SECULAR ACTION NETWORK - csss-isla.com€¦ · growers in Pushkar still send an offering ......

Secular Action Network, March 2018

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1. Forum News

All India Secular Forum congratulates Dr. Suresh Khairnar for being awarded Mukundan C. Menon Award (2016). The award is in recognition of Dr. Khairnars work for rights of religious minorities in particular. His work in investigating the cases of Hindutva terror network had a major impact on our understanding about this phenomenon. He is constantly engaged with the issues which undermine the secular ethos and upholds the secular values through his interventions. We wish him all the very best in his endeavors.

N E W S L E T T E R D A T E

SECULAR ACTION NETWORK

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1

C O N T E N T S Editorial 1. CSSS News - Report of conference on Sufism and Social harmony

2. Articles Finding small Rays of Sunshine 16 years after the darkness of the 2002 Gujarat Riots

By J.S. Bandukwala 3. Harmony Imam asks Mosques to delay Namaz so Hindu Brothers can play Holi 4. Poem BJP and Separatism 5. Mourning Press Release Candle Vigil at Jamia Nagar in Solidarity of Ankit Saxena killed in Delhi. 6. Tribute NAPM salutes the life and relentless work of Neelabh MIshra for journalistic justice and human rights. 7. Asma Jahangir: In death, as in life 8. Protest Caste Wall in Kerala: Civil Society condemns police brutality in Annihilate Caste/India 9. The Business of the Hindutva Militias 10. Interview Rise of Hindutva ensures clash between classes gets sidelined. 11. Resources Kashmiri Muslism celebrate Shivratri want Pandits toreturn. Shashi Tharoors Why I am a Hindu

----- - -------------------------------- Ph. 022-26149668, 022-26135098 E-mail: [email protected] Editor: Ram Puniyani, [email protected], www.pluralindia.com Advisory Board: L.S. Hardenia, Irfan Engineer, Dhirendra Panda, Mohammad Arif.

Newsletter of All India Secular Forum

Volume. 13 No.3 March 2018

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1

Correspondence Address: CSSS, 602 & 603, New Silver Star, Santacruz (E), Mumbai: - 400 055

From the Editors Desk The major scams are coming to surface in Modi regime. The peculiarity of the scams during Modi regime is that most of the scamsters have cleaned the banks of large sums and are now sitting pretty in foreign countries, safe and away from the reach of Indian agencies. While Mr. Modi promised to be the Chowkidar, right under his nose a large sum of Indian money has been taken away by entrepreneurs like Vijay Mallya, Lalit Modi, Neerav Modi, Kothari among others. Mr Narendra Modi had claimed that neither he will indulge in corruption nor he will let others do so. His inefficiency and failure, like in other areas of governance, are writ large with the coming to surface of these scams. Interestingly Modi had given these promises in the wake of Anna movement, which had shaken the nation. Anna, along with Kejriwal, Baba Ramdev, Ravishanker, Kiran Bedi and others had taken the anti corruption hysteria to the sky, targeting primarily Congress Party, the corruption of BJP was kept away from public gaze. Corruption as such a disease of the system where gross social equality, along with lack of transparency and centralization of authority has created havoc and public money is being siphoned off by those who are close to power. There is news of Nerav Modi giving heavy donation to BJP also. This seems to be Robin Hood Syndrome in reverse. While Modi took heavy advantage of the anti corruption spectacle, which was backed up by RSS to the hilt, currently all the anti corruption warriors are either in deep slumber are have achieved their personal goals of power in the system. One needs to give a detailed look at the system where such things are possible and expose hoax of promises offered by the likes of Modi!

Ram Puniyani (Editor)

mailto:[email protected]://www.pluralindia.com/


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1. CSSS News

Report of Conference on Sufism and Social Harmony

Neha Dabhade

Sufi tradition cant be viewed as an instrument or vehicle to some social end

or social solution, said eminent Carl

Ernst. Prof. Carl Ernst was asked if Sufi

tradition could counter global terrorism

fuelling Islamophobia and if Sufism

could represent a softer face of Islam.

Resonating with other scholars, Ernst too

pointed out to the complexity of such a

premise and problematized Sufi school

of thought.

Sufi thought was critically discussed in

its various facets at a two day conference

at Mumbai organized by Centre for

Study of Society and Secularism on 22nd

and 23rd

February 2018.The conference

sought to understand Sufism in all its

complexity. The Sufi doctrines were

discussed through the journeys, lives,

anecdotes of celebrated Sufi figures in

India; the thrust of the conference was

on the interaction of Sufi thought with

the other mystical traditions in India and

the impact it had on social harmony and

culture in India. What is perhaps most

significant and relevant is that the

conference discussed the challenges

facing present day society and explored

if Sufism offered any solutions to

address them. In that regard the

discussions were nuanced, multilayered

and also went a long way in dispelling a

rather nave understanding of the scope

and capacities of Sufism as a philosophy

and tradition.


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Dr. Syeeda Hameed very lucidly in her

keynote address touched upon the rich

journey of Sufism in India by revisiting

Maulana Azad and Shaheed Sarmad.

Maulana Azad who stood for composite

nationalism and pluralism was greatly

influenced by Sarmad. In the story of

Sarmad lie the seeds of doctrines of

Sufism- simplicity, humility and love.

Sarmad was an Armenian Jew who came

to India and became a tutor to Prince

Dara Shikoh, son of the Mughal king

Shahjahan and brother of Aurangzeb.

Sarmad with his eclectic thoughts was

perceived as a threat to the

establishment. His critical thinking and

simplicity (he used to roam the streets

naked) posed a challenge to puritan and

dogmatic Islam.

Dr. Hameed highlighted the doctrine of

Wahadatul Wajood (oneness with God)

and how the Sufis in India through their

mysticism and devotion sought direct

relation with God. The Sufis seek this

unity with God and devote all their love

to seek this union. She also quoted Rabia

al Basri to build upon this idea. Rabia

says,

If I adore You out of fear of Hell, burn

me in Hell!

If I adore you out of desire for Paradise,

Lock me out of Paradise.

But if I adore you for Yourself alone,

Do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.

Thus God should not be sought out of

fear or for want of favor/paradise but for

love for the sake of love for the God

alone. This spells the complete devotion

for God and losing ones identity to seek

a higher truth and beauty in God.


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Dr. Hameed while quoting the most

celebrated Sufi in India, Moinuddin

Chisti, explained what the highest form

of devotion according to Chisti was-

Develop river like generosity, Sun like

bounty and earth like hospitality. Thus

Sufism propounded a certain detachment

from material world and serving to the

needy. This idea was expanded by Prof.

Ilina Sen who spoke about the Baul-

Fakir tradition in West Bengal.The Bauls

who follow the teachings of Lallan

Fakir, a Muslim Sufi Saint, live in

akharas and denounced family and

private property. The Bauls believe in

equality and reject barriers in the forms

of caste, religion or gender. The tradition

has followers both, Hindus and the

Muslims, reflecting the syncretic culture

of West Bengal. The tradition has been

enriched from its interaction with the

Bhakti movement. Ironically the puritans

from both Hindu and Islamic traditions

reject the Baul tradition terming it as

heresy. The Sufi saints in Bengal,

historically engaged with the

marginalized like the peasants in

undivided Bengal and thus had a large

following in the rural areas. The Bauls

express their ecstasy through songs and

in this way have contributed

significantly to the literature and music

in Bengal.

The syncretic culture in India that is

reflected in Baul tradition is blooming in

other parts of India as well. In her very

interestingly titled paper, Needles that

Darn, not Scissors that Cut- Two Sufi

festivals in Delhi, Rana Safvi, argues

that Sufism is the needle that has woven

the social fabric in India with

inclusiveness and thus been a

contributing factor in its harmony. She

cites examples of two festivals in Delhi

to elaborate- Basant celebrations in

Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliyas dargah and

Phoolwaalon ki Sair in the Dargah of

Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki.

Basant celebration in Auliyas dargah

has a beautiful story to go with it. To


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bring a smile on the lips of his grieving

teacher, Nizamuddin Auliya, who had

lost his nephew to a fatal illness, Amir

Khusro dressed up in a yellow sari and

sang a song he heard some women sing.

The women were carrying mustard

flowers and singing on the road near the

Khwajas khanqah. The women told

Khusro that they were going to the

temple to offer these flowers to God and

that would make God happy. In his

pursuit to make his teacher smile, an

inspired Khusro dressed up similarly and

sang the same song to his teacher.

