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| The message from Muslims | | | | Instead of connecting terrorism with any particular religions as it has been recently done and lexicons of Hindu terror and Muslim terror are being coined, India should take the communities along in denouncing this menace. The congregation of Muslims organised by the Jamiat-Ulema-e-Hind in Hyderabad took the expected line by condemning terrorism. The step was a virtual endorsement of the earlier fatwa issued against the jihadi outrages by the Deoband Darul Uloom. The question remains, however, about how effective these expressions of pious intentions will be in checking the menace. It is possible that just as the fatwa did not have any perceptible effect in restraining the terrorists, the consensus reached at Hyderabad, too, will be honoured more in the breach than in observance. Ultimately, only successful police operations against the perpetrators based on irrefutable intelligence inputs can have a long-lasting deterrent effect. However, this does not minimise the importance of the consensus reached in Hyderabad. If anything, it confirms that Muslims as a community are as upset and anguished about the insane acts of their co-religionists as all other Indians. This attitude was evident in any case from the almost routine assertions by parents of suspects that they should be hanged if found guilty. What the consensus may do is to persuade those who may chance upon some evidence of clandestine activity to inform the authorities. It will also undercut the attempts of the saffron brotherhood to paint the entire community in the blackest of hues. What was controversial, however,was the proposal for setting up a party to look after Muslim interests since most other parties were accused of taking the community for granted. Considering that there is no dearth of outfits based on caste or region or an identification with Hindu interests, another one for the Muslims may not do much harm. But it is doubtful whether a strident expression of minority views will help the community or harm it in view of the fact that the historical background of Muslim sectarianism is not a happy one in India. A more sensible suggestion was to urge the Centre to be more proactive in the matter of preventing communal outbreaks, including bringing a legislation as was once envisaged. There is a clear need, therefore, to ensure greater protection for them. At the same time, it will be advisable if, like the Hyderabad declaration against the concept of jihad, such renunciations are voiced more frequently. |
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