Communal Harmony Story of India

When Old Delhi Came Together to Shower Petals on A Temple Yatra and Serve Food at the Bhandaara…. Abu Sufyan says, “We have shown the way to India”

This reminds me of how we have shown conflict Mitigation in America when Pastor Jones wanted to burn 3000 copies of the Quran.

Way back in the ’60s- when Jabalpur riots broke out,  Muslims and Hindus were throwing soda bottles at each other and several people were killed. My father sat us down along with friends and said this – if the first two individuals, let’s say Ram and Raheem were stopped from fighting, nothing would have happened. The quarrel was between the two,  it should have stayed between them, but within minutes each other’s friends join to beat up on the other and by the end of the day, it became a Hindu Muslim riot. They were store owners next door to each other fighting over who can read the morning newspaper. Then my father said, the quarrel was between the two idiots and not HIndus and Muslims.  I will always remember that the fights, wars, and riots start with two individuals and not religions, even if the idiots say Allahu Akbar or Jai Shree Ram. It is the individuals and not religions. Religions don’t have legs to walk and fight.

Courtesy of TheCitizen.In

NEW DELHI: It was a rare but warming sight in the winding lanes of Old Delhi. Despite the trepidation and anxiety that kept women and children indoors, the men folk of both communitiies came out to greet a Shobha yatra to reinstall idols in the temple at Lal Kuan, with flowers and bottles of water.

The Aman committee formed after the violence in Lal Kuan in which the temple was stoned, was there to greet the procession along with the residents of Old Delhi. They showered rose petals, offered bottles of water, and this gesture at the very beginning of the yatra diffused what could have become a very tense situation.

And if this was not enough the bhandaara organised by the temple, had the Muslim residents serving the food to the processionists. Another gesture that brought smiles to tense faces and contributed towards a peaceful end to a very tense day. The Delhi police that have played an exemplary role and earned the respect and support of both communities over the past few days, were present in large numbers. Ninety one CCTV cameras, along with audio, were installed in the area..

In the absence of conventional leaders —with all political representatives having disappeared from view—the residents of Old Delhi too peace into their hands and worked day and night to ensure that there was no disturbance during the course of a Shobha yatra to re-install idols in the temple at Lal Kuan.

It might be recalled that a clash between the two communities over a petty parking issue had resulted in stone throwing, with the Durga temple vandalised in the confrontation. The anger was contained then by the two communities who formed an Aman committee, and worked with the Delhi police to bring about an agreement in which the Muslims agreed to repair the temple. Those responsible for the violence were arrested.

There was no dearth of good samaritans. Young man Abu Sufiyan did the work that journalists no longer bother with, recording the procession, the arrangements, interviewing key persons and releasing the videos of peace on the social media to bust rumours that were aimed at inciting passions on the streets. Sufiyan diligently videographed the efforts for peace, while the eight member peace committee worked with the police to ensure that no spark was ignited by mischief makers that would set the area on fire.

Although Twitter kicked up a storm, on the ground in Old Delhi the peace committee and residents worked to diffuse rumours of big build ups on both sides, of sinister plans by the one community to attack the other. These were diffused again through positive posts on the social media and direct contact with residents. The Aman committee of both Hindus and Muslims did a good job, and according to the local residents, did amazing work to keep the situation under control. Not just that but to promote “bhai chara” between the residents, with the bhandaara in which the committee made the Muslims participate, and the joint reception with flowers and water going a long way for peace.

Sufiyan said, “when the trouble began we all really felt the need for political leaders as we had no idea what to do. But now that the people here have taken over, we are actually happy that none of them came here. They would have only complicated matters and perhaps made the situation very tense.” Instead the residents took over and have shown the country the power of the people in what was a very exacting and tense situation that went out of hand, but was immediately brought back in control.

As the local residents said, it is difficult to find words to express how this was done, and then as a young man piped up with a smile, “but we did it!” Sufiyan had the last word, “we have shown the way to all of India.”

Credit for Videos and photographs ABU SUFIYAN

HIndus and Muslims Together

Saturday, April 20, 2019 – Silver Spring, Maryland. Hindus and Muslims gathered to talk about building bridges between the communities. There were ten from each group and carried on a purposeful discussion, followed by enlightening conversation.

Mr. Bhaya Hari and Mr. Abdul Majeed presented the attributes/names of God in Vaishnava and Islamic traditions. I learned several new points and values from their presentations.

We appreciate Anutama and Rukmini Dasa for hosting this discussion in their home and providing a delicious meal. We also thank each participant for contributing his or her goodwill to the discussion.

In my view, if we strip the rituals from the religion for the sake of understanding the purpose of faith, we will find the same wisdom emanating from the same source of the universe to create safe and secure societies.  God has created everything in harmony, and if our individualistic insecurities cause us to grab more than our share, and act as if we have more privileges than the other, conflicts erupt, and adharma takes over.  Instead of mitigating the conflicts, the human tendency is to double down on it and start the wars of getting even.

The ‘un-stated’ purpose of religion, any religion is to create societies where the invincible and vulnerable can live freely without fear of the other and to create orderly societies where people can focus on life, liberty, and pursuit of their happiness by building each other and not tearing down the other.

