Lathi-charge on protesting AMU students: Anger against Akhilesh Yadav govt among Muslims in UP

The brutal lathi-charge on Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) students has angered Muslim youth in Uttar Pradesh.

The students had organised a protest over disappearance of Najeeb Ahmed, the JNU student who has been missing for months and is yet to be traced. However, the police thrashed the protesters.

It has led to strong reaction among Muslim youth in the poll-bound state. For the last two days, photographs of injured students has been going viral on internet and are being shared by WhatsApp.

This has further irked the Muslims. Youths feel that such brutal cane-charge on students during the Samajwadi Party (SP) regime shows its attitude towards the Muslims--the community is taken for granted.

While Akhilesh Yadav is busy taking reins of the party from his father, there is a strong undercurrent among Muslim youths over the issue. Will it have an impact on poll prospects of the party when elections are drawing nearer!

This cant' be ruled out. The general question is that why students were treated so brutally. And, why district administration acted with such vengeance. Further, no action was taken against the officials.

Instead, youths were later booked for the protest. The feeling that under SP government, Muslims can't even raise voice, is getting stronger. Also, the Muzffarnagar riots haven't been forgotten.

People remember how Akhilesh Yadav government had failed to act when nearly scores were killed and tens of thousands got displaced. The feeling that SP considers Muslims as 'loyal votebank' who have no option, has gained ground.

But, the reality is that Muslims are in no mood to be treated as vote banks. The result of the fight over 'cycle'--the SP symbol, would be known in a few days. After that, Muslims would take a decision. In many constituencies, the decision would be taken on the basis of local candidates' strength.

The entry of AIMIM has also changed the scenario. MIM's leaders and its party workers' constant criticism of SP government, has dented the image of Akhilesh Yadav. MIM may not get a chunk of votes but its arrival has changed the manner in which Muslim electoate looked at SP.

The decision against minority status of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU)

The Aligarh Muslim  University (AMU)

The High Court has ruled that Aligarh Muslim University [AMU] is not a minority institution. Just a few months back also, I had written on the same subject.

With all due respects to the courts and the Indian system of justice in which I have great faith,one observation is that I don't remember any major decision in favour of Muslim community emerging from courts in UP.

Most of the important judgments go against Muslim community. And this is not a personal observation, people are aware of it. I am not making any sweeping statement. May be, it is because of the failure of Muslims who can't plead their cases properly, do not get good lawyers.

OR WHATEVER REASON. It was in the Allahabad court that the case of Babri Masjid dragged for years after the idol was kept soon after independence and that led to riots in the decade of eighties and later in 1992. Even then, there was no effort to speed up the judicial progress.

CROOK POLITICIANS GET AWAY EASILY

We all remember Kalyan Singh had been sentenced to just a single day of imprisonment [Ek Din Ki Saza] for the colossal crime of not protecting the Babri Masjid. Peole who keep track of events in the last couple of decades are aware of how communal elements got reprieve often.

That they got away easily but an institution like AMU remained under scanner. Muslims and their language kept on receiving unfavourable judgments. It is this same state UP where Urdu was systematically killed and Urdu schools were not allowed to be opened after 1949. 

All efforts were made to keep Muslims out of jobs and for 20 years after partition not a single Muslim was recruited in UP police--a state with at least a crore Muslims then. Historically, the great injustices have been meted out to Muslims in Uttar Pradesh.

RIOTS: COURT CASES DRAGGED

Major massacres of Muslims including Hashimpura-Maliana, Moradabad, Meerut and Firozabad occurred without any punishment to perpetrators or compensation to victims. Hashimpura case drags to this day even though 25 years have elapsed.

There was no focus on stopping riots and getting justice to victims until the era of coalition politics arrived and the major riots stopped after the BJP government was voted out. With BSP and SP alternatively forming government, the situation changed.

There is need for governments to be clear. The issue of minority character of AMU [and Jamia] should be settled once for all. Why should there be controversies year after year just because of minor slips in definitions in the acts.

No solution is in sight because the more you beg, you cry, you are seen as victim and suffering from a persecution complex. We don't want charity and reservation, but we must create more of our universities of such excellence that other communities should crave for admission in them. Do we see light at the end of the tunnel?

Before ending I must reiterate the great respect we all have for the courts. If there could be justice for victims of massacre in Gujarat then it will be solely due to the courts, particularly, the Supreme court that has kept the hopes of the victims alive.

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