If I were Muslim......

If I were Muslim...

By Barkha Dutt | From 'The Week' issue dated July 09, 2017

I am agnostic and entirely non-religious; I do not self-identify with any religion and leave the required column blank in application forms. I suppose you could call me—as my beloved Twitter trolls will—(that dreaded word) a liberal, deracinated by her own lack of cultural roots. I concede that my secularism has suffered from a lack of mooring in faith. So I am not best qualified to see life through the prism of any religious identity. Yet, for the last week, a question has been gnawing at me, nibbling away, bit by bit, at my conscience and sense of comfort: what if I were Muslim?

What would I feel to discover that my voice is now barely audible in the country’s political discourse because I am no longer needed to win elections? Or, that in the most populous state of India, not a single candidate of the party that stormed home with a mammoth majority was Muslim? Would I be able to celebrate Eid after seeing the photograph of Junaid’s blood-spattered body lying lifeless on a railway platform in north India? A teenager, Junaid was coarsely taunted for his religion in a squabble that started over an elusive seat on a crowded train, but eventually became only about Being Muslim. What would I tell myself after seeing the cattle trader, Pehlu Khan, flung to the side of a pavement by a murderous mob, his tear-stained face crying out for help that never came? Would I be able to share the optimism of Mohammed Sartaj, a proud corporal in the Air Force, who told me, “Saare Jahan se Accha Hindustan Hamara,” his belief in justice intact even after his father, Akhlaq, was murdered over beef rumours, and the body of a man accused of killing him was draped in the national flag, with a senior minister present at the village? What sense would I make of this new lexicon where words like ‘vigilantes’ and ‘lynching’ are casual normalisations of collective bigotry?

If I were Muslim, how much helpless rage might I feel about radical Islamists and terrorists who soil the name of my faith and then leave me to carry the cross of condemning them, like I am somehow responsible for their monstrous acts? What would I say to the family of Ayub Pandith, a brave Kashmiri police officer, beaten to death outside a mosque on the holiest night of Shab-e-Qadr? Or, to the family of strappingly handsome Umar Fayaz, a young soldier, killed while home for a family wedding? How would I deal with the self-appointed custodians of my religion—the orthodoxy that defends retrograde practices like triple talaq—only to embarrass me and strengthen the bigots who attack my community?

 If I were Muslim, what might I feel as a citizen to learn that no Central minister attended an iftar evening hosted by India’s President? I would remind myself that even heroes of my community, President Abdul Kalam among them, said no to the wastefulness of iftar parties, donating money to orphanages instead. And, I would tell myself that my identity need not be reduced to such tokenism. But a small part of me would wonder if the same (welcome) political separation between religion and state would apply to all other festivals, too, like Diwali, Christmas and Holi.

If I were Muslim, I would look back in dismay at parties that claimed to speak for me but manipulated me and then abandoned me. I would think of Shah Bano, who went to court for the right to alimony, only to have the decision reversed by the Rajiv Gandhi government, in what would be the first, but not the only, instance of ‘secular’ malpractice. And I would think: are these my only options—a party that pushes me to the margins of irrelevance and a party that uses me?

If I were Muslim, I would remind myself of all the million reasons I love my country. But, just like every time they told me that I as a ‘moderate’ must speak up, I would ask, will the moderate Hindus—the vast majority of India—speak up for me?

Concerns of Muslims in India

I Am A Practicing Muslim. My Concerns Right Now For India Are...

By Rana Ayyub published in NDTV

Published: June 04, 2017 09:05 IST

  

I write this today as a Muslim, a practicing Muslim who believes in the tenets of Islam, in Ramzan, in namaz, and I believe I can continue to be liberal and secular while being proud of my faith. The Quran that millions across the world read has the first word revealed to Prophet Mohammed as "Iqra" (read). The Quran I have read has given the world some of the best physicists and mathematicians like Ibn Sina who would probably mock at the theory that the world was flat. The Quran that I read each day during this holy month of Ramzan teaches me empathy and compassion through fasting that helps me relate to those who go without food each night.

Among the many reasons that I write the column, the biggest was the brave assertion by Naseeruddin Shah in his piece in Hindustan Times where he writes, "I cannot recall a time when Muslims were suspected en masse of being unpatriotic." He goes on to say, "The nightmarish possibility of my children being someday confronted by a mob demanding to know their religion could be inching closer to reality."