Dr. Sayyid Syeed shared the compelling examples of how those initial apprehensions with Jews and Christians led him to find solutions by forming relationships and understanding each other’s perspectives.  The alliance between Muslim and Jewish communities have produced incredible results in restoring relationships. He cited one of the most successful campaigns called Shoulder-to-Shoulder entirely funded by Christians to build a relationship with Muslims and standing up for Muslims. Now this year, and this Ramadan, through their efforts iftaars are being organized in over 100 churches across the nation.   He made an impassioned appeal to Hindus and Muslims to form alliances and restore trust and good relationships that we all enjoyed for a long time.

The thought of Unity has been on my mind for several years, and this appeal gives a boost to the idea, as it will be supported by the man who has made a tremendous difference in American society.

Each one of the 20 people shared their stories of the glory days when we were friends with each other, religion was never a wall and we believed Mazhab Nahin sikhata aapas may bair rakhna – religion does not teach one to have ill-will towards the other. In the last few years, the bridge of goodwill is gradually collapsing, and as Lord Krishna says, we have to restore the dharma, the righteousness back again to live without apprehensions and tensions. Everyone deserves to live freely.

I am almost tempted to write poetry based on an old Indian song by Talat Mahmood.

Mera Hindustan Mujhe louta do,
My nafraton say ulajh gaya hoon,
koi hamien jina sikhlado.

I am a part of Jewish-Muslim dialogue society, part of Christian Muslim groups and hope to see the Hindu-Muslim and Muslim-Sikh gatherings. The more we are together, the happier we would be. We all have conflicts based on myths as well as facts, we need to separate the chaff from the grain, acknowledge the facts and bust the myths.

At the Center for Pluralism, we conduct workshops on Atheism to Zoroastrianism so that we can learn about each other.  We also write the essence of all major festivals of all religions, so we know the celebrations and commemorations of our fellow humans. Our mission is to build cohesive societies where each one of us can feel secure about our faith, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual and political orientations.

God bless the world and guide us all who know not and learn to know each other. Knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of the otherness of the other.

        

Dr. Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His book, the “American Muslim Agenda” is about Muslim earning their respectable space in the society. The book is available at Amazon, Xlibris, Google, Barnes and Noble, and Kindle. Mike’s mission is to open people’s hearts, minds, and souls towards each other. He believes that the ultimate purpose of humans is to live freely and be comfortable with their culture, race, religion, ethnicity, sexuality, and individuality. Mike is a public speaker, author, interfaith wedding officiant, a newsmaker and the executive director of the Center for Pluralism in Washington, DC. More about him in three formats at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeghouse/

Ankit Saxena’s father to host iftar for communal Harmony

DNA Web Team | Updated: May 29, 2018, 10:05 PM IST

Photo for representational purpose only.

In February, Yashpal Saxena’s world came crashing down when he got the news that his son was brutally murdered in broad daylight.

In February, Yashpal Saxena’s world came crashing down when he got the news that his son was brutally murdered in broad daylight.

Ankit Saxena, the 23-year-old photographer, was mercilessly thrashed and murdered in a market of west Delhi’s Khayala area on February 3.

The young man was killed by his Muslim girlfriend’s family who were against the inter-faith relationship.

Nevertheless, despite the hostility and drama, Yashpal Saxena always made sure that his son’s murder was not communalised.

Months later, Saxena is planning to host an iftar party on June 3 for promoting communal harmony.

‘This is just an attempt to further our cause of communal harmony…We want our son’s name to be synonymous with this cause,’ Saxena was quoted as saying by The Print.

The local police station and all the officials investigating the ase have also been invited by the family. The Saxenas are also planning to form a trust in their son’s name. They want to reach out and help couples who want to or already have married people outside their faith.

The fateful day 

Saxena was on his way to meet his girlfriend when her family caught sight of him in Raghubir Nagar and a verbal spat followed. “He was then attacked with a knife. Since the two belong to different communities, police force has been deployed in the area,” a senior police officer was quoted as saying.

Saxena’s mother was also beaten up when she rushed to the location, and it was her who took him to the hospital in an auto-rickshaw. “There were dozens of people watching my son get beaten up, but none of them dared to save him. My son was a body builder himself, but he was helpless when the killers caught and killed him. The sight of the woman’s father wielding a big kukri knife must have scared others,” the mother said at the time of the incident.

Yashpal Saxena is our Hero of the year, more about him at: http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2018/02/india-owes-ankit-saxenas-father-debt-of.html

Muzaffarnagar Riots, Jats Say 'Allahu Akbar' and Muslims Chant 'Har Har Mahadev'

This is a good story of reconciliation between Hindus and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar. It is difficult for BJP guys to swallow this, if they stay out of a town, there will be fewer communal riots. 

During the communal riots in Jabalpur (India) in the early sixties, both Muslims and Hindus were killed in the mayhem, as it happens every time. I wish every father in India, America and elsewhere teaches this lesson to his kids. He was crystal clear on his take; He told us the "individuals" are responsible for the bloodshed and not the religions. If we get the guy who started the conflict and punish him for disturbing peace, rather than calling it a religious issue for the communities to jump in and aggravate it further, we would have saved many lives. He would emphasize that you cannot blame the intangible religion and expect justice, we must blame the individuals who caused it and punish them accordingly for disturbing the peace and thus bring a resolution to the conflict by serving justice. He said you cannot annihilate, kill, hang or beat the religion, then why bark at it?

