Column

A young man called me the other day and in a quivering voice asked if his job would be safe. In this day of downsizing and pink slips, such worry is not uncommon, but in the context of the recent terror attack in Mumbai, it had particular relevance. The young man was a Muslim.

I was stymied for an immediate answer, and chose my reassuring words with some amount of sophistry enveloped in fact: “I still have my job, you are less than half my age, and if you are good at your work, why should you worry?”

Last heard, the young man still has his job, but I must confess to being perturbed thereafter by his apprehensions. Not so much about Muslims retaining their jobs, as of social prejudices getting heightened, because the second obviously predicates the first.
For example, there was a story in the newspapers a few days ago about a Muslim air-hostess being heckled by a passenger during a flight. In one sense, this was no more than a knee-jerk reaction by a nincompoop. Sadly, though, as the history of our society has shown, the number of nincompoops and jerky knees can multiply rapidly.

Over the past week, outrage at the terror attack quickly transform itself into free-flowing anger, like lava out of a volcano, which has sought multiple targets, mostly justified, but some dangerously hackneyed: Like the hectoring (admittedly, as yet meagre) against Muslims in general, just because the terrorists by all accounts came from Pakistan.

To equate Indian Muslims with Pakistanis (or any other country) is puerile in its stereotyping, preposterous in its ambit of argument, and insensitive in the extreme. In the last two decades especially, this had become the staple diet of hard-line politicians, reaching a crescendo with the demolition of the Babri masjid in 1992. The Gujarat riots in 2002 were almost an inevitable outcome of such hate politics.

Fortunately, such has been the ire against politicians and their shenanigans that even the likes of Narendra Modi and his ilk have not dared to go ballistic this time. But perhaps the more compelling event has been the stand taken by the Muslim clergy in Mumbai which has refused burial to the dead terrorists.

That is a strong statement suggesting that Indian Muslims are now willing to help themselves and find a new voice. As indeed they must. While the state has a paramount role to play, Muslims must also work to improve their lot which remains unenviable.

The Sachar Committee report submitted in 2007 observed that, “They (Muslims) carry a double burden of being labelled as ‘anti-national’ and as being ‘appeased’ at the same time,” and highlighting the dismal state of affairs with some startling facts and statistics about literacy, poverty and job allocations.

These are not impossible to overcome if there is collective will. May be the recent terror attacks in some way can serve as a catharsis for Indian Muslims to rouse themselves from helplessness into self-help with intelligence, energy and commitment. For starters, my five-point programme would be:

Demythify jihad, denounce terrorism: There is neither virtue nor valour in killing innocents through terror. The number of Muslims killed also shows that terrorism has no religion.

Emphasis on education, and especially for women: A massive education programme must be put in place. It can be done in madrassas, but with a curriculum that is not myopic in its worldview.

Prudence with charity: Charity (zakaat) is mandatory in Islam, but find out where money is coming from or where it is going. If the antecedents are unclear, there is always the chief minister’s or prime minister’s fund.

Shed insularity: Join the largely secular mainstream wholeheartedly, participate in the joys and sorrows of other communities. That is the best way for reducing prejudices and promoting harmony.

Our problems are our own: Whether it is the Babri Masjid issue or post-Godhra riots, Indian Muslims must see themselves as equipped to tackle this politically and socially without external help.

Perhaps I should have add a sixth, but living in a free country we all (not just Muslims) take for granted. We should treasure freedom by vigilance against divisiveness within as much as external threats.

Email: ayaz@dnaindia.net