Auliya finallysmiled when he recognized

his favourite follower. Since then basant

is celebrated at the Dargah wherenon-

Muslims participate in large numbers. In

an electrifying atmosphere the visitors

don yellow and go in an ecstasy listening

to the soulful qawwallis.

Similarly the festival of Phoolwallo ki

Sairis celebrated in spirit of syncretic

tradition. Mughal emperor Akhbar II and

his queen Mumtaz Mahal offered a

chaddar of flowers to Dargah of Hazrat

Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki in Mehrauli

after their beloved son was released by

the British officials from prison. The

Emperor, for whom all subjects were

alike, also sent a floral offering to the

ancient and nearby temple of Yogmaya

Devi, the sister of Lord Krishna. Every

year the Emperor ensured that he and his

courtiers went to both, the Dargah and

Mandir. If he could not go to the temple

for some reason he would not go to the

dargah either. The festival even today is

celebrated with the same spirit. Similar

traditions are existent in Rajasthan. Rose

growers in Pushkar still send an offering

(chaddar) of roses from the first harvest

to Ajmer for the shrine of Ajmer dargah

and Hindu musicians sing at the dargah

as explained by Dr. Varsha Joshi.

In order to elaborate the harmonious

exchange of traditions from different

religions, Prof Jafri dwelled on the

adaptations and more of an exchange in

rituals and traditions which took place


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between the Chisti Sufis and other

sections of the society. He pointed out

that the Sufis contributed in

development of some dialects into full

fledged languages due to their use as

vehicles for transmission of ideas. This

led to writers producing some significant

literature which mirrored social and

political realities. The Chisti Sufis also

adopted certain ritualistic traditions such

as making sandal paste and ceremony of

Gagar. This to some extent led to

strengthening of a plural Awadhi culture.

Literature is an important component of

Sufism and vice versa. The Mughal

kings facilitated translations of important

Hindu Sanskrit texts in Persian language.

Prof. Shankar Nair cites the example of

the translation of Laghuyogavashista by

Nizam al-din Panipati. Though the

translations are attributed to the liberal

and tolerant attitudes of the Mughal

kings, Prof. Nair argued that the

Mughal interest in Sanskrit texts

stemmed from their desire of gaining

local Indian credentials and legitimacy.

Also the rulers were looking for new

models of local governance to

consolidate their power. Sufi

philosophy provided a conceptual

framework to the rulers to understand

such translations and thoughts.

Panipatis eclectic thoughts shouldnt

be misconstrued as aiming at religious

conversions but so that the Hindus can

be true to their own philosophy.

It is no wonder that given the richness of

Sufi traditions and its influence on

culture, Sufi music and festivals are

becoming increasingly popular across

the globe. According to Carl Ernst, due

to globalization and rise in consumerism,

there is a shift towards mass

consumption, making Sufi thoughts

more accessible in various forms like

music and festivals, which may not be

necessarily undesirable.

While revisiting the doctrines of Sufism

and also its contribution to composite


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culture, the question that hung large was

that if Sufism can counter the

fundamentalism not just in Islam, but in

other religions too. Sultan Shahin in his

paper sounded a cautionary note on the

wahabbization of Islam and increasing

radicalization taking place amongst the

youth. In such a scenario it is important

to explore if Sufism can present a softer

face of Islam. The responses to such

fundamental questions at the best are

complex as indicated by the discussions

in the Conference.

As pointed out by Prof. Sana Aziz, Sufi

Islam was contested by a more puritan

form of Islam which the orthodoxy

found as heretic. Thus there was a

demand of reform in Islam. Her paper

which dwelled on the historical context

of Sufism explored the connection

between reforms in Islam in the early

19th century and its seeds in Sufism. The

paper argued that most of the reformist

pioneers had strong Sufi antecedents and

thus the binary of Sufism and reformism

may be a fallacy. Sufism in this way

impacted reforms in Islam as well.

However Mehru Jaffer in her paper

raises the point that Islamic history

doesnt take into account pre Islamic

history and denies that tradition. This

was vehemently challenged by other

scholars who explained that Islam has

incorporated traditions before Islam.

Islam has validated the other prophets.

Although having had such a complex

journey, what is the prominent discourse

on Sufism in present day? Irfan Engineer

narrated two incidents which may be

instructive. One was about the institution

of Pir in Bashirhat in West Bengal and

other, the ban on the entry of women in

the sanctum sanctorum at Haji Ali

Dargah in MumbaiThe Haji Ali Dargah

Trust argued that women cant enter the

sanctum sanctorum of the Dargah

because women appear naked to the

souls in the graveyard and hence they

cant visit the grave of any saint! The

courts eventually settled in the favour of

womens entry into the sanctum

sanctorum of the Dargah. Irfan Engineer

argued that Sufi dargahs are losing their

inclusive character and getting steeped

into misogyny, hierarchy and

conservatism. Sufi spaces were most

inclusive transcending the barriers of

caste, religion and gender. Khanqahs

were spaces of inclusion. However the

trusts entrusted with the care and

management of Dargahs are leaning

more towards orthodoxy and losing its

radical and egalitarian character.

Similarly during a visit to Bashirhat in

West Bengal which was also an

epicenter of communal violence between

Muslims and Hindus in 2017, Irfan

Engineer described how the institution

of Pir was become dynasty influenced.

The Pir had a son who was using the

influence and following of the Pir to

gain support of the Muslim community

and as means towards his own vested

political ends. Instead of playing a role

of peace building in times of conflict, the

institution of Pir was being manipulated

for political ambition which is a far call

from the position of the most influential

Sufi saints in India like Nizamuddin

Auliya. This signals the decadence even

in the Sufi tradition in India. The

tradition is getting corrupted and

misused for vested interests. Irfan

Engineer ended on a note that, Sufism is

too serious a business to be left to the

Sufis. The Sufis alone dont have a

monopoly over the tradition and all

progressive and liberals should reclaim


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this tradition and also look for other

liberal traditions from non religious

traditions too to ensure social harmony.

The trend mentioned above in

dargahsand institutions related to Sufi

has been in contrast to teaching of the

most well known and celebrated Sufis in

India and also what has been a

cornerstone of Sufi philosophy.

Nizamuddin Auliya maintained his

distance from the State and power

though there were other schools of

thought in Sufism like Naqshbandi

which were close to the State and thus

enjoyed royal patronage. Nizamuddin

believed that one can either serve the

State or God. To him, it was important to

bring happiness to a human heart. But in

contemporary times, in contrary to

teachings of Auliya, Sufi thought is

being appropriated and in the pursuit of

power in socio-political sphere.

Having considered the various

dimensions, the contribution of Sufi

thought to the composite culture and

social harmony from a historical

perspective cannot be undermined. It has

shaped the social ethos and culture in so

many aspects that its core cant be

ignored. It is a resource for social

harmony. It is imperative to reiterate that

what Sufism offers at large is a healing

touch. In a multi cultural society like

India which sadly has been witnessing

manipulation of religious identities to

polarize communities, Sufism offers the

biggest value- love. As Rumi believed

and taught that love is inclusive of all

identities, since it embraces all. That is a

valuable lesson for us in conflict ridden

societies of present times.

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2. Articles

Finding Small Rays of Sunshine 16 Years After the Darkness of the 2002 Gujarat Riots

BY J.S. BANDUKWALA ON 27/02/2018

After watching his life crumble in Vadodara during the 2002 riots, one man recounts how the chances of a brighter future havent dimmed despite Indias steady march towards

saffronisation.

Memories of that fateful afternoon of February 27, 2002, can still send a chill through me.

I was in my Physics lab at Baroda University when a peon rushed in to say that a train carrying karsevaks from Ayodhya had been attacked at Godhra, about 100 km from Vadodara (formerly

called Baroda). Many karsevaks had been burnt alive. Their dead bodies were to be shifted to Ahmedabad, for a huge Vishwa Hindu Parishad funeral procession through the city the next day.

A terrible fear gripped me. I feared a mass hysteria in the procession,

https://thewire.in/author/jsbandukwala/https://thewire.in/227733/16-years-after-2002-gujarat-riots/https://thewire.in/112462/gujarat-riots-victims-apathy/


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followed by the killing of Muslims and the loss of property. It could be a blow from which the community would never recover. After all, Gujarat was the most saffron among all states in India. It is a paradox that Gujarat could have produced an angel of non-violence. But it was also the fortress of the VHP, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party.