Mike Ghouse
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Courtesy - News18.com, India

1,611 Days After Muzaffarnagar Riots, Jats Say 'Allahu Akbar' and Muslims Chant 'Har Har Mahadev'

At Mahapanchayats, Jat and Muslim leaders are erasing the past and giving peace a chance.

Uday Singh Rana | News18.com

Updated:February 9, 2018, 2:36 PM IST

Muzaffarnagar: After the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections last year, Vipin Singh Balyan from Kutba village in western UP’s Muzaffarnagar took a radical decision. Fifty-three Jat youths from his village were implicated in nine separate cases of violence, including murder, in 2013, when communal riots ripped through Muzaffarnagar. He would go to the Muslim victims and beg forgiveness on behalf of Jats. 

On the morning of September 8, 2013, communal violence had spread to Kutba and a group of local youths had killed eight Muslims. Scared for their lives, Muslims fled the village and settled in nearby Bara Basti, a cluster of 12 Muslim-dominated villages. 

“I decided to go to the house of one Akhtar Hassan, who had great standing among Kutba’s Muslims. I told him I was there to ask for forgiveness. The first time I went there, the Muslims gathered around and started abusing me for what Jats had done to their families. I neither reacted nor tried to defend myself. I left my Jat ego at the door and listened to everything they had to say,” says Balyan. 

The first meeting with Akhtar was a failure. Balyan went again, only to be turned down once more. When the third visit, too, yielded no possibility of a “settlement”, Balyan says he was beginning to lose hope. But then, something unexpected happened. 

“After the third meeting, I went home dejected. That very evening, Akhtar called me. He said that a Muslim girl from Kutba was being bothered by local Muslim lads from Bara Basti. He sought help from Jats to put pressure on the police to arrest those miscreants. As their former landlords, Jats thought it was their duty to help a daughter of Kutba, even if she was Muslim. We surrounded the police station and the cops were forced to arrest the accused.”

That incident helped break the ice and gave Balyan and company the chance to move forward with their “peace process”. But it was important to first win back the Muslims’ trust. The culprits of Kutba were Jats, but the Jats of Kakra village had lost their sons at the hands of Muslim rioters from nearby Pur Balyan village. So the Jats of Kutba took a decision. They would first get cases against Muslims 

Chaudhary Shakir Ali is the former pradhan of Pur Balyan village. On September 7, 2013, a group of Jats were passing through the mosque in Pur Balyan when they were killed by a Muslim mob. 

Shakir Ali, a local landlord, was accused of instigating the violence. “We have centuries-old relations with Jats. But since the riots, I had stopped getting wedding invitations from Hindu households. Sometime during Ramzan last year, during the sehri, Jats from Kutba came to my house and had breakfast with us. Vipin bhai told us that he wanted a settlement of all riot-related cases. That came as a godsend for us. We were willing to fold our hands in front of the Jats of Kakra and beg for forgiveness. And if that helped the Jat boys from Kutba, it would be even better.”

So it was decided. Fifty-three Jat boys from Kutba and 27 Muslims from Pur Balyan were accused of rioting. The two communities would come together to forgive all of them for their “crimes of passion”. After months of negotiations with the victims — the Kutba Muslims who now lived in Bara Basti and the Jats of Kakra — it was decided that a ‘Mahapanchayat’ would be held. Two ‘Mahapanchayats’ were held. But the Muslims had one condition. 

“They told us that if there was even a hint of involvement of the BJP, which they blame for the riots, any chance of a settlement would be off the table,” says Vipin, adding, “We agreed to that demand and did not invite any BJP leaders to the Mahapanchayat.” 

 It complicated matters slightly since Kutba’s twin village Kutbi is the home of BJP MP and former Union minister Sanjeev Balyan. But the Jats did not waver from their promise. The BJP was cut out from the peace settlement.

The first two Mahapanchayats, one held at Mulayam Singh Yadav’s residence in Delhi and the other one in Muzaffarnagar city, were positive in their tone and tenor, but a settlement had not been reached. The victims wanted to forgive and move on, but the scars of the Muzaffarnagar riots were still fresh. It was the third Panchayat in Bara Basti on February 4, 2018, where they made serious headway.

Sohanvir Balyan, a Jat from Kakra, says, “Our Jat sons had been killed and yet, we went to the Mahapanchayat in Bara Basti. Some Right-wing groups refer to Bara Basti as ‘Mini-Pakistan’ owing to its Muslim majority. But we did something radical there.”

At the Mahapanchayat, Sohanvir took the stage and asked all Jats to chant ‘Allah-O-Akbar!’ (Allah is great). He then turned to Muslims and asked them to chant ‘Har Har Mahadev!’ (Hail Lord Shiva). To Vipin Balyan’s surprise, everyone complied.

Jats and Muslims have been friends for centuries but I have never seen something like this. I have never seen hardy Jats shout Allah-O-Akbar or seen skull cap-donning Muslims shout ‘Har Har Mahadev’,” he says.

“All of us chimed in. Har Har Mahadev is not an Islamic chant, but we still chimed in,” says Shakir Ali.

