WHILST the tally of Coronavirus is jumping up with each passing day, the virus of hatred is separately also on the rise against Muslims in India. The second term of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is proving to be more dangerous for Muslims as a systematic campaign has been launched to demonize them.
Muslims are continuously being targeted in India and the breakout of Coronavirus has only added fuel to anti-Muslim sentiments in a country which never gets tired of blowing the trumpet of being a secular and the largest democracy in the world. The RSS inspired Hindu extremists are now accusing the Muslims for the spread of Coronavirus in the country, and under this pretext they have once again launched attacks against them. As the virus spreads, Muslims have become a convenient scapegoat. Such bigotry has not only been normalized but has been encouraged through ruling party propaganda against Muslims. At the apex of such dangerous disinformation sit politicians like Amit Malviya who heads the BJP’s information technology cell and serves as its chief propagandist. The Indian media is also at the forefront for spreading hatred against Muslims. Indeed there is no justification whatsoever for this kind of posture against Muslims who are the biggest minority in India and who consider it as their homeland. Without naming any country, US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo very rightly stressed the need to avoid scapegoating Muslims for the Coronavirus outbreak. Congress Leader Sonia Gandhi warned against the spread of communal virus. Indeed the situation warrants that more voices emanate in the world against the discriminatory and aggressive posture of Modi government against Muslims. A strong shut-up call should come from all the Muslim countries. In recent days one has seen voices rising in some Gulf countries especially the UAE against the hostility of extremist Hindus against Muslims. We expect that other countries will also add their voice to compel India to stop its persecution campaign against Muslims.