I had joined Baroda University right after I finished my studies in the United States in 1972. My first impressions were of a city polarised along communal lines. Minor fights between Hindus and Muslims had the potential to disturb city peace. The police too was partial in maintaining law and order. This drove me into social activism and protests. It resulted in a few jail stays, combined with mob attacks on my house. This proved too much for my wife who soon

lapsed into depression. She died in 2001.

I had no relative in the city or in all of Gujarat. My only son was far away in the US. My 23-year-old daughter was alone with me, awaiting her marriage to her fianc, a Gujarati Hindu.

As a matter of principle, I prefer to live in a plural locality. I still believe that

true national integration can only occur when people of all castes and faiths live in proximity to each other. Unfortunately in India, people live in areas clearly marked as belonging to their caste and religion.

I must confess my heroes have been Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, who paid a heavy price for their belief that blacks and whites can live, eat and work together. But the flip side is that I

Survivors look at the pictures of the Godhra riots victims at a photo exhibition held to commemorate its 10th anniversary in Ahmedabad in February 2012. Credit: Reuters

https://thewire.in/49580/bjp-uniform-civil-code/


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could easily become a target of mob attack, anytime the communal temperature would start to simmer.

That is what happened the day after Godhra train burning. My neighbours turned their backs on us. The mob had brought gas cylinders which they lit up, and within 15 minutes, the beautiful memories of that house had been turned into rubble. The only saving grace was that both my daughter and I were saved in spite of attempts to kill us. My world had collapsed.

The sun was shining brightly on the new avatar Narendra Modi, the then chief minister of Gujarat. The communal violence in 2002 was the first step in his drive to win absolute power in India. My big worry was whether the era of Mahatma Gandhi was over in Gujarat. Would the Hindus of Gujarat abandon the greatest figure to emerge from this state?

Fortunately, my fears were misplaced. That very night, a senior colleague, soon to be vice chancellor, volunteered to take my daughter to our destroyed home to retrieve any valuables that could be lying in the rubble. He went around midnight to an area where tensions were high. It was risky. Yet he wanted to help me at a critical phase in my life.

Early the next morning, TV news anchor Barkha Dutt located my hideout, and interviewed my daughter and me. During the interview, my daughter finally realised the enormity of losing

her house and her mother in a short time, and she started crying. To my surprise, Barkha also started crying and the taping of the interview had to be stopped.

The sight of a nationally-known face breaking down at the plight of a young Muslim girl was the ultimate proof that there was an India beyond the reach of Modi and his saffron supporters. To escape from the tensions in Gujarat, we went to Mumbai. The very next evening, I was invited to speak to a hall full of activists, most of whom I had never seen before. Needless to say, they were all most sympathetic.

We proceeded on to our son in the US. The very first visit we had was from the daughter and widow of an IAS officer friend, living about 500 km from my son. They were worried about me. Incidentally, they were Bhumihars from Bihar. In the days to follow Indian Americans would ring expressing concern. Among the callers were Rajmohan Gandhi, Sam Pitroda and Prof. Ramakrishnan, the father of Nobel laureate Venkatraman Venki Ramakrishnan. They later sent me return plane tickets so I could spend a few days with him at their home about 3,000 km away.

On my return to Vadodara, 85-year-old Jinabhai Darji, a leading Gandhian came to my new university flat. He saw me and just began to sob in an uncontrolled manner. I mention these cases only to show how these prominent Indians here


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and abroad, viewed the actions of the saffron forces in destroying my house.

The coach of the Sabarmati Express train which

was torched. Credit: PTI/Files

The impact this had on me was huge. My faith in Gandhi and my fellow Hindus was restored. I had to see beyond my own loss and pain. Bridges had to be built both to my own community and also to the Hindus of Gujarat. The dreams of our icons from Gandhi to Jawaharlal Nehru, from Rabindranath Tagore to Subhas Chandra Bose, from Gopal Krishna Gokhale to C. Rajaji Rajagopalachari cannot be allowed to bite the dust before hate and bigotry.

Rekindling hope

The crisis facing the community was very huge. About 2,000 Muslims had been killed. Many women were raped.

Boys and girls had become orphans, many in front of their own eyes. The loss in property was in thousands of

crores. But the community itself was paralysed due to the migration of thousands from their own established homes. This resulted in a loss of jobs, business and the education of children. Police would harass the youth who were the victims of the riots. To make matters worse, some of our activists saw greener pastures in shifting loyalties to the BJP. It is indeed a miracle that we pulled through this ugly phase.

Credit goes to many Hindus who went out of their way to help Muslims. Gandhians, socialists and human rights activist became active. It is impossible to mention all the noble souls involved. But I must say Kirit Bhatt and Jagdish Shah in Vadodara, and Mukul Sinha, Indu Jani, Prakash Shah and Gagan Sethi did sterling work. Scholarships were


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started to prevent boys and girls from giving up studies. Islamic Relief Committee built a number of housing colonies to resettle the refugees.

The one at Kalol helped the victims of nearby Derol, where the killings were among the highest in Gujarat, and as far as I know, no one was ever convicted for that crime. Fortunately, Gagan Sethi set up a school there. Among the students of Kalol were three bright orphan girls, whose performance in school and board examinations was good. The Vadodara-based Zidni Ilma took over the responsibility of their education. They are today chemists and microbiologists who work at a nearby pharma plant.

Sixteen years later, one can safely say that the fears of 2002 permanently ruining the community have proved totally wrong. In terms of quality education, wealth generation and womens upliftment, Muslims are far better off than ever before.

Every year in May and June, the newspapers are full of photos of Muslim boys and girls who have excelled in the board and university examinations. It is quite standard to see photos of Muslim girls standing first in their batch. This year, a Saiyed girl topped the boards in all of Gujarat. Another young girl made four attempts to clear the NEET medical exam before she succeeded. Her parents never gave up, neither did she. There is one small locality in Vadodara, called Taiwada, which has the highest concentration of chartered accountants.

Yet we are worried about the high rate of failure in the board exam. While our middle class and upper class students are doing well, the load on poorer Muslims is high. Gujarat education has become money oriented, and the poor simply cannot cope. Their numbers are so high that the community too finds it difficult to help out. Inshallah, some solution will come soon. We have started reading rooms in a few poorer areas to encourage boys and girls to study there, as it is difficult to do so in crowded homes with poor lighting and lots of noise filtering in from the outside.

One of the positive effects of 2002 has been the concern our elite have shown for the uplift of the community. Medical camps on Sunday mornings have become standard in Vadodara. The best of medical experts offer free service and free medicines are provided. This needs to spread to other cities.

Finally, on the political front, Muslims have become non-entities. Gujarat has not sent any Muslim to the Lok Sabha in the last three decades. Our population is just under 10%, yet our strength in the assembly is barely three out of about 180. Modi has succeeded in making Muslims politically disappear.

But does it really matter? I would rather focus all our energies on quality education, wealth generation and womens upliftment. After all, that was the path taken by the Jews of the US.


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3. Harmony

http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/imam-asks-mosques-to-delay-namaz-so-hindu-brothers-can-play-holi/

Imam asks mosques to delay namaz so Hindu brothers can play Holi

We understand that the festival comes once in a year for our Hindu brothers. Thus, to ensure that our Hindu brothers can play Holi and we can also offer namaz, we have decided to change

the timings. Many people I have spoken to so far, have agreed"

Written by Maulshree Seth | Lucknow | Updated: February 28, 2018 4:14 am

The Imam of Aishbagh Eidgah in Lucknow on Tuesday said he has urged all mosques in the city to postpone the timing for Friday namaz in view of Holi festival on March 2. The festival of Holi will fall on Friday thus, I have urged all mosques to postpone the timing of the Friday namaz. Holi is played at its peak between 12 pm to 1 pm, when jumme ki namaz is also held, said Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Mahali, a Sunni cleric. He added that he has already changed the timings of Friday prayers at Aishbagh Eidgah from 12.45 pm to 1.45 pm.

We understand that the festival comes once in a year for our Hindu brothers. Thus, to ensure that our Hindu brothers can play Holi and we can also offer namaz, we have decided to change the timings. Many people I have spoken to so far, have agreed as all of us want to ensure that the right message goes out

to the community, said Mahali. He added that this was the first time that timings of Friday prayers has been changed for Holi.