The chants set the ball rolling. Chainpal Singh, the son of a local Chaudhary, took the stage with Shakir Ali and the two begged for forgiveness on behalf of their communities. “I folded my palms and said ‘Galati te humari thi, humein maaf kar dijiye (It was our fault, please forgive us),” says Chainpal.

But what clinched the ‘peace deal’ were the pleas of village elders.

Raghubir Singh, a 90-year-old Jat from Kutba, faced Akhtar Hassan and told him that Jats held no ill-will against Muslims. “The violence was not planned or done out of some enmity. A video was being circulated on mobile phones that showed the head of a Jat being smashed by a rock. It later turned out that the video was from a Taliban camp in Afghanistan. We were fooled and we fell for it. So I begged Akhtar to forgive Jats.”

Shakir Ali had a similar story to tell. “Some BJP leaders had held a Mahapanchayat on September 7 and rumours spread that a Muslim journalist was brutally murdered after it. Some local boys got angry and things got out of hand.”

After the chants and the passionate pleas for forgiveness, Akhtar Hassan, who lost many friends in Kutba, “forgave” the Jats of his village. “I took the families of the victims, all of whom were my friends, into confidence and together, we forgave the Jats of our village. The cases are still going on in the courts but we don’t want to exact any revenge,” he tells News18.

Shakir Ali says, pointing to 40-year-old Assaduddin, “Look at him! He is handicapped and the police said he had murdered someone! Several people, from both sides, were falsely implicated in the riots. Now, they can move on with their lives.”

While these Mahapanchayats were helping Jats and Muslims move towards a resolution, it ruffled feathers within the BJP. Former Union minister and Muzaffarnagar MP Sanjeev Balyan met UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday in Lucknow, along with BJP MLA Sangeet Som and farmer leader Naresh Tikait. He demanded that several cases of arson should be quashed. The leaders claimed that out of 502 cases, around 400 cases were of arson and were mostly bogus just to get the compensation.

As per reports, CM Yogi has assured the leaders of all possible help in this regard after proper consultation. A few days ago, the Yogi government had announced its decision to withdraw 20,000 cases, which were “politically motivated”.

According to local Jats, Sanjeev Balyan’s decision to take Naresh Tikait with him to Lucknow has political significance. As the ‘Chaudhary’ of the Balyan Khap, which dictates social life in 84 Jat villages of Muzaffarnagar, Tikait is essentially Jat royalty. Moreover, he is the son of iconic farmer leader Mahinder Singh Tikait.

A Jat activist from Muzaffarnagar says, “When we met Tikait sahib, we told him that he had been used by Sanjeev Balyan for political ends. When he (Sanjeev Balyan) goes to the CM with the leader of the Balyan Khap, it appears as though all Jats are with him. His position in the BJP gets strengthened.”

Another activist says Jats were “fooled” in 2014 and again in 2017. “Jab tak Jat Jat hai, tab tak Jat ki thaath hai. BJP ne kuch waqt ke liye Jat ko Hindu bana diya tha. (As long as Jats remain Jats, they will remain prosperous. BJP had turned Jats into Hindus for a while).”

Unperturbed by the BJP’s attempts to champion riot-accused Jats, Vipin Balyan says his Mahapanchayats will continue. “We have already resolved the conflicts in Kutba, Kakra and Pur Balyan. Now we will hold similar Mahapanchayats for the Jats and Muslims of Lishar, Fugana, Lakh, Mohammadpur Raisingh and Kawal villages. Jats and Muslims are, once again, united. The days of Baba Tikait (Mahinder Singh Tikait) are back.”

While Muslims who fled their village do not plan to return to live here, signs of communal healing are already visible. “One boy was an ironsmith in our village. A few months ago, he came back to set up his shop, even though he continues to live 5 km away in Bara Basti. We welcomed him with open arms and he was followed by Muslim farm labourers, who are the backbone of Jat landlords. The wounds are healing,” says Balyan.

Shakir Ali agrees. “Recently, I held my son’s Walima (wedding reception) in the village. I had more Hindu guests than Muslims,” he says proudly.

Ayodhya - a good story from Ram Janambhoomi

This is a good story of communal harmony in Ayodhya, indeed, there are many such stories in a series of article on Ayodhya published at http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com . We appreciate Dr. Frank Islam for taking the initiative to promote good stories to uplift people and put them on the pathway to cherish each other’s life.  We hope to open our offices in India soon to give a boost to the ideals of pluralism, i.e, respecting the otherness of other and accepting the God given uniqueness of each one of us.

Mike Ghouse
Center for Pluralism

‘There was never an iota of communal hatred in Ayodhya’

IANS|Economic Times

Updated: Dec 03, 2017, 12.32 PM IST

Courtesy Economic Times –

Locals, both Hindus and Muslims, say “outsiders” who came to Ayodhya in 1992 stirred trouble while locals were busy saving each other — irrespective of their religious faiths.

This is a town held sacred for its association with Hindu religious lore, which in latter days acquired the unflattering reputation of being a hotbed of Hindu-Muslim antagonism and religious-political conflict whose reverberations are felt both nationally and internationally. But what is little known, and may be even difficult to believe, is that Ayodhya has traditionally been known for its inter-faith harmony where it is not out of the ordinary for a Muslim tailor to stitch clothes for the idol of Ram or for a Hindu priest to help renovate an old mosque.

