[Reader-list] Myth Called the 'Indian Muslim'

[Venugopalan K M]

Dear Taha,

Whether we accept or not this kind of whimsical generalizations  about
Indian Muslim, I am afraid one cannot afford to miss the underlying
subtext of "Islam as the Other" not only in India,but all over the
globe. No doubt we can challenge it; but one will rather do so with
concerns about its implication in the  social lives of Muslims
everywhere. For example, even a Muslim name could become problematic
in a real life situation in many parts of the world notwithstanding
the fact that you may be an agnostic or Marxist!
We are aware of the fact that even a person like Eshan Jaffry(pardon
the spelling) with the status of a prominent  ex parliamentarian
Congress leader was not able to escape the horrendous consequences of
that.
So, Muslims are doubly burdened with defending the identity on the one
hand, as well as challenging it on the other. The case of Taslima is
an extreme one in point. Eventhough she is not a Muslim by conviction,
she represents the plight of all female believers in a Muslim
theocracy where a particular definition of Islam became the basis for
conceding or denying citizenship.
Fatima Mernissi, in her Women and Islam has defined Muslim in a
narrower (or broader?)sense that would include all the subjects of a
theocratic state and its personal laws, and independent of one's
personal convictions vis a vis the faith.
In short, I would say that there indeed exists a concept of 'Muslim
voter' in India,  notwithstanding that individual voters might
challenge this blanket concept in a particular context and would
endorse the same in another context. In my view, there is nothing
reprehensible in acting in this manner, when we take into
considerations the imperatives of grave challenges to the very
existence of divergent faiths in India which is actually rooted in the
ideology of Brahmanical Hindutwa. This is the most deplorable form of
cultural nationalism, which likes to ground the very idea of
citizenship in it. Even the Indian constitution is anathema to this
band of nationalists,who fortunately did not enjoy the mandate of more
than a fifth of all Indian voters even in their best days! In the 2004
elections they seemed dangerously close to a second tenure of office
thanks to the oprtunist realpolitiking by the regional parties and to
the support of the upper caste dominated media. But the common people
proved that they had not only the eyes and ears to see through all,
but they also had the wisdom to give a fitting response
Regards,
Venu.