This comes a day after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a law and order review meeting in regard with preparations for Holi. At the meeting, he had instructed officials to ensure peace during the festival. According to a government spokesperson, Adityanath had asked officials to ensure that peace committees comprising members of different communities meet and the festival is celebrated cordially.

The chief minister also instructed officials to ensure continuous power supply during Holi on March 1 and March 2, as well as proper arrangements for water supply in rural and urban areas.

http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/imam-asks-mosques-to-delay-namaz-so-hindu-brothers-can-play-holi/http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/imam-asks-mosques-to-delay-namaz-so-hindu-brothers-can-play-holi/http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/imam-asks-mosques-to-delay-namaz-so-hindu-brothers-can-play-holi/http://indianexpress.com/profile/author/maulshree-seth/


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4. Poem

BJP and Separatism

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(From Face book)

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5. Mourning

Press Release

Khudai Khidmatgar Organised Candle Vigil at Jamia Nagar in Solidarity of

ANKIT SAXENA Killed in Delhi

04th

February 2018

New Delhi

Khudai Khidmatgar organised a candle

vigil cum Prayer Meeting at SABKA

GHAR, located near Jamia Millia

Islamia, Okhla in solidarity of Ankit

Saxena, who was killed by a Girls

family with whome his affair was.

As soon as Khudai Khidmatgar saw this

painful news, about the killing of Ankit,

the organization decided to convene the

condolence and prayer meeting against

this brutal incident at Khudai

Khidmatgars Sabka Ghar, (This

Sabka Ghar dedicated to all those who

are killed by the name of Religion,

Caste, Gender, Linguistic and

Boundaries differences). Khudai

Khidmatgars gathered in this venue,

shared condolence message to Ankit

Saxena and condemned the inhuman

attitude committed by the Muslim

family.

Khudai Khidmatgar National Convenor

Faisal Khan while addressing the

participants gathered during this

occasion said that, Religion never allows

anyone to kill, if a religious believer kills

anyone in this earth as if he kills the

whole human being and he is no more

belongs to that belief. Now-a-days the

trend of polarization, Killing and

spreading hate has become the new

forms of politics and popularization. It is

the prime duty of all the social activists

and individuals, that we should stop

these forms of incidents happening in the

society by promoting proper

understanding about humanity, real

sense of religion, need for peace and

love.

Khudai Khidmatgar National Leaders

Council Member Dr. Kush Kumar Singh

paid homage to Ankit Saxena by saying

that Ankit killed for his love, but the

love he gets from the society is

invaluable, with which the light of love

and harmony will spread across the

society.

Khudai Khidmatgar Leader Inamul

Hasan, after paying the homage

expressed that, We had the similar case

of killing across the country in recent

years by the Religious and political

Institutions and Cadres. The case of

Ankit is shocking to see that the

individual and the families are filled

with hatred and involved in killing,

which is the similar case of Honour

Killing. Khudai Khidmatgar always

stands to raise voice against inhuman

incidents and discrimination occurs in

the society.

Khudai Khidmatgar Domestic Workers

Forum Co Ordinator Tanzeela and


16

Afsana, NLC Member Rizwan Khan,

Delhi State Co Ordinator Sushil Khanna,

Supreme Court Lawyer Manoj Kumar,

Jamia Student Unit lead by Sahil Ahmed

and Murari Singh, University of Delhi

Students lead by Raj Shukla and various

others participated in this gathering.

It is also decided that a delegation of

Khudai Khidmatgar will meet the

parents of Ankit and will work with their

family, as the Parents have no other

children apart from Ankit.

For Further Details Contact:

9999746196, 9092137718

***

6. Tribute

NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF PEOPLE'S MOVEMENTS

National Office:6/6 Jangpura B, New Delhi 110 014 . Phone :011 2437 4535 | 9818905316 E-mail: [email protected] | Web :www.napm-india.org

24th Feb, 2018

NAPM salutes the life and relentless work of Neelabh Mishra for journalistic

justice and human rights

National Alliance of People's Movements is deeply saddened to know of the untimely demise of our dear friend, veteran journalist and human rights activist, Neelabh Mishra, today in Chennai, after a prolonged battle with liver failure. In so many ways, Neelabh reflected the true spirit of an Indian citizen who believed in, lived and breathed the constitutional values and constantly challenged, through his words, work and wisdom, the narrow confines of 'nationalistic', divisive and unjust politics. As the Chief Editor of National Herald and Navjeevan and subsequently as the Editor of Outlook (Hindi) from 2005, Neelabh worked

relentlessly and meticulously to bring forth numerable stories that mattered to the masses and marginalized people of the country. With over three decades of commendable work on a wide range of issues, he groomed and guided an entire generation of journalist-activists. A true feminist and partner of multiple people's platforms, he was deeply committed to truth, fairness and secular values. A widely-read and well-informed person, with command over many languages and also an equally abiding interest in literature, culture and politics, he carried his wisdom very lightly, with immense humility and responsibility.

mailto:[email protected]://www.napm-india.org/


17

With the passing away of Neelabh, the world of journalism and conscientious citizenry has lost a brave, self-effacing comrade who had an unflinching faith in the values of constitutional democracy, justice and equality of all beings. In the times that we are living in, where sections of the media shrill-mouth only the interests and prejudices of corporates and fascist political forces, Neelabh stood out like a rock and never for once drifted away from the spirit of progressive politics and journalistic ethics of pro-people, secular values. On behalf of all saathis in NAPM, we extend our most sincere condolences

to human rights activist and long time co-traveller, Kavita Srivastava, who has constantly been by Neelabh in the past many months, as he fought bravely against his illness. We will sorely miss him and his brilliance, but re-commit ourselves to the values he cherished and lived, all his life. His work has been and would be a guiding spirit to a generation of young journalists and activists who we know and hope would carry and keep the torch aglow.

Medha Patkar, Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) and National Alliance of Peoples Movements (NAPM)

***

7. Asma Jahangir: In death, as in life

Written by Zahra Hayat | Published on: February 14, 2018

As I walked into the stadium for Asma

Jahangirs funeral, I initially couldnt

spot any women. I hesitated, and tried to

remember the logistics of death: do

women even attend public funeral

prayers? What if they ask me to leave?

Then quickly, sanity returned. Would

Asma Jahangir be having these

thoughts? Never, shed charge right in.

So I channeled her, then, as I know I will

many many times after today, stood up a

little taller, and walked in. And of

course, there were so many women.

Many were lawyers. A sense of

solidarity. We asked each other where

the womens enclosure was, expecting

any minute to be directed away from

where her body was kept, to a separate

female enclosure. There was none. Of

course. As we crowded around the front,

women and men, announcements began

about starting the namaz, and again, we

expected to finally be told to step back

and form lines behind the men. But

instead, the men were asked to move to

the back, and the women called to the

front.

https://sabrangindia.in/articles/zahra-hayat


18

We prayed like that, standing next to

some men, in front of others. No one

objected, how dare they? It was

beautiful, so fitting. I shouldve known -

how could the woman who charged

alone, quite literally, into all-male bar

rooms, courtrooms, into all sorts of

hyper male spaces, countenance that the

women who came to say farewell to her,

their hero, be shunted to the back? Such

beautiful subversion, in death as in life.

Farewell, Asma. Rest in power.

Posted on an Indo-Pak peace group.

***

Tribute

How She Became Asma Thursday 15 February 2018, by I.A. Rehman

HER death was the top news in all media

outlets. Tributes to her from national and

international leaders have been pouring

in large numbers. Millions of people

across the country, in jhuggis as well as

in posh bungalows, are numb with grief

because the voice that was unfailingly

raised in their support has gone quiet

forever. Many at her funeral agreed that

she had touched more hearts than any

other living Pakistani. How did Asma

Jahangir attain this stature?

Quite a few have tried to sum up Asmas

character in a single word such as

courage, commitment, leadership,

love and so on. None of these words

fully defines Asma, and even a

Photo credit: Geo TV

http://www.alterinter.org/spip.php?auteur10713


19

combination of all of them might be

inadequate.

Courage she was threatened by mail

and verbally from many a platform.

Some young men scaled the walls of her

house with the intention of causing her

harm. Shots were fired at her vehicle in

Balochistan. She was warned of having

been put on the hit list of privileged

gunmen. But nothing could deter her

from standing up for the peoples rights.

Courage for her did not mean merely

absence of the fear of death, it meant

essentially an ability to say whatever

needed to be said in any situation, on

any issue. It meant resistance to

oppression, dictatorship and injustice,

regardless of the consequences. It also

meant determination to stay firmly on

course in the struggle for fellow

Pakistanis entitlements.