As  India approaches 25 years of the apocalyptic demolition of the 16th century  Babri Masjid on December 6, citizens of Ayodhya take pains to talk about their age-old heritage of cultural collaboration and free participation in inter-religious activities which has kept the secular fabric of the twin intact — despite the dragging temple-mosque politico-legal dispute over 2.7 acres of prime land whose ownership is contested by both Hindus and Muslims.

Locals, both Hindus and Muslims, say they were “outsiders” who came to Ayodhya in 1992 and stirred trouble while locals were busy saving each other — irrespective of their religious faiths — from the brunt of the riots that ensued. Out of the town’s total population of around 60,000, Muslims account for only six per cent. But they never felt any discrimination from Hindus, says Mohammed Chand Qaziana, priest at the Dargah of Sayyed Mohammad Ibrahim.

Qaziana said that the dargah was protected by local Hindus when the kar sevaks, or Hindu religious activists who came from outside the town, demolished the Babri mosque on December 6, 1992, on the ground that it was erected there by invading Mughal emperor Babar after razing a temple dedicated to Ram, the revered warrior-god of Hindus.

“This 900-year-old dargah has followers from the Hindu community as well, many of whom regularly pay a visit here. It is a symbol of our centuries-old harmonious existence. When it was attacked, our Hindu brothers formed a human shield around it and saved it,” Qaziana recalled to IANS.

Faizabad district, in which Ayodhya falls, has about 30 per cent Muslim population. Qaziana said there is an unannounced understanding among the people here not to fall prey to hate speeches of politicians and outsiders.

What makes communal harmony special here is the participation in inter-faith events and rituals — Muslims stitching clothes for Hindu deities, participating in Ramleela (religious theatre based on the life of Ram) or doing namaz (prayers) in Hindu religious places; and Hindus similarly contributing to mosque renovation or helping Muslim fellow townspeople in times of need.

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Echoing Qaziana’s views, Barfi Maharaj, who identifies himself as a Hindu social worker, said the Masjid was razed on December 6 by  Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) hotheads and locals had no role in it.

“We were neither influenced by hate speeches nor did we participate in the demolition drive. It was VHP that brought outsiders to demolish the Masjid. How can people from the birthplace of Ram, who is known for his secular teachings, commit such a sinful act?” asked Barfi Maharaj.

Giving examples of inter-faith harmony in the town, he said that a mosque near Hanumangadhi in Ayodhya was being renovated by a Hindu mahant (priest) while a Muslim tailor had been stitching clothes for the idol of Ram that is installed in the makeshift temple at the disputed site of Babri Masjid.

Sadik Ali, alias Babu Khan, said he had stitched seven to eight sets of clothes for the Hindu gods so far. Sadik, who is said to be a stakeholder in the negotiations in the issue, called  Babri Masjid demolition “unfortunate” but said he had no problem in the construction of  Ram Mandir on the disputed land.

“We do have faith in Ram. We had offered namaz at Hanuman Gadhi. If Hindus want big temples for their beloved god, we do not have a problem. We just want a piece of land nearby for a mosque,” Ali said.

Mohammed Salim has been making ‘khadav’ (wooden sandal), which were traditionally used by sadhus and priests but are now largely used in temples.

Salim said his family had been selling khadavs since generations which are usually bought by temple priests. “I have never witnessed any tension between the two communities here. We depend on each other for our needs and we respect each other,” he said.

The mutual understanding and respect for Hindus and Muslims here — revealing to an outsider — figure prominently in the region as one talks to the locals who, irrespective of their religion, slammed political leaders for vitiating the issue in an attempt to get electoral mileage.

A local contractor, Shailendra Pandey, said the people of Ayodhya were hardly consulted on what has come to be known as the Mandir-Masjid issue and politicians used Ram and the temple issue for their personal gains.

“You go anywhere in the city and talk to anyone. You will not find an iota of communal hatred among them. The unholy politics by outsiders has given our city a negative image,” Pandey said.

Mohammed Naeem, who is the president of Naugaja Dargah, said politicians were now creating hurdles in the way of the temple construction.

“This town is a perfect example of religious harmony and secularism, thanks to its rich culture and history. Everyone would be happy if the contentious issue is resolved amicably. However, we feel the politicians have kept this issue pending for their selfish motives,” Naeem said.

Whatever be the difficulties and complexities in the Mandir-Masjid issue, there will not be any negative impact in the socio-religious fabric of the city, feel the people of Ayodhya, once the kingdom of Ram, known for being a model of good governance in that era.

(This feature is part of a special series that seeks to bring unique and extraordinary stories of ordinary people, groups and communities from across a diverse, plural and inclusive India, and has been made possible by a collaboration between IANS and the Frank Islam Foundation. Saurabh Katkurwar can be contacted at saurabh.k@ians.in)A

Religious communal Clash in Somnath Over Rs 10

Mike Ghouse
MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com 

This is the story of a conflict between two individuals that went out of control over a petty argument.  I refuse to accept that Hinduism or Islam teaches them to hate, heck no, it is the parents, teachers, clergy and politicians, or may be in the reverse order.  

 A friend from Ghana used to tell me a story - that an entire village went violent when a boy kicked the ball far away, the other kid beat him up, and this kids father came and beat the other kid, and it multiplied to the point that the whole village was fighting. At the end of the day no one knew what it was for, but they had joined the fight and had harmed each other.

There is a solutions for this - During the communal riots in Jabalpur (India) in the early sixties, both Muslims and Hindus were killed in the mayhem, as it happens every time. I wish every father in India, America and elsewhere teaches this lesson to his kids. He was crystal clear on his take; He told us the "individuals" are responsible for the bloodshed and not the religions. If we get the guy who started the conflict and punish him for disturbing peace, rather than calling it a religious issue for the communities to jump in and aggravate it further, we would have saved many lives. He would emphasize that you cannot blame the intangible religion and expect justice, we must blame the individuals who caused it and punish them accordingly for disturbing the peace and thus bring a resolution to the conflict by serving justice. He said you cannot annihilate, kill, hang or beat the religion, then why bark at it?

Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other, and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. More about him at www.MikeGhouse.net
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Communal Clash over Rs. 10 
THE CITIZEN BUREAU
http://thecitizen.in/NewsDetail.aspx?Id=1688&Communal/Clash/Over/Rs/10

Patan, Gujarat on a normal day

MUMBAI: Hindus and Muslims fought pitched battles ostensibly over Rs 10 in Patan-Somnath town in Gujarat. A fact finding team found the situation to have been communalised and polarised raising worries that the real perpetrators of the violence might still be at large. The Citizen publishes excerpts from the report:

Background 

Patan is a small town in Southern Saurashtra. Patan and Veraval are under a joint municipal body called Patan-Veraval Sanyukta Nagar Palika. Somnath temple in Patan is well known for two reasons – 1) it is one of the Jyotirling of Lord Shiva and therefore auspicious for Hindus, and 2) in 1992 L. K. Advani, the then president of BJP commenced his campaign against Babri Masjid on a rath yatra from this temple town which ultimately led to the demolition of the Masjid in Ayodhya. The Hindu nationalists use Somnath temple as a symbol of “aggression of Muslims” over Hindus as Mohammad Gazni, a Muslim warlord attacked the temple several times for looting its wealth.

Total population of Patan is around 60,000 with Muslim communities constituting roughly about 25-30% of the population. The two major communities that inhabit Patan are the Ghanchi (Muslims) – about 1,000 to 1,200 houses and Koli (Hindu) – about 1,500 to 2,000 houses. Besides the Ghanchis, there are other communities as well. The other Muslim communities are Patnis, Syeds, Pathans, Sheikhs, Memons etc. There are about 14 Muslim Jamats (communities). The Ghanchi and Koli communities are backward educationally and socially. Literacy rates are lower than the national average and dropout rates high. Roughly on 5% of them complete schooling. There aren’t three professionals – lawyers, doctors or engineers in both the communities.

People of Patan live peacefully and share common culture and identity and participate in each other’s functions and festivals. The Hindu Muslim fabric was strong in this town but in the last couple of years the bonds seem to have weakened.

The Ghanchi community leaders told us that the community did not take political stance either way. Both parties – Congress as well as BJP had opened their electoral offices with the help of members of the community to campaign within the community. They gave liberty to their members to vote for any candidate of their choice. However, informally the leaders preferred to ally with the BJP, particularly as the BJP candidate was Jasabhai Barad who was formerly from the Congress. The Ghanchis, in order to get even their routine and easiest work done, have to align with the ruling party without which they have to suffer. Kolis and Ghanchis – both are politically with the BJP.

The Koli community leaders in Gujarat have been asserting and organizing themselves with the objective of increasing their political representation. The dominant community in Gir-Somnath and Junagadh Districts are Kolis. Until recently they were with the Congress. Their strong organization and political assertion led to bagging large number of tickets from the BJP. In the last state assembly election unprecedented number of Koli MLAs had been elected. The Kolis are demanding 95 tickets for their community members and should that happen, they would decide the Chief Minister of Gujarat, however, that does not seem probable.

The BJP for the first time gave a Lok Sabha ticket to a member of the Koli community – Rajesh Chudasama – elected in the 16th general election from Junagadh constituency in which Patan town falls. The renewed assertion Kolis is impacting on their social interactions. Every two or three months, there have been disputes between members of Koli and Ghanchi community over petty issues of payment to a rickshaw drivers etc. with potential of widening the conflict. However, the leaders of both the communities immediately intervened in the past and settled the dispute amicably. Mostly the Ghanchis would be made to pay some minor compensation.

The Incident:

The team did not find material difference in the narration of the incidence of communal violence that had occurred on 25th November 2014 by various people they talked to.

The ASI Babariya was present during the communal incidence on 25th November as the violence broke out near Shiv Police Chowki at about 8.30 am. The Police personnel of the Chowki had just resumed their respective duties when the violence occurred and they were completely unprepared. According to the ASIthere was a dispute about a Rs. 10 currency note belonging to a “Mohammedan” which was claimed by a Koli. According to Yusuf Kachara, Muslim passengers were sitting in an auto rickshaw being driven by a Muslim. A Rs. 10 currency note belonging to Muslim passenger fell down, but was claimed by a Koli. According to Suleman Kapadia, who owns several shops, including a cold drink shop, youth had written his cell number to pass it on to his girl friend for her to call him.

Girls are not allowed to keep cell phones with them so they exchange cell numbers in this way and use someone else’s phone to call. When the currency note was claimed by a member of Koli community, there was heated argument.In the scuffle, the Muslim passenger was hit by a tiffin box.This injured the Muslim youth and his head and started bleeding. Suleman Kapadia further informed the team that the wound was deep and there were three stitches.

The Ghanchi neighbourhood and the Koli neighborhood is separated by Veraval-Una Highway and the Shiv Police Chowki too is situated on the Highway. According to the ASI and all others the team talked to, elders of both the community intervened and separated those fighting. However, after about half an hour, the Kolis from Shanti Nagar reassembled and started pelting stones on Muslim neighbourhood across the highway. We observed the shop facing the road located on the Muslim side had been damaged. ASI further informed the team that the bikes on the road were also burnt.In the attack by Koli youth, one fruit stall, and two refrigerators of cold drink shop owned by Suleman Kapadia were damaged. They looted the chocolates, biscuits and other eatables in the shop. Suleman Kapadia claims that he suffered a loss of about Rs. 4-5 lakhs and has no insurance. One motorbike (pulled out from house by breaking doors) and two fruit stalls and a fruit shop were damaged in the attack led by the Koli youth.

Muslim youth too gathered and retaliated by pelting stones from the roof top. They burnt 8 motorbikes, damaged two fruit stalls and one fruit shop and 10 to 15 Kolis suffered minor injuries while 8-10 Muslims also were injured.

Yusufbhai informed the team that once every 2 – 3 months such scuffles happen over some minor issue or another, including payment of rickshaw fare. Elders of both sides intervene and do not let the violence escalate even if sometimes they have to compensate in order to settle the dispute. However, this time the Muslim youth did not listen to them. Yusufbhai along with the ASI and his team of two constables that were available at the time were trying to keep stone pelting mobs separate. The ASI was injured too as a stone hit him behind his right year causing swelling. Yusufbhai too was injured. The police team of three was hopelessly outnumbered and ill equipped, without even helmets for their protection. Half an hour later, police reinforcements came along with Dy. SP and Mamlatdar and they brought the situation under control. The police had to burst teargas shells near Vadli to disperse the Muslim mob. In the melee, someone snatched a mobile worth Rs. 500/- (five hundred only) of a policeman.

None from any community lodged any complaint with the police pertaining to the incident. Police suomoto registered an FIR. Later, the police arrested 42 Muslims and 14 Koli youth who were still in their custody. The police have charged all the 56 persons, amongst other sections for rioting, with S. 395 of IPC (dacoity) for loss of a mobile of the policeman.Ghanchi community members told the team that police arrested by-standers and innocents who happened to be there during the incident on both sides – Muslims as well as Hindus. The Ghanchi Community was taking care of all the expenses of the Muslims who were arrested and providing them food from a hotel. They also paid the family of the poor among the 42 who were arrested as their earning members were in police custody. The office bearers of the Patan Ghanchi Muslim Samaj were appreciative of the role of the BJP MLA Jasabhai Barad who promptly intervened when the police were arresting large number of Muslims. This stopped the police from being hostile to the community. Jassabhai Barad crossed over to BJP from Congress as he could not get any work done while in his former party. Jassabhai had polled votes from Muslims too.

A Hindu shopkeeper on the Muslim side of the Highway, who was sympathetic to RSS, talked to a team member but did not want to be identified. He derived satisfaction from the police action arresting large numbers of Muslims compared to Hindus.

Shops in the Patan area were closed on the day of the incident. However, the leaders of both the community met and decided to open their shops next day. Hindus were still afraid of opening their shops though Muslim shops had opened. Yusufbhai then called Kanabhai, leader of Koli community to open their shops as well. Similarly, the workers working in the GIDC from both the communities were afraid of getting out of their homes and travel to the GIDC area where factories are situated as they would have to negotiate “hostile” territories. However, here too, the elders of both the communities got together to persuade the workers to come out and go for work.

Findings and observations:

The communal riots in Patan seem to be spontaneous however, the root cause of the riots is continuous communal discourse in media and by communal organizations that is deepening communal consciousness. The Hindu communal forces have considerably succeeded in deepening Hindu communal identity based on “othering” of Muslims who are at best perceived as a problem to be tolerated and from time to time reminded that they are second class citizens living at the sweet will of Hindus.

It is because of this that smallest and most insignificant conflict of daily occurrence takes a communal turn and mobilizes non-Muslims against them. The Patan riots are an excellent example of that. Why should an ordinary dispute over payment of rickshaw fare or anything else become a cause for communal mobilization? The state and civil society both will have to do a lot neutralize these communal feelings, particularly, the “othering” of Muslims. Such propaganda are also an offence under s. 153A of IPC but the section has remained mute witness to offences committed against Muslims in Gujarat and indeed in India without being invoked ever. This time the riots could be easily controlled, but the violence may escalate and may be uncontrollable in future.

