did not do so in
their 15 year rule. NCP MLC Khwaja Beg had raised the issue through a call attention motion. He pointed
that even though the Bombay High Court had allowed 5% reservation for Muslims in education, the
government allowed the ordinance to lapse thereby denying reservation to the community. Beg objected
to the written reply submitted to his motion saying that it was almost the same to that submitted in the
monsoon session. "This shows that the government is not at all serious about providing reservation to
Muslims," he said. The MLC further said that a large number of committees constituted by the British
government as well as that of independent India had favoured reservation for Muslims. Khadse, however,
maintained that the government was positive on providing reservation to Muslims but would take steps
only after the Supreme Court (SC) gave a ruling in this regard. "Several question marks have been raised
over Muslim reservation in the writ filed in the HC. They include that reservation could not be provided on
the basis of religion, the state backward classes commission had not given any report in this regard, 50
castes of Muslims were mentioned as backward in the ordinance but they were not named," he said.
Leader of opposition Dhananjay Munde intervened in the matter and pointed out that when the HC stayed
16% reservation for Marathas, the BJP-Shiv Sena government got a legislation passed in both Houses.
"Why didn't do the same for Muslims? It is clear that the government is not interested in welfare of
Muslims," he said slamming Khadse. The minister hit back at him pointing out that the reservation for
Muslims was provided in the fag end of Congress-NCP rule and without any homework. "The government
was well aware that it won't stand in the court," he said. The opposition members did not reply to his
charges and staged a walkout. (Times of India 16/12/15)
Muslims stage protest against Hindu Mahasabha (7)
Agra: Infuriated with working president of the All India Hindu Mahasabha Kamlesh Tiwari, who allegedly
gave blasphemous statement on the Prophet Muhammad, hundreds of Muslim men lead by religious
clerics took out massive protest march on Sunday. They also gave a memorandum to senior officials of
district administration Agra, asking them to take stern action against him. In the memorandum of whose
copy is with TOI, stated that, "People like Kamlesh Tiwari are openly flouting the law and are trying to
instigate riot like situation in the peaceful country." "Persistently, anti-social elements have being trying to
malice the image of Prophet Muhammad on various platforms especially on social networking website,
where the miscreants are using foul language and also sketching obnoxious image of prophet," stated the
memorandum. Speaking to TOI, chairman of Islamiya Local Agency of Shahi Jama masjid Agra, Haji
Aslam Qureshi said, "There is great amount of anger in the Muslim community across nation against the
blasphemous statement of Kamlesh Tiwari. Though I request all the muslims across nation to not take
law in their hands and do not indulge in anything which can trigger any conflict." He said, "We don't
understand why haven't government taken strong action Kamlesh Tiwari. Government must take stern
action against him. They should identify and mark such anti-social elements who are always in hope to
destroy peace in the society." The memorandum was handed over by Imam Irfan-ul-lah Khand of Shahi
Jama Masjid along with Haji Aslam Qureshi and several other clerics to Additional Magistrate of City
Rajesh Shrivastav in the presence of Superintendent of police for City, Rajesh Kumar Singh. Speaking to
TOI, ADM city Rajesh Shrivastav said, "We will forward the memorandum to state government." (Times of
India 20/12/15)
Random arrests of Muslim youths leading to radicalisation: Telangana Police chief (7)
New Delhi: Socio-economic exclusion of Muslims and random arrests of youths from the community in the
aftermath of a terror attack are leading to radicalisation among the minorities. This was the running theme
of a presentation and discussion on radicalisation at the conference of Director Generals of Police
(DGPs) in Bhuj, that concluded on Sunday. While there were 10 presentations on various aspects of
internal security at the annual meet organised by the Intelligence Bureau, the one on radicalisation,
presented by Telangana DGP Anurag Sharma, was the most critical in the context of threats from the
Islamic State. According to sources, Sharma said there was a sense of alienation among Muslims as
“expected social and economic benefits” had not reached them. He highlighted how areas inhabited by
minorities were generally bereft of civic amenities and dearth of economic opportunities. All this, he said,
made the community vulnerable to radicalisation. To illustrate how random arrests of Muslim youths has
led to radicalisation, Sharma cited the 2007 Mecca Masjid blasts in Hyderabad. He pointed out how,
immediately after the blasts, police arrested Muslim youths who were found to be innocent. The blasts
were found to have been executed by Hindu outfits. (Indian Express 22/12/15)
'Muslims lag behind in higher education'(7)
HYDERABAD: The enrollment of Muslim students in institutions of higher learning affiliated to both the
state and Centre is lower than Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward
Classes (OBCs), a provisional report of the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) indicates. The
report, which was released on the AISHE website, concludes that Muslims in the country constitute 4.4%
of students, who are study ing in various colleges, polytechnics and universities.The percentage is much
less than that of SCs, who constitute 13.4%, STs who constitu DISMAL FIGURES te 4.8% and the 32.9%
belonging to OBCs. In Telangana, the trend of Muslims lagging behind SCs, STs and OBCs continues
both in terms of students' enrollment and members of the community being employed as teachers. The
report records that of the 16.32 lakh enrollments in the state in the academic year 2014-15, Muslim
students constituted a mere 6.57 percent. While the OBC enrollment stood at 7.2 lakh, that of the SCs
was recorded as 2.63 lakh and the number of STs was recorded as 1.33 lakh. A gender-wise break up
put girl students belonging to SCs, STs and OBCs ahead of Muslim girls. Of the 1.07 lakh Muslim
students enrolled in academic year 2014 15, 57,170 are male and 50,233 are female. This is a margina
increase from the enrollments recorded last year. The representation of Muslim teachers too, remained
behind SCs, STs and OBCs in the state. Of the over 1.04 lakh posts in Te langana, teachers belonging to
the Muslim community occupied only 0.56% of the posts. (Times of India 26/12/15)
India only country where Muslims stop their youth from joining IS: Rajnath Singh (7)
Lucknow: isis india, muslims hate IS, india islamic state, islamic state news, isis rajnath singh, rajnath
islamic state, muslims and ISIS, ISIS, indian muslims File photo of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh
(Source: PTI) Union Home Minister Rajanth Singh Sunday said that while all countries face the Islamic
State (IS) threat, the organisation could not dominate in India due to the country’s “life values” and “family
values”. “Today the IS is being discussed a lot. But in the capacity of the Home Minister of India, I say
that India is the only country where Muslim families stop their children when they get deviated from the
right path. Only Indian Muslim families do this,” Rajnath said. He was speaking at a conference, Taleem ki
Taquat, organised by Maulana Azad National Urdu University of Hyderabad, in Lucknow. University
Chancellor Zafar Sareshwala, who said there was a lot of positivity in the country but people
“unnecessarily raised negativity”, claimed, “It was the first time in 65 years that a Union home minister
had directly addressed an event of Muslims.” Citing an example to show why the IS couldn’t flourish in
India, the Union minister said, “A Muslim youth got caught in radicalisation in Mumbai and his parents
came to me with the request to save him. Such are the values of our country. I have full faith that the IS
can never have supremacy in India.” Rajnath also pointed out that thousands of Indian imams had
recently taken out a procession against the IS. “If this culture of the country can be saved, no one can
stop India from becoming the most powerful nation with maximum knowledge in the world,” he said. The
minister said: “The education system and culture of India develop tolerance among us. I believe that such
education and culture should be kept alive.” (Indian Express 28/12/15)