Many agree that she touched more hearts

than any other living Pakistani.

Commitment Asmas reservoir of

courage was a measure of her

commitment to the causes of the fellow

beings she chose to uphold. She fought

for Samias freedom from an unwanted

marriage and for other girls right to

marry boys of their choice. Journalist

Jugnu Mohsin says women in her village

tell their husbands to behave otherwise

they will seek Asmas help. She was

among the women who defied Zias

police on the Mall in Lahore in February

1983, and many were the occasions

when she stood at the barricades and

faced police baton charges while

condemning violence against women

and lawyers.

While establishing gender justice was

her first ideal, she never failed to defend

men in distress. She fought for Gilgit-

Baltistans popular hero, Baba Jan, and

also for Okaras peasant leader, Mehar

Sattar, both victims of the abuse of law.

She fought for the freedom of bonded

workers at Punjabs brick kilns and in

Sindhs agriculture, and she fought since

2007 till her death for the recovery of

missing persons and for an end to

enforced disappearances.

For the last many years, she had been

concentrating on defending the peoples

right to democratic governance, rule of

law, due process, and protection against

illegal detention and torture.

She began rejecting authoritarianism in

her teens when her father was thrown in

jail for resisting it and had her name

entered in Pakistans law records as the

petitioner in the Asma Jilani case, the

only case in the countrys history in

which a dictator was declared a usurper.

No one in Pakistan has rejected

authoritarian rule so firmly and so

consistently as Asma Jahangir did. Even

when some of the civil society stalwarts

were deceived by Pervez Musharrafs

rhetoric, Asma declined to accept

authoritarianism under any garb.

Such a strong commitment to defend

democracy, even at the risk of being

misunderstood by the morality brigade,

could come only from an absolute clarity

of vision and rejection of halfway houses

on the path to democratic freedoms.

As a firm believer in the independence

of the judiciary and the legal profession,

she was in the vanguard of the lawyers


20

movement for the restoration of the

judges thrown out by Pervez Musharraf.

She was disappointed like the original

leaders of the French Revolution at the

post-victory behaviour of the young

cavaliers and the beneficiaries of the

victory. But she did not allow frustration

on this account to affect her resolve to

do her bit for the Supreme Court Bar

Association.

Leadership many years ago,

according to Shahid Kardar, seasoned

politician and one of the principal

leaders of the Human Rights

Commission of Pakistan, Dr Mubashir

Hasan, declared that Asma had the

qualities of a leader who could put the

state back on the rails. This opinion was

perhaps based on the way Asma had laid

the foundations of HRCP and guided its

destiny directly for its first six years and

indirectly till the last working day of her

life.

Her success lay firstly in persuading,

with the help of Munir Malik and the

late Sabihuddin Ahmad, the

incomparable Justice Dorab Patel to be

the HRCPs first chairperson. And,

secondly, in running the commission by

consensus without compromising on its

principles and its strategy. She also

succeeded in bringing into the HRCP a

galaxy of jurists, senior lawyers and

trade union leaders, from all the four

provinces, reflecting the countrys

cultural diversity. She did all this while

maintaining the commissions federal

and democratic character.

The Supreme Court Bar Association was

another institution where Asma

demonstrated her leadership qualities.

The standards of personal integrity and

commitment to fellow lawyers welfare

she set will be remembered for long.

Besides, says a senior colleague and one

of the leaders of the Pakistan Bar

Council, so long as Asma was there they

were sure she would sort out whatever

mistakes were made by them.

One of Asmas greatest services to

Pakistan, which is often not recognised,

is that as a UN special rapporteur she

raised Pakistans prestige not only in

international councils but also among the

people of the countries she visited.

Everybody is saying that the void caused

by Asma Jahangirs passing can never be

filled. The gap indeed appears to be hard

to bridge. But Asma has left a legacy of

hope. Who knows how many from

amongst the young men and women she

inspired, trained and worked with

women paralegal workers, human rights

activists, interns at the legal aid

organisation AGHS and HRCP, and

young lawyers guided by her may

learn to speak for all the disadvantaged

who Asma loved.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2018

Source: https://www.dawn.com/news/1389434/how-she-became-asma

***

https://www.dawn.com/news/1389434/how-she-became-asma


21

8. Protest

https://countercurrents.org/2018/02/07/caste-wall-kerala-civil-society-condemns-police-brutality/

Caste Wall In Kerala: Civil Society Condemns Police Brutality in Annihilate Caste / India by Press Release February 7, 2018

Social activists, writers, film makers,

academicians and members of the civil

society have condemned the police

brutality unleashed by the Kerala Police

against the Dalit Atmabhiman

Convention organized by the Dalit Bhoo

Avakasha Samara Munnani (Dalit Land

Rights Organisation) in Vadayampadi,

Kochi on 4th February. Prominent

signatories include Aruna Roy, Prafulla

Samanthra, Kavitha Srivasthava, Teesta

Setalvad, K. Sachithanandan, Paul

Zakharia, Javed Anand, John Dayal,

Sarah Joseph, BRP Bhaskar, M.

Geethanandan, Sunny Kapikkad, Anvar

Ali, K.P.Sasi, TT Sreekumar, B. Ajith

Kumar, C.R. Neelakandhan among

many others.

Full Text of the Statement

We the following activists, writers, film

makers, academicians and members of

the civil society, hereby express our

deep concern on the police brutality

unleashed by the Kerala Police against

the Dalit Atmabhiman Convention

organized by the Dalit Bhoo Avakasha

Samara Munnani (Dalit Land Rights

Organisation) in Kochi on 4th February.

The convention was taking place

peacefully while it was suddenly

attacked by the police in the morning. As

the police broke-in, many activists

including the Chairman of Samara

Munnani, C.S. Murali (also the President

of Kerala Dalit Masabha) and Gomathi

from Penpillai Orumai, were injured.

Activists present at the protest site were

dragged through the road and arrested.

For the last few days the NSS (Nair

Service Society) has been occupying the

public ground surrounding the

Vadayambadi Temple in Vadayambadi

in Ernakulam district, Kerala. Fortifying

their occupation, NSS has built a caste

wall in order to prevent the Dalits

entering the temple. A protest has been

going on for the last few weeks by Dalit

Bhoo Avakasha Samara Munnani to

make available the property for public

and to demolish the caste wall. The

ongoing events are on air and many

organizations and individuals have

expressed their support to the movement.

On Ambedkar Jayanti last year (2017), a

similar wall erected by the Society was

pulled down by the protesters. The NSS

then went on occupying the land

producing fake land records and

promptly built a huge arch entrance

including a wall. The present protest

programme, demanding the demolition

of the wall, has been continuously facing

threats from the government and police

since its beginning. The activists till now

have confronted all such threats and

continued with the protest.

https://countercurrents.org/2018/02/07/caste-wall-kerala-civil-society-condemns-police-brutality/https://countercurrents.org/2018/02/07/caste-wall-kerala-civil-society-condemns-police-brutality/https://countercurrents.org/2018/02/07/caste-wall-kerala-civil-society-condemns-police-brutality/


22

This uncompromising attitude, we feel,

has resulted in successive attacks on the

protest site and arrest of the activists,

and even the media persons. During a

similar incident on 21st January, two

journalists Abhilash Padacheri and

Ananthu Rajagopal Asha, along with one

of the leaders of the movement, Mr.

Sasidharan (KPMS Taluk Secretary),

were arrested on false charges.

Following their arrest, activist V.K. Joy

was also put into custody.

Todays convention was organized to

protest these recent happenings,

particularly against the anti-Dalit attitude

demonstrated by the Kerala government

and the Police-Raj going on the state.

However, the protesters were

continuously harassed by the state

officials in order to suppress the voice of

dissent. Last day the Collector denied

the permission to conduct the

convention. In a way, he threatened the

protesters for any possible

circumstances. In the morning of the day

of the convention, the goons of the

Sangh Parivar and other right-wing

fundamentalists approached the protest

site and created ruckus by manhandling

and threatening the protesters.

As of now, police seems to be silent and

not ready to take any action against the

perpetrators. In contrast to the lawful

duty entrusted upon a public servant,

The SI of the concerned police station,

Sajan Saviour has been trying his best to

suppress the movement with different

means including public caste

defamation. Eventually, he is same

person who led the force today to the

arrests. Among the activists, Gomathi,

has been badly injured during the police

action and was denied the hospital

facility. Dr. P.G Hari, who questioned

this discrimination at the police station,

had to face their rage and he was

physically manhandled by the

policemen.

