Indian Muslims, a forward community: Journalists' conditioning that never let's them go beyond 'Muslim backwardness'

 

Shams Ur Rehman Alavi

It’s painful to write this piece. But just read these few points to understand how even statistics are interpreted in a particular way due to ‘conditioning’ and biases.

1. How many times you see headlines that say, ‘Muslim women literacy rate set to beat Hindu women in rural India now’*, ‘Percentage of illiterates among Hindus 2–1/2 times times the percent among Jains’ or ‘Sikhs, Christians ahead in literacy in particular regions, X community still lag’ or ‘Buddhists performing better than Y community in this state’.

This is a fact that Muslim women now have higher literacy rate in rural parts of the country than Hindu women. But have you seen anywhere this reported or big headlines that show this upward trend!

Also, the statistics now clearly indicate that overall [rural plus urban] literacy among women above five years is— Hindu women (69%) and Muslim women (68.1%). Quite close. Isn’t it. The Ministry of Statistics, NSS, PLFS, all reports, you can check and find it yourself.

2. Unfortunately, despite this data that is available in public space, it is the only Hindu-Muslim binary and ