Manzurul Haque for BeyondHeadlines
As a supporter of Aam Aadmi Party, I do not indulge in the job of predicting its victory in Delhi elections. I intensely desire it to win. Every move of mine is loaded, to give a push to the victory process, including this write-up. I am not neutral. I am not a journalist. I am in fact biased in favor of AAP. But I have my reasons.
I wouldn’t have written this piece, had I not seen a glimmer of hope that AAP might perhaps win. This feeble hope has filled in me such a strong longing to let my emotions fly, that I cannot help myself from holding my pen tonight. Yes, I am not on my computer.
I will have to discount a number of things first. I am not a ‘khas’ admi, which in other words means, I am an aam admi, but worse is , I am going to remain so, because I have already concluded my life with this terse verse, “Born. Why? Lived nigh. Died I!” I am also a pensioner which helps me in the manner, I have described somewhere, “ How lucking I was, to have lived life, Behind the iron curtains of an Armed Force; and thus earned my pension, To ward me off – the fate of a poet!”. Doubtless, I am writing all this preface, to protect myself from the ‘Abuser-Brigade’ of India, for my trying to ‘defend the indefensible’, which I have done in the past as well, if you will please recall.
When I see my life to have come to a full stop already, why do I extend my arm into the affairs of the world, is a natural question to ask. Well, I will answer. I see LIFE as a continuation, as something extending beyond life. It will not end with me. And I love LIFE.
I am pitted against great personal odds as well, because as a young boy, I was a Xavierian of Ranchi, and as an old boy, I was surrounded by comrade-in-arms of the CRPF. Most of them have known me as dear Manzurul (never actually uttered the prefix, but somehow I always felt I heard this). Now I know, what I am going to write may not sound music to quite a number of them (though I do not expect anyone to exclaim, ‘you too Manzurul’ simply because of absence of context), because in my attempt to brush my shoulders with Truth, I really have no choice. The questions relate to LIFE and are too important to allow the personal discomfiture to step in. Besides, as a Gandhian, I cannot just shy away from a struggle. I think my readers must be anxious to be looking for a subject-matter, a title of the topic, so let me describe the title as ‘The Perils of Being an Indian Muslim’.
THE PERILS OF BEING AN INDIAN MUSLIM
A friend and a senior AAP leader of Jharkhand, was taken aback, in his sheer sincerity of course, to hear the ‘Muslim’ word from me, because in his very honest opinion, I should have been above this question. My credentials, according to him, were strong enough to let me play a full-blooded role in the national life of India and AAP certainly was a platform that would welcome someone like me without any background check. Friends, the issue is not that flimsy for me either. I want to grapple the devil by the horn. I stand for “redefining of the personality of Indian nation” and to reach the core of ‘this’ topic, my topic of ‘The Perils of Being an Indian Muslim’ is just an opening, a gateway. My topic is just the name of the ‘darwaza’ of the citadel, through which to enter the question-land. May be this Aam Admi (me, here), is specially privileged to stand as a ‘darban’ of the ‘darwaza’ and is under duty to usher you,all of you, very important persons in my life – into the citadel. Believe me; I have no problem in continuing to stand as a ‘darban’, after all of you have gone in, if there is shortage of space inside. I am quite happy to stand at the gate.
Let me explain the abstracts in greater detail. The question of ‘Indian nationalism’ is under question. A whole lot of us Indians have little respect left, for the current definition of nationalism. Secular nationalism as mentioned in the Constitution of India has been rubbished as pseudo-secularism. BJP, aided and abetted by other Hindutva outfits, are trying to redefine Indian nationalism by invoking Hindu pride and lots of folktales, but worse so, by alluding to Muslim’s disregard for Hinduism – without however checking the facts with Muslims. I think there was a case for Muslims to be heard, not only for the sake of Muslims’ well-being alone, but also to keep the debate of ‘redefining Indian nationalism’ on an even keel. Whenever Indian nationalism is on the discussion table, the Hindutva forces would push the Muslim question (appeasement, terrorism, disloyalty etc. etc.) on to the center-stage, obscuring the actual debate. That gives them an opportunity to define Indian nationalism in their own way, without a debate.
Through the medium of AAP, I want the Muslim question to be relegated to the margins of national life – to the very gates of the citadel. India is a Hindu country. Muslims cannot, will not and do not dislike Hindus. They find themselves not very different from Hindus except in a very narrow area of the ‘methods of worship and certain observances’, which have to do with their life-after-death, without in any way impinging on the resources of this life. Muslims are wise enough to understand their place in the material life of India. They just want to live as humans with their life, liberty and self-respect intact. If someone like Dr. ZakirNaik is dreaming of proselytizing India – I have no hesitation in saying that such rogue elements are playing into the hands of the BJP and the RSS – for purpose. From day one, I have warned AAP not to espouse Muslim ‘dalals’ (Remember, my diatribe against AAP leaders for visiting the traditional power brokers of Muslims) with skull-cap and beard. If you, as a Hindu are looking for symbolic pious Muslim faces I can help. I am not saying I am one such Muslim because I am clean-shaven, without a skull-cap, but I am Muslim enough to help you identify a pious Muslim. For example, we Muslims, look for ‘noor in the face’ of a person, when we look for a pious person. A Muslim can have his skull-cap and his beard, but he cannot bring in the ‘noor’ (without being truly pious) that we Muslims instinctively identify. When political parties bring in Muslim faces on to the dais, take it, that Muslims vomit at their sights. But above all, a pious Muslim will be the first to dismiss all political questions of life. The search for a Muslim face is thus futile, and a waste of energy and resources by the political parties, arising from the lack of understanding of Muslim psyche. Actually, it’s flunky Muslims like us, who can articulate the real Muslim issues, but if you want me to wear a skull-cap and beard for this reason alone, I shall not. I am not that flunky. So ladies and gentlemen, from the ramparts of my computer table (yes, I am typing now), I hereby proclaim that the biggest Muslim issue is, that there is no Muslim issue, when it comes to debating and defining the true nature of Indian nationalism by the 85% of Indians. Muslims stand as bystanders because of historical reasons, while praying that the 85% of Indian population settle the question of Indian nationalism in favor of an inclusive nationalism, the kind of nationalism already defined by the old Congress Party in the Constitution of India, but rarely believed by the Party itself. I am almost sure that AAP will honor the Indian nationalism as defined in the Constitution of India and this much serves my full purpose as a an Indian Muslim. The peril of my being an Indian Muslim is that I am face to face with the prospect of losing my nationalism as defined in the Constitution. I hope, friends who have loved me, and all such Hindus who have loved their Muslim friends and neighbors, understand that the push is actually against their Muslim friends. If Hindus as a majority community find some aberrations in Muslims, they do have the right to nudge them to correct their course in a truly brotherly manner. If you are in AAP, you must understand what it means to be in AAP, what it means to sing – ‘Insaankainsaan se ho bhaichara, yehipaighamhamara’. I would like you to recall the words of Swami Vivekananda that for its renaissance ‘India needs the body of a Muslim and soul of a Hindu’. I know so much of poison has already gone into the gut, that clear thinking is blurred in our national life. But please give your hope a chance, through AAP.
(The views expressed are personal. The writer can be contacted at manhaq@yahoo.com)