We strongly feel that these incidents are

a clear indication of the growing fascist

and anti-dalit attitudes in Kerala State as

much as elsewhere. We appeal to all

secular and democratic individuals and

organizations to express their concerns,

support and solidarity in this grave social

movement.

We also appeal to all sections within the

left and secular forces in Kerala to

maintain the values against casteism and

communalism that is enshrined by

Babasahib Ambedkar in our Indian

Constitution, since this is the only

document to bring together all sections

of people as citizens of this country. The

political leaders have an additional role

to preserve these values since they have

taken an oath to protect the Indian

Constitution before becoming any State

or Central Minister.

We hereby demand that all the arrested

persons should be released immediately

and the charges against the arrested

persons should be cancelled

immediately. We also demand that

immediate actions are taken against the

police officials who are responsible for

such brutality.

We also condemn the attack by the

Sangh Parivar on Keralas peoples poet,

Kureeppuzha Sreekumar for supporting

the Vadayambadi struggle. We appeal to

the public consciousness in Kerala to

isolate all forces which build caste and


23

communal violence through their own

ideological terms.

Aruna Roy

Prafulla Samanthra, Activist/NAPM

Kavitha Srivasthava, PUCL

Teesta Setalvad, Social Activist

Sachithanandan, Poet

***

9. The Business of the Hindutva Militias

Written by Shafeeque Salman K | Published on: February 13, 2018

The growth of the criminal groups that

are part of the Sangh Parivar is related to

the economy that the Sangh has

managed to develop around them.

The RSS chief has made claims about

his organisation being battle-ready.

Earlier, news about the film Padmavati,

and gau rakshaks had become hot topics

of discussion. The militia of the Sangh

Parivar continues to make news.

In this context, probably it is apt to talk

about the billion-dollar business that is

Hindutva, and how riots and violence

helps it to grow. We are often engaged

in debates on Hindutva as an idea, but it

is often felt that attempts to study it as a

mass movement are limited. An idea,

after all, does not spread without reason.

For that to happen, it needs to turn into a

material force. To understand this better,

we need to understand how this material

force operates. Here the material force is

the RSS itself, and the Sangh Parivar

https://sabrangindia.in/articles/Shafeeque%20Salman%20Khttps://newsclick.in/sites/default/files/2018-02/RSS7_0.jpg


24

which includes hundreds of

organisations which are linked to it,

whether they are formally affiliated to

the RSS or not.

Let us look at a simple example of how

the economy of Hindutva works. South

Karnataka, which includes the

Mangalore belt, is a region where the

Bajrang Dal, the criminal gang of the

Sangh Parivar, is active and strong. The

Bajrang Dal grew in this region by

unleashing violence against the minority

communities, especially the Muslims.

The Muslim merchants of Mangalore

city are among the biggest victims of the

Bajrang Dals violence. To escape from

this continuous street violence, the

Muslim merchants are these days forced

to hire the services of a major security

agency in Mangalore city.

The owner of this security agency

Eshwari Manpower Solutions is

Sharan Pampwell. The amazing irony is,

this very Sharan Pampwell is the South

Karnataka convenor of the Bajrang Dal!

In other words, the communal violence

of the Bajrang Dal becomes the fodder

for their own business. The situation is

such that whoever is targeted by the

intimidation and violence by Sharan and

his followers have to pay for the services

of their own enemy. Sharan himself says

that the Muslim commercial

establishments of Mangalore are his

clients. (For details, see Shadow

Armies: Fringe Organisations and Foot

Soldiers of Hindutva by Dhirandra K

Jha.)

Something thing that underworld dons

and gangsters used to do illegally is

being done here legally. It is their

politics which is enabling the Sangh to

do this. And they are doing it using an

ideology which they use to justify their

acts and a narrative they have developed

in support of these acts.

The Sangh rallies people into their

networks not just by injecting ideology,

but also by making those people the

beneficiaries of such networks at a

material level.

For example, the workers of Eshwari

Manpower Solutions are mostly activists

of the Bajrang Dal. The common

activists of the Bajrang Dal are often

people who face caste discrimination

and economic backwardness. Being a

Sangh Parivar worker not only gives

them some social legitimacy, but also

a means of livelihood. People need both

of these to survive. This is a major factor

behind the growth of the Sangh Parivar,

which is ideologically non-inclusive, and

which justifies caste relations on the

basis of an antiquated worldview, as a

movement with major support among

the Dalit-Adivasi-OBC sections. It has

been able to do so by corrupting people

ideologically as well as materially. Its

entire machinery tries to bring both these

elements together. It is not easy to


25

destroy the support base it gains in this

manner.

The anti-Padmavati riots have this

dimension. There is speculation that

groups like Karni Sena have been used

for the movies publicity. But the

relevant thing to note is the legitimacy

that several fringe groups like Karni

Sena has received. This is what the

Sanghi government helped them gain by

blindly encouraging the violence they

unleashed. Thus an opportunity arose for

them to engage in perfectly legal

business. This is also a shortcut to build

an economy, to rally people and to retain

them in the fold. By letting such groups

to control the law and order of a region,

they are being given a free hand to bring

the region in their grip. That is

something that should concern us the

most in the entire episode.

Courtesy: Newsclick.in

***

10. Interview

Rise of Hindutva ensures clash between classes gets

sidelined

AS HL IN M AT HEW Published: Feb 25th 2018, 08.33 AM

Social Media

Malayalam writer KP Ramanunni

Malayalam author, KP Ramanunni, who

gave Junaids mother his Sahitya

Akademi prize money, believes there will

be a clash between religions because

they want to sideline the clash between

classes

How do you differentiate a writer from

his activism? You dont and you cant.

For KP Ramanunni, winner of the

Sahitya Akademi award from Kerala,

activism is an extension of his writing.

He writes to express his conviction and

his writing comes from the agony that

the world should have been a better

place. Why does the world still have all

the crimes and why do people follow

ahimsa. The lives of people should have

been better. My writing is a struggle to

make the human life better, says

Ramanunni.

The author, who won the award for

his Daivathinte Pusthakam (Gods Own

Book), gave his prize money of 1 lakh

to the mother of Junaid Khan, the teen

stabbed to death on a Mathura-bound

train from New Delhi in June 2017 on

the eve of Eid. In this book, the author

has Prophet Muhammad and Lord

Krishna as protagonists and he also

brings in Jesus Christ, Karl Marx and

https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/author/378057


26

Adolf Hitler. All of this is in the

backdrop of a blackhole, which is on its

way to consume our planet. But, this is

not the only book where he has theorised

his concept of communal harmony

Ramanunni has done it since his first

book, Sufi Paranja Katha (What the Sufi

Said). It was the love story of a Muslim

boy and a Hindu girl. He followed it up

in his other books and even in a recent

article he wrote in a

weekly Madhyamam. This led to

fanatics even sending him a letter

threatening to chop off his limbs.

Excerpts from the interview he gave to

National Herald on Sunday:

Q. Your book falls in the category of

sci-fiction with time travel; the

characters have been taken out of our

religious and historical contexts to

become protagonists. What made you

make these characters (Krishna and

Mohammed) the protagonists?

A: The pressing need of the time made

me choose the novels plot and theme.

Those who read me will certainly know

that the vision in Deivathinte Pusthakam

is not imported; it had grown and

matured in the fertile soil of Ponnani. I

acknowledge that Lord Krishna and the

Prophet were never featured together in

any of the worlds languages, but both of

them are represented in the text neither

for the creation of a strange plot nor for

the love of narrating a tale of yore. Past

comes into every literary work to face

and address the present. So it is in

Deivathinte Pusthakam too. The

character of Lord Krishna critiques the

demonised Hindu culture. The Prophet

declares a pact-less war with Islamic

terrorism. This is the contemporary

political mission of Lord Krishna and the

Prophet in Deivathinte Pusthakam.

My work was in fact, avenging the

western modernity that never took into

account the democratic and

revolutionary faces of religion, but

treated the religious prophets

mechanically, cutting their feet as and

when required to fit them into the shoes.

Q. How do you see this novel of yours

vis--vis your other novels?

A: This novel is totally different from

my other novel and also different from

other novels in Malayalam. Time, space

or place always forms the core of most

works. In my novel, the time is from

Dvapara Yuga of Krishna to the 21st

century. And the place is all the

countries India, America and Iraq. The

whole universe is coming as the place in

my novel. In these 700 pages, it is the

trial of human history. The notion of

Hindu and Muslim harmony is also there

in my earlier books What the Sufi

said and Jeevithathinte

Pusthakam (The book of Life). In this

book, Im theorising the communal

harmony concept.

Q. Two years ago, many Sahitya

Akademi winners returned their

awards protesting the atmosphere of

intolerance in the country. Do you see

any change now?

A: Two years ago, it all began with the

killing of MM Kalburgi, who was a

Sahitya Akademi Award winner. The

first to return his award was Hindi writer

Uday Prakash and it was followed by

many others including Malayalam poet

K Satchidanandan, who resigned from

the Executive Council. Even last year


27

Gauri Lankesh was killed. That

intolerance continues. Writers are now

accepting different ways of protest.

People are saying there will be a clash

between religions because they want to

sideline the clash between classes. The

actual clash is between haves and the

have-nots. Samuel Huntingtons Clash

of Civilization theory, where he argues

peoples cultural and religious identities

will be the source of conflict, only added

to the chaos. People should realise, all

the religions have the same belief at the

core of it. The novel warrants communal

harmony, so when I get an award for that

novel, it is my moral responsibility to

bring out that idea.

Q. By giving your award money to

Junaids mother, did you make a

political statement?

A: The award I have been conferred has

actually been given to me by using the

taxpayers money. So, it has actually

been given by the people of the country.

So, me giving the money to Junaids

mother is a message to the country and

the writers community, more than a

protest. There is no point fighting over

these things.

Junaid was killed only because he was a

Muslim. There was no other accusation

against him. According to Hinduism,

when a sin is committed, a penance has

to be done. When Junaid was killed by

fanatic Hindus, the sin falls on all

Hindus. I am a true Hindu, a believer.

So, I have to do my penance. I also want

to show what the character of a true

Hindu should be. In that way, I am

making a political statement in this

prevailing atmosphere of intolerance. I

am reminding what is Bharatiya

civilisation it is one of tolerance, co-

existence. Some fanatics are trying to

destroy that tradition to make it very

intolerant. By showing love to people of

other religion, it is a political statement.

Q. Is humanism at the core of your

literary creation?

A: Yes, human values are there at the

core of my writing. The term has a

misleading meaning though. It is a

western concept without taking in

consideration the different identities of

third world countries. In that western

concept of humanism, the real human is

an aristocratic white man in the model of

a real human being. In that concept, men

of other races and women are not

present. Humanism, in those terms, is

limited and exclusive. I am not

interested in that concept of humanism.

According to my concept, it is extremely

inclusive. Everyone has their liberty to

have their own different cultural

identities. With all their different cultural

identities, they should be treated equal.

Q. What are the core beliefs of the

Hinduism you follow and what do you

think Hindutva has done to

Hinduism?

A: Hinduism is a way of life and is

plural and inclusive. Swami

Vivekananda said Hindu culture is the

mother of all religions. That is its true

nature. Vivekananda declared that what

India needs is a Muslim body and a

Vedanta mind. Probably, Mahatma

Gandhi had this in mind, when he stated

that he is a Muslim because he is a

Hindu and if one of his eyes is Hindu,

the other is Muslim. Ramkrishna

Paramahansa practiced Islam too. Sree


28

Narayana Guru also considered the

Prophet as a great man. Hindutva

followers are now trying to distort it;

they are going against the grain of the

religion. They want to make it

monolithic. There are different types of

Hinduism and Hindutva is killing it.

Q. You received a letter threatening to

chop off your limbs. What led to

people sending you such a letter?

A: It was my long article

in Madhyamam titled Priyappetta

Hindukkalodum Musleengalodum Oru

Viswasi (To my dear Hindus and

Muslims, from a believer) that triggered

the extremists. In fact, that article was

written in a very humble tone. There are

no historical or factual reasons for

Hindus and Muslims to quarrel. It was

the British who created conflicts

between Hindus and Muslims, creating

the misconception that Muslim is the

antonym of Hindu. This act was

necessary for their survival. It is suicidal

on our part to retain the Hindu-Muslim

rivalry even after the British left India.

Never in the history of the world did a

nation that fostered communalism and

racism prosper. See for instance, the

plight of Iraq.

Philosophically, Hinduism and Islam

have much in commonvalue of a

word, a sinless approach to sexuality,

purity and lent. With all its the multiple

deities, Hinduism retains its belief in a

single God. The puranas predict a

coming of Mohammed, giving hints

about Islam. Pandit Vedprakash

Upadhyaya, a Bengali Brahmin, says

that Prophet Mohammed is Kalki

himself.

Q. Do you think if this book is

translated, it would lose its essence

and context?

A: It is without doubt that a translation

will lead to a loss of many merits of the

source text. Translation can especially

harm culture-specific writings like that

of mine. The crux of translation lies in

appropriating the target language into

the soul of the language of the source

text. English Language has this ability,

probably due to its universality. It is not

just Indian-English that is evolving, but

Malayalam-English and Tamil-English

as well. Though there are limitations,

translations serve as the passport and

visa for the source text to visit other

countries. There is a reader eagerly

waiting. The writers chance of meeting

him/her should not be denied.

Im embarrassed to claim that my book

is a great work that deserves to be spread

universally. It is not up to me to evaluate

the worth of the novel. But setting aside

all personal considerations, I strongly

feel that the themes dealt with in

Deivathinte Pusthakam are nationally

and internationally relevant.

Many who have read the novel have

enthusiastically discussed the

possibilities of translating the text into

other languages. Lets see.

***


29

11. Resources

Watch: Kashmiri Muslims Miss Pundits, celebrate Shivratri in their absence.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/kashmiri-muslims-in-bandipore-celebrate-shivratri-want-pandits-to-return-1663275

***

Shashi Tharoors Why I Am A Hindu is a timely

reminder of why Hinduism must retain its pluralism Reading this book is a handy way to reacquaint oneself in 2018 with what Hinduism

was and is, and what it wasnt meant to be.

As one of Indias most adored

intellectuals and public figures, Shashi

Tharoor is subject to much scrutiny by

the media and the junta alike. His

erudition, coupled with his attractive

public persona, makes him an easy and

constant talking point. Indeed, people

have even coined the term Tharoorism

to refer to the words that emerge when

his supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

vocabulary gets too much for normal

language skills. So when his latest book

turns out to be called Why I Am A

Hindu, the choice of title appears a little,

well, un-Tharoorian.

But whats in a name?

Of course, Why I Am is a title

format that has been used by many an

author. Why I Am Not A Communist, by

Karel apek (1924), Why I Am Not A

Christian, an essay by Bertrand Russell

(1927), Why I Am Still A Christian, by

Hans Kng (1987), Why I Am Not A

Muslim, by Ibn Warraq (1995) are well

known globally. Closer home, we have

Bhagat Singhs Why I Am An

Atheist (1930), and the explosive Why I

Am Not A Hindu by Kancha Illiah

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/kashmiri-muslims-in-bandipore-celebrate-shivratri-want-pandits-to-return-1663275https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/kashmiri-muslims-in-bandipore-celebrate-shivratri-want-pandits-to-return-1663275


30

(1995). In fact, the title of Tharoors

book seems like a purposeful inversion

of the last one, and consequently

perhaps, even of the subject.

That said, the choice of such a title is

important in our current context, given

how weve acquired a penchant for the

literal. It is too much to expect any

appreciation of subtlety or metaphor at a

time when our leaders defiantly offer

instances from Indian mythology as

proof of concept in conferences of

science. A book like Tharoors, with an

affirmative title, is what is required to

state what most liberal Hindus like him

think this religion truly represents, and

in no uncertain terms.

A brief history of Hinduism

The current state of brazen religious

politics led by a chest-thumping

menagerie of leaders has been a cause of

mortification for many Indians, Hindu

and otherwise. When Hindutva is often

mistaken for or sold as Hinduism, it is

time to set the record straight.

Why I Am A Hindu, running close to

300 pages, is divided into two sections,

the first of which offers a brief history of

Hinduism. The first chapter is titled My

Hinduism, presented in what can be

called the Devdutt Pattanaik mode. It is a

clever and necessary disclaimer

underscoring subjectivity especially

useful for times when religious

sentiments are easily hurt. Tharoor

acquaints us with the kind of Hinduism

he was raised with, and, along with a

sprinkling of anecdotes, gives an

overview of the religion.

