Islamophobia in India and Muslim world
THE mere condemnation by Muslim countries and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is not enough over the insulting remarks of the key BJP leaders against the Holy Prophet (PBUH).
Rather, an apologetic reaction of Muslim world over these gross blasphemous remarks will encourage such like incidents by those groups and individuals who are part of spreading Islamophobia in western world besides India.
Although India has suspended the membership of Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal over the blasphemous remarks but the question is why did they utter such remarks?
Indeed, there is a planned anti-Islam and anti-Muslim campaign going on in India since decades.
The Hindutva ideology is also primarily meant against Muslims in India. Over the past few decades, the so-called secular India has rapidly transformed itself into a Hindutva-driven Hindu ideological state.
With 3,287,263 square kilometres area and 1.3 billion human beings, India is bordering all geographic states of South Asia.
Therefore, the impact of its being religious narrow-mindedness and discrimination is being felt by all its neighbours.
The followers of Hindutva ideology have reduced the living space for all minorities, especially the Muslims.
The essence of Hindutva is not simply Hinduism or Hindustani, but it is a demand that all those living in India must convert into Hinduism.
Muslims, forming the biggest minority (over 17% of total Indian population) is the main target of Hindutva philosophy.
There are two main causes of targeting the Indian Muslims; a) Muslims have ruled over India for more than 800 years, and b) Muslim have the highest birth rate in India, once compared with all other minorities and even the Hindus.
These two aspects are the main reasons for promoting the sense of Islamophobia within India.
It is worth mentioning that, Islamophobia is defined as a hatred and prejudice against Muslims and Islam which is being used by a vested group at the international level as a political tool to defame this Divine religion and its followers.
The criteria for the promotion and hatred against Muslims through Islamophobia are quite different in the western world.
With abovementioned two primary reasons of Islamophobia, the Hindutva followers in India have clearly visualized the Muslims and Islam as their rivals.
In the last decade of 20th century and first two decades of 21st century, the followers of Hindutva were able to form political monopoly over the liberal class, India projected in its formative years to attract the west and the rest.
With Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as the ruling party in India for the third time (with two consecutive terms-2014-2024), the Hindutva militant outfit fully exploited the time and space for the promotion of their sentiments against Muslims through Islamophobia.
It is worth mentioning that unlike international practices of forming political parties first and their armed wings later, the BJP is the product of a militant outfit; Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
RSS was established in 1925 with a clear militant mind-set to preserve India for Hindus only for which it was banned thrice.
Its sole agenda was and is to promote Hindutva as an ideology in India and purify India from all other faiths, especially Islam.
The abovementioned two causes were used by Hindutva followers as two main narratives to promote Islamophobia in India.
The BJP, RSS and other Hindutva-led militant organizations have widely propagated among Hindus that during centuries of Muslim’s rule over India, Hindus were forced to convert their faith to become Muslims.
Indeed, this is an inflammatory narrative which is based on unsound and baseless grounds. Hindus and others were never forced by Muslims to convert to Islam.
Had Muslims followed this forceful conversion strategy, the entire India would have converted into Muslims, since there was an absolute Muslim rule (Kingdom) for centuries.
The Muslim rulers never followed such a strategy which goes against the essence of Islamic teachings.
The Holy Quran clearly says; “Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: Whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks.
And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. ” There is no doubt that after establishment of Muslim rule over India, a substantial population converted into Islam through a process of preaching and exceptionally good conduct of Muslims and their Islamic values system.
Nevertheless, a huge number of Indians remained Hindu which constitutes the bulk of the Indian Hindu populace today.
No one in India was forced or compelled to convert to Islam to become a Muslim. This is totally an incorrect narrative, Hindutva followers have been propagating for decades and now the Indian Government under BJP has officially adopted it as its covert strategy against Muslims.
The Citizenship Amendment Act-2019 (CAA-2019) is part of the same strategy where millions of Muslims were stripped off from their Indian citizenship.
This is a violation of the basic structure of Indian Constitution, the Humanitarian Declaration-1948 and, above all, the Charter of the United Nations.
Indian intellectuals, scholars, academicians and a limited liberal class have not been able to reject the RSS-led BJP Hindutva ideology and terrorism against Muslims in India.
The next narrative of BJP and RSS (Hindutva proponents) for promotion of Islamophobia in India is about the high birth rate of Muslims and the resultant rise in the Muslim population.
This is the estimation of the research wings of BJP and RSS that Islam is the fastest-growing religion in India which means Muslim population may become equal to Hindu population by 2075 or maximum by the end of 21st century.
This is again a speculation and strategy to provoke the Hindus for targeting Muslims. Indeed, Muslims anywhere in the world do not plan their population statistics; based on any such analogy or superiority based on numerical numbers.
Indeed, this has never been the basis of Muslims’ rule anywhere. Today, Muslims of India are undergoing the worst form of oppression and suppression in India; they are being killed, injured and humiliated all over India.
In most parts of India, mosques are being burnt, damaged and destroyed. A ban has been imposed over Hijab of Muslim women in India without any reasons.
Everyday thousands of incidents of violence are taking place against Muslims by RSS and BJP militants with the help of Indian State machinery.
The Indian Government, its police, military and, above all, its judiciary are abettors of these repressive acts against Muslims.
It is high time, let’s there be an end to Indian State-sponsored terrorism against innocent Muslims.
It must stop its leaders and mislead class to pass insulting remarks against the Prophet (M-PBUH).
At the same time the Muslim countries and OIC must re-asses their passive, selfish and discreditable behaviour towards countries like India which systematically insults their Prophet (PBUH) and grossly violates the basic human rights of the Muslims in India on the basis of Islamophobia.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad.