Naseeruddin Shah is part of an industry where colleagues have mostly shied away from displaying a spine or taking a stand, including those who have been feted as superstars. And every time Naseer has taken a stand in the past, whether in supporting Indo-Pak friendship or attending the book launch of Khurshid Ahmed Kasuri in 2015, he has been labelled an anti-national and seen protests against him by the right wing. In 2015, he spoke to a newspaper saying he was targeted because he was a Muslim. "I do not actually understand why anything said as a compliment to Pakistan must be construed as anti-Indian. If I say Imran Khan is great, does that make Sunil Gavaskar any less a cricketer...."

I must also add a disclaimer that Naseer was among the courageous few who dared to praise my book and lend his support for the second edition of Gujarat Files last year. Two movies which played an important role in documenting the horrors of the Gujarat carnage of 2002, Firaaq and Parzania, would not have been possible minus Naseer's stellar performance. It is therefore that I think that I can humbly point out a few fallacies in his argument in the column he wrote on Indian Muslims.

Neither Naseer saheb nor I claim to speak for the Muslim community, nor must we, for we sit in a privileged position that does not allow us to witness what Muslims in a new India have been witnessing on a daily basis.

It would be unfair to suggest that Muslims were better off during the UPA for not a single recommendation by the Sachar Committee or the Justice Srikrishna Committee were implemented by the "secular" Congress. And the BJP is nowhere close to the healing touch it promised Muslims during elections.

In fact, all one hears from the BJP and its sister organisations is talk of minority appeasement by the Congress, which, in reality, is such a sham that Muslims of the country continue to slip down the worst possible denominators of development.

To ask Muslims to focus on education and hygiene and get out of the victim mode is like quoting Naseer himself from his famous Muslim reformist film "Khuda Kay Liye" where he mocks "Kissi ke doctor banney se pehle aap is par aitraaz karein ki usse operation karna nahi aata" (the absurdity of criticizing somebody before he studies medicine for being unable to conduct an operation) .

Naseer and many liberal Muslims who have the privilege of sitting in swanky living rooms, operating out of our MacBooks have not witnessed first-hand the fear of moving into Muslim ghettos in Mumbai like Mumbra, Deonar and Bhiwandi which went on to become a safe zone for Muslims post the 1993 carnage in which thousands of Muslims were killed.

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My family was forced to move from the cosmopolitan Sahar village to the rather lower middle class Deonar which was considered safer. My brother and my father applied for a credit card thrice while we lived in that area and were which was rejected on all occasions.

We were told later that these companies have specific instructions to not issue cards to Muslims living in 'such' areas. The building in which we stayed was next to the famous Deonar dumping ground and the abattoir from where the stench would fill the neighbourhood. But we and many like us continued to stay there because it was "safe".

Despite maintaining the best of hygiene, we had to live with the stink and airborne diseases. BMC workers who would mark their presence every morning in the swanky neighbourhoods of Mumbai like Peddar Road didn't mind taking days off in our neighbourhood with the garbage piling up because we (the Muslims and our many lower middle classes companions) could live with it.

Another problematic assertion in Naseer's column is that Muslims must stop feeling victimized. I have and continue to believe as a Muslim who has had to bear two communal riots that the community, like most communities in India, has been resilient and has chosen to put its dreaded past behind it, voting in every election for a change. But when every day you have videos emerging asking Muslims to chant "Bharat Mata ki Jai" before they are thrashed and cattle traders are lynched in public, the Muslim of the country does not feel a healing touch on the scars of the past.

If indeed we are so concerned about the plight of Muslims, their education, hygiene, then the topic of discussion should be to ensure that Muslim-dominated areas, government schools for Muslims have the same level of cleanliness and attention paid to them as other areas of Swachh Bharat. Muslims in this country have moved beyond the pain of the Babri demolition, but if the well-being of Muslims is indeed the criteria, those in power move on from Ayodhya and lets discuss corruption in the Waqf Board whose proceeds could help get Muslims access to higher education and a better status in society.

The alleged participation of Indian Muslims in ISIS is 0.0002 percent of the total number across the globe. To fault them for this and use it as an excuse to deny the 99.99 percent Muslims a dignified life is the worst one can offer to one of the largest minority in the country which has a glorious past in the country's freedom struggle. And which is now, as I keep hearing from many around me, leaving me feeling like a "second-class citizen".