On Tue, Apr 21, 2009 at 4:58 AM, Taha Mehmood
<2tahamehmood at googlemail.com> wrote:
>
> Dear All,
>
> Pasted below is one more instance of irresponsible reportage by the
> BBC. The issue at hand is a mythical hobby horse of all political
> parties called the  'Indian Muslim'.
>
>  This report is laced with gross generalizations like, 'Arrests and
> alleged extrajudicial killings of Muslim youths have angered many in
> the Islamic community.'
>
> 'Islamic Community' Really? How does Mr. Bagchi knows this about
> 'Islamic Community', we don't know? In the same regard, no one will
> question our informed journo, what the HELL is this 'Islamic
> community' or where is it, if it exists?
>
> Even the headline of the story is meant to suggest that in fact there
> exists something called the 'India's all-important Muslim vote' :)
>
> Regards
>
> Taha
>
>
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7998819.stm
>
> India's all-important Muslim vote
>
> By Suvojit Bagchi
> BBC News, Delhi
>
>
> The Indian government's "war against terror" may cost the Congress
> party dearly in the election.
>
> Arrests and alleged extrajudicial killings of Muslim youths have
> angered many in the Islamic community.
>
> "People in power have branded us as terrorists and used us as a vote
> bank, this cannot go on," said the all-powerful cleric of Delhi's Jama
> Masjid mosque, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, in a recent press conference.
>
> Speaking about the deaths of two Muslim students allegedly at the
> hands of police in South Delhi's Muslim area last October, Mr Bukhari
> said the Muslim community "wants justice".
>
> 'Safety and security'
>
> This sense of injustice has resulted in the formation of new Muslim
> political parties over recent months.
>
>
>
> These parties believe in Indian parliamentary democracy and say they
> are working to "strengthen" it.
>
> The party manifestos unanimously emphasise the "safety and security"
> of all communities, especially Muslims.
>
> "The security of Muslims is one big issue, as after every blast in
> India a series of arrests of Muslim youths takes place," said a
> spokesperson for the influential All India Muslim Personal Law Board.
>
> Muslim men were "systematically killed" in routine police encounters,
> he alleged.
>
> Muslims comprise more than 13% of India's population and many are
> aggrieved that proportionately they only have about half that much
> representation in parliament.
>
> More than two dozen Muslim political parties, big and small, are
> contesting these elections - almost double the figure of the last
> election.
>
> The prominent players are the Assam United Democratic Front (AUDF),
> Ulema Council and Indian Peace Party in Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Muslim
> Munettra Khazhagam in Tamil Nadu, the People's Democratic Council in
> West Bengal and veterans like the Muslim League and Indian National
> League in Kerala, the Democratic Secular Party in Bihar and the
> Majlis-e Ittihad al-Muslimin in Andhra Pradesh.
>
>
>
> Interestingly, even the staunchest supporters of these parties do not
> believe they are going to win.
>
> "Our primary aim is to erode the vote of the Congress party and then
> to win a few seats," says Buranuddin Qasmi, an election analyst of the
> AUDF.
>
> Meanwhile, many Muslims are questioning the logic behind the hasty
> launch of such parties.
>
> They argue that a party like the Ulema Council will not even be able
> to emerge as a minor player because it lacks proper planning and
> goals.
>
> Statistics show the parties that manage to win the votes of low caste
> people along with the Muslim vote bank have a strong chance of
> winning.
>
> Since India's independence from British rule, Congress has been
> getting a sizeable chunk of Muslim votes at national level, largely
> because Muslims felt they had to prove their loyalty to India in early
> post-partition days, experts say.
>
> In India, the Muslim League and its president, Mohammad Ali Jinnah,
> are held responsible for dividing India and creating Pakistan.
>
> Muslims who stayed in India have traditionally supported Congress
> since independence "to prove their loyalty".
>
> Empowered
>
> Yogendra Yadav, the noted political commentator, feels that Muslim
> parties have "come of age".
>
> "Fifty years into independence, the trauma of partition prevented
> Muslim political parties from conceiving a politics of their own," he
> says.
>
> Muslims in Delhi
> Many Muslims have questioned the proliferation of Islamic parties
>
> "But they are slowly getting out of it. In the last decade or so they
> have been speaking for themselves - a very positive sign for Muslims
> as well as for democracy," Mr Yadav says.
>
> The figures seem to support his claims - the proliferation of new
> political parties means that no one party is expected to get more than
> 60% of Muslim votes.
>
> But Congress believes Muslims cannot be empowered by a Muslim party alone.
>
> "Muslim parties have traditionally voted for Congress and will
> continue to do so, as they know only a majority party like Congress
> with secular credentials can empower them," says Imran-ur Rehman
> Kidwai, the chief of the party's Minority Cell.
>
> He also brushed aside the fact that there is any kind of "insecurity
> among Muslim youth", calling it a "non-issue".
>
> But whatever Mr Kidwai says, in at least one state a Muslim party is
> creating serious trouble for Congress.
>
> The Islamic vote in Assam makes up more more than 20% of Muslim votes
> and appears to be making forays into Congress bastions.
>
> The Hindu nationalist BJP - which Muslims tend to vote against - could
> win in the state.
>
> But that has not stopped the AUDF from running anti-Congress campaigns.
>
>
> "Enough of that - whenever Muslims vote against Congress, it is said
> to be in favour of the BJP. Can't we ever raise our voice because of
> right-wing parties like the BJP?" the AUDF's election analyst,
> Buranuddin Qasmi, asks.
>
> The real Achilles' heel for Congress is the Sachar Report - a prime
> ministerial committee that recommended several measures to improve the
> living conditions of Muslims in India.
>
> Initiated by Congress and tabled in parliament in 2006, the report has
> become central to the Indian Muslim community and is often quoted to
> voice their grievances.
>
> During election campaigns, Muslim parties have pointed out that none
> of the recommendations of this report have been implemented.
>
> "Congress and Manmohan Singh may have done a commendable job in
> commissioning a report of this magnitude. But the minority affairs
> ministry has done literally nothing to implement it, with the
> exception of giving scholarships to Muslim students," Dr Abu Saleh
> Shariff, member-secretary of the Sachar Committee Report, told the
> BBC.
>
> However, Imran Kidwai says that 19 out of 22 of its recommendations
> have been implemented.
>
> "Muslims will vote for Congress," he confidently predicted.
> _________________________________________
> reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> Critiques & Collaborations
> To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header.
> To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>




-- 
http://venukm.blogspot.com/