As we were tracking through the narrow lanes of Patan, on the surface peace seems to have been restored and everything normal. Women belonging to the Ghanchi community and Koli community were treading on the street together and conversing with each other. Women belonging to both the communities were sitting next to each and hawking fruits and vegetables. However there is a deeper division below the surface and communal divisions are widening with each such incident.

RSS affiliated organizations are active in the area resorting to communal discourse which “others” Muslims. Though the Muslims had voted for the BJP in the last elections, but as the BJP Taluka President SarmanSolanki told the team, they (the BJP) would not change their ideology and Muslims could not be trusted just because they voted for them. Solanki said he personally did not believe in casteism of communalism.

Though the police could control communal violence this time, their post riot action of arresting 42 Muslims and 14 Hindus seems to be arbitrary. We were told that the Muslims in custody were sharing their food with the Hindus. The real culprits may still be free on both sides. Police need to do thorough investigation of the incident and marshal evidence to see that the guilty of violence on both sides are punished as deterrence for future such escalations.

(The report was prepared by the Alliance for Peace and Justice and All India Secular Forum. The fact finding team comprised Irfan Engineer, Rafi Malek, Jagdish Bamaniya)

Shunning of Muslims, Becoming Widespread

Shunning of Muslims, Becoming Widespread

I am glad to read the following introspection by Dr. Mookhi Ali and the quotes from Dr. Zakaria. This trend is gaining momentum. There was fine book published by Dr. ____ (who teaches at University of Michigan now) that explores the goodwill factor where Muslims are part of the society and where they aren’t. Where ever there is a higher degree of integration between the two communities, there are lesser issues of conflict and prejudices.

I have written a piece appealing to Muslims to be a part of the society, and appealing to the population at large to drop the bias. It is in the best interests of every one to bring harmony in the community and live with freedom. This was published in Dr. Javed Jamil’s magazine in India in the Indian context and has been published in several magazines in the United States.

Are Muslims a part of the American Story?
http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2009/04/are-muslims-part-of-american-story.html

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker, writer and an activist of Pluralism, Justice, Islam, India and Civil Societies. He is a conflict mitigater and a goodwill nurturer offering pluralistic solutions to issues of the day. http://www.mikeghouse.net/
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Dr A R Mookhi Amir Ali

Two news items, one in Today’s Mumbai Mirror of The Times of India and another in Free Press Journal of yesterday, 1st of May 2010 are greatly disturbing to the Muslim community.

A couple had rented a flat on the first floor of Chembur's Venkatesh Sadan from May 1. They had signed the agreement, gone through police verification, and had even shifted their belongings. But on Saturday morning, just minutes before guests were to arrive for a house-warming party starting at 10 am, the flat owner Jyoti Rege called the man to say that he would have to move out.The reason? His name was Khan. Majid Khan. The housing society and locals disapproved of Muslims. The silver lining of the unpleasant episode was that the owner of the flat and the broker involved apologized, paid back the deposit and advance paid and compensated Majid Khan for the hardship of moving in and out.

The second news item comes from Australia. A firebrand retired politician Pauline Hanson with an intention to move to England listed her house for sale with an estate agent with a stipulation that no Muslim buyer should be entertained. Apparently this slight to the Muslim community was her parting patriotic gesture for Australia because she believed that Muslims are not compatible with “our life and culture” and she believed Muslims will cause problems for the country further down the track.

The episodes of Shabana Azmi and Emraan Hashmi, both film actors, not being allowed to buy houses of their choice are not forgotten. I was heartbroken when I went looking for a flat to buy, as my own building was being redeveloped. Emraan Hashmi was not given the NOC to buy the flat he wanted, but he was not told on his face that the reason for refusal was his faith. I was told so on my face. I saw to my dismay that there are many buildings in the suburbs of Mumbai that do not want a Muslim inmate. There are vast areas where groups of Housing Societies have jointly decided not to let a Muslim live in their locality. Local estate agents have been instructed not to bring in Muslim buyers. In one suburb an estate agent rattled to me the names of the buildings which were out of bound for Muslims. All this is extremely hurtful. One hates to admit and express that the community is being disliked to this extent. But unless the community continuously wants to wallow in the quagmire it is in, it must rise and face the facts, do some soul-searching, go into the reasons of their malady and do some course-correction.Muslims must strive to be more acceptable, more liked by other communities. In 2009 August when I wrote on Emraan Hashmi’s plight I pasted a few lines from Dr Rafiq Zakaria’s book “Communal Rage In Secular India.” I have seen lot of wisdom in the book and can not help pasting the same words again.

Dr. Rafiq Zakaria in his book “Communal Rage in Secular India”:

“They should do some introspection and ask whether they have genuinely tried to contribute to the strengthening of Hindu-Muslim relations since Partition. The answer will be no. (Page 191)

“Indian Muslims must open their eyes to the ground reality that an increasing number of Hindus have begun to hate them.” (Page 193). “This is not confined to a small section; it has infected the rich as much as the poor; men as much as women; the young as much as the old; even children are no longer free from it.” (Page 201)

“This is the ugly reality that Muslims have to face in today’s India. They have to do their best to bring about a change in the hostile attitude of the communal Hindus towards them. This is as much in their interest as that of the nation. Muslims continue to live in a make-believe world of their own. [Page 202]
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Link to this article -
http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2010/05/shunning-of-muslims-becoming-widespread.html

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