My World XI (Test Cricket)

My World Test XI

Criteria

·         Players post 1970

·         Performances in Test Cricket

1.       Virender Sehwag

2.       Sunil Gavaskar

3.       Brian Lara

4.       Sachin Tendulkar

5.       Vivian Richards

6.       Adam Gilchrist (WK)

7.       Imran Khan (Captain)

8.       Richard Hadlee

9.       Shane Warne

10.   Wasim Akram

11.   Malcolm Marshall

12.   Mutthiah Muralidharan (12^th Man, will be in the team on a track helping spin)

Very sorry to leave these greats out………..

·         Jacques Kallis

·         Rahul Dravid

·         Kapil Dev

·         Ian Botham

·         Steve Waugh

·         Michael Holding

·         Dennis Lillee

·         Glenn Mcgrath

·         Anil Kumble

·         Dale Steyn

·         Gordon Grinidge

·         Rickey Ponting

·         Javed Miandad

·         Waqar Younus

·         Greg Chappell

·         Shaun Pollock

·         Mahela Jayawardene

·         Kumara Sangakkara

·         Alistair Cook

·         James Anderson

Alp Arslan & the Battle of Manzikert

Bahubali 2

Watched Bahubali 2 yesterday in O2.
The special effects are quite stunning and the story is also good, no wonder it is creating box office records.
Credit goes to the director S S Rajamouli for his vision and execution.

Vinod Khanna is no more

Vinod Khanna died of Cancer today.
He was without doubt one of the most charismatic and macho actors to grace the Hindi movie screen.

First Ever Test Match in Ranchi - Dhoni Missed

Four years ago the image of Mahendra Singh Dhoni playing drums and dancing was at the forefront of Ranchi Stadium's grand opening. But now as the city gears up to be India's 26th Test centre, the mood is strikingly sombre.

BCCL

When Ranchi makes its Test debut in India's series-defining third Test against Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in two days time, the most famous son of city will be busy leading his state in the domestic one-dayers in Delhi.

Having shed his 'whites' to prolong his career in shorter formats of the game in late 2014, Dhoni will lead his team against Vidarbha in the quarter-finals of Vijay Hazare Trophy on Wednesday.

The intense build-up to the Ranchi Test, notwithstanding, Dhoni is certainly going to be missed, something that is evident from empty ticket counters in the city.

"It's all because of Dhoni that we're able to host our first Test match here. His rise has put the city in international map. But at the moment, we want him to do well in New Delhi. At the same time, we hope Ranchi becomes lucky for Team India," Dhoni's childhood coach Keshav Banerjee said.

The association has distributed free passes to schools and institutions, including Dhoni's alma mater Jawahar Vidya Mandir at Shyamali as the secretary said every day about 10,000 students will turn up.

BCCL

"Dhoni is the only icon here. Certainly the crowd will miss him during the historic occasion. But we are trying our best to fill in the stands. We expect to see at least 30,000 in attendance each day," Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) secretary Debashis Chakraborty said of the 40,000-capacity stadium at Dhurwa in the south-western outskirts of the city.

If not a grand cultural programme that marked the inauguration of the stadium on the eve of the India-England one-dayer on January 18, 2013, the state association had originally planned a felicitation for Dhoni.

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But Jharkhand's fine fortunes in the Vijay Hazare Trophy played a spoilsport.

"Our team is at a crucial stage (in domestic one-dayers), and we want Dhoni to return with the Vijay Hazare Trophy," he said.

The state's original facility was at the Keenan Stadium in Jamshedpur but with the rise of Dhoni, the Rs 180-crore stadium here came up in very little time.

Within three years of its maiden ODI, the venue has hosted four ODIs and one Twenty20I and the third Test will ink a new chapter in the stadium's history.

BCCL

This has become a reality after the BCCI's ambitious plans to take Test cricket to small centres to revive its dwindling popularity.

"We are grateful to the Board for awarding the Test status to Ranchi. We have put up hoardings across the city mentioning our 'first Test match on Jharkhand soil' with Dhoni's photo.

"He is our ambassador. Whenever he is in Ranchi, he visits the venue and spends a lot of time here doing fitness training or giving us valuable inputs," Chakraborty said.

The JSCA has also invited Dhoni's family members who are expected to be present on any of the five days.