The writer touches upon the ideas of

many Indian gods and their multifarious

Puranic stories, but also how they are

united by the principle of the supreme

Brahman. He stresses on the fact that

Hinduism has no doctrinal absolutism,

which is what makes it such a

delightfully democratic faith. He

impresses upon his reader that Hinduism

is and can only be experienced and

interpreted subjectively, using this

lovely metaphor: Hindu thought is like

a vast library in which no book ever goes

out of print; even if the religious ideas a

specific volume contains have not been

read, enunciated or followed in

centuries, the book remains available to

be dipped into, to be revised and

reprinted with new annotations or a new

commentary whenever a reader feels the

need for it

The second chapter, titled The Hindu

Way, deals with common Hindu

concepts such as paramatma, brahman,

dharma, karma, maya, mukti,

varna, ashrama and yugas. Tharoor

describes the six philosophical traditions

of Hinduism (shad darshanas) and its

textual tradition, starting from

the Vedas, Upanishads and Puranas, to

the Agamas,

Sutras and Shastras. Moving on from

the esoteric to the ritualistic, he briefly

explains the ideas of utsavas, yatras,

pujas and even the relevance or the

lack of them to vegetarianism and

alcohol in the Hindu way of life.

The chapter offers a comprehensive yet

succinct view of Hinduism, and could

serve as a great starting point for anyone

interested in knowing more about this

religion. It helps that he peppers it with


31

easy and recent references from real life,

which makes it immediately relatable for

a lay reader. Even as he curates portions

from Hinduisms extensive theoretical

base, the author remains aware that not

all, indeed very few, are familiar with

the many faces of Hinduism. He writes

Every Hindu may not be conscious of

the finer points of his faith, but he has

been raised in the tradition of its

assumptions and doctrines, even when

these have not been explained to him.

His Hinduism may be a Hinduism of

habit rather than a Hinduism of learning,

but it is a lived Hinduism for all that.

The third chapter, titled Questioning

Hindu Customs, gets into the sticky

territories of caste, superstition, and

godmen. Tharoors career as a

politician enriches his perspective on

these subjects, for nowhere else do the

three converge so vividly. He posits that

this largely unjust social system of

classification, an undue dependence

on gurus, and excessive belief in signs

and omens, are not just rooted in the

Hindu religion but are also unfortunate

corollaries of a poverty-ridden and

directionless society. A classic example,

says Tharoor, is the recent Dera Sacha

Sauda movement, where one can see all

the elements at work.

In the fourth and last chapter of section

one, titled Great Souls of Hinduism,

Tharoor profiles some of the greatest

spiritual personalities, who either

created, challenged or transformed the

religion. From the sages Vyasa,

Yagnavalkya and Patanjali to Mahavir

Jain and Gautama Buddha; from Adi

Shankaracharya and Ramanuja to the

Bhakti saints; from Kabir, Nanak and

Mirabai to Raja Ram Mohun Roy and

Osho, the author tells the stories of many

of the major religions of India in the

process. As an adherent of Swami

Vivekanandas teachings, Tharoor

affords a special place for him in this

chapter.

For those unacquainted with the subject,

the story of the evolution of Hinduism is

particularly fascinating. The reader will

get to know how it went from ritualistic

Vedism to becoming an idol-

worshipping religion, how it responded

to the challenge of Buddhism and

practically subsumed it, and how it faced

Islamic and Christian waves. The

insecurities and failings of the faith are

also chronicled here.

Religion and politics

The second part of the book is titled

Political Hinduism. This is where

Tharoors meticulous context-building

through the history of Hinduism is

particularly useful. He starts building his

case with the idea of secularism, which

becomes a moot point when viewed

through the prism of Western political

theory. The right term in the Indian

context, he argues, is pluralism, for

India is and has long been a land of

many religions. Further, he says, religion

when defined as dharma is impossible

to divorce from the Hindu way of life.

Tharoor contrasts this with the idea of

Hindutva as first suggested by VD

Savarkar and perpetuated by his RSS

counterparts and successors like MS

Golwalkar and Deendayal Upadhyay.

Tharoor takes his time to critique

Upadhyays ideas of Integral


32

Humanism (thinly-veiled

Hindutvavaad) in the light of the fact

that the current ruling party in New

Delhi upholds this as its formal party

ideology. That he does it ever so gently

despite belonging to the Opposition is

worth noticing.

The author explains the BJPs brand of

Hindutva politics as being based on a

victim-turned-avenger complex, a

narrative of failure and defeat, and

hatred for the Muslim community. Even

if one were to turn a blind eye to the

clear lack of Muslim representation (at

least in the Lok Sabha) in this

government, one can hardly ignore

visible and worrying trends such as

lynching and cow vigilantism. Ideas

like ghar waapsi and love jihad, and

groups like gau rakshaks and Anti

Romeo squads operate and thrive under

the aegis of the ruling party, and Tharoor

correctly echoes the alarm of peace-

loving Indians in this context.

He also critiques the cultural project of

Hindutva, which aims to nationalise

and spiritualise. By all means

acknowledge the great accomplishments

of ancient Indian science, but keep fact

and fiction separate, he enjoins.

We should take pride in what our

forefathers did but resolve to be inspired

by them rather than rest on their laurels.

We need to use the past as a

springboard, not as a battlefield. Only

then we can rise above it to create for

ourselves a future worthy of our

remarkable past.

He also strongly condemns the

whitewashing, or saffronising, of Indias

cultural past vis--vis the actions of

vigilante groups such as the Bajrang Dal

and, most recently, Karni Sena. Not just

tolerance, but acceptance, is the

hallmark of Hinduism, he reminds the

reader again and again.

Tharoors voice is firm and gentle, in

equal parts. He alternates between

reminding the reader of Hinduisms

pluralistic glory and warning her of the

perils of confusing it with the narrow

and bigoted notion of Hindutva.

Notwithstanding the last chapter, titled

Taking Back Hinduism which reads as

though it was written in a hurry, Why I

Am A Hindu is as balanced a book on

religion as one can hope to write in these

tumultuous times. It is also a necessary

reminder to all Hindus that plural is the

way they were, and plural is what they

should continue to be.

Why I Am A Hindu, Shashi Tharoor,

Aleph Book Company.

***

From Vidya Bhushan Rawat

I would like to thank all the friends for

their good wishes on publication of my

book : Rise and Role of Marginalised

Communities in Indian Freedom

Struggle by the Institute of Objective

Studies, Delhi. It was really a hard work

and many friends supported me in that. I

would say that it is not a new history but


33

my attempt was to analyse the history

from a different perspective and that is

why it has chapters on Adivasi Revolt in

Santhal including Siddho Kanho

brothers and Birsa Munda's rebellion.

Further study is needed to highlight the

role of the Dalits, Pasmanda Muslims in

revolt of 1857. It is also essential to

demystify the role of Gandhi in

Champaran, Chauri Chaura as well as

Avadh Kisan movement and how he

virtually killed the leadership of the

Dalits-OBCs and pasmanda Muslims in

the movement and imposed a

brahmanical leadership on them and

converted their issues to non issues

under the garb of 'nationalism'.

RSS's history project is known to us. It is

converting mythologies to history and

hence these mythologies need to be x-

rayed from Phule-Ambedkarite

perspective. Historical role of Jyoti ba

Phule, Shahu Ji Maharaj, EVR Periyar

and Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar has been

missing from the 'mainstream' history

projects and relegated to 'social

reformers'. I have tried to analyse their

work and role in freedom movement. A

movement cant be called freedom

movement if it deny role and rights of

the over 85% of the Dalit Bahujan

population.

Adidharam movement as well as Gadar

movement which played a very

important role too are part of my

analysis. The sacrifices of Shaheed

Udham Singh need to be brought to

common people. Unfortunately, attempt

are made to deny more material on him.

At the time when the Hindutva right

wing are glorifying the feudal Raja

Maharajas who never challenged the

caste based social order and secular

liberals were countering them with

protecting other feudals who were

Muslims, there is time to expose this

binary suitable to ruling elite. We have

tried to explain the issue of Peshwai and

the Travancore state and the caste

legitimacy provided by the power in

these states.

I am happy with the cover of the book:

Dr Ambedkar leading the struggle and a

revolutionary Birsa because history

books have denied them their legitimate

space.

Frankly, there is a whole lot of work is

needed. I am not a historian but have

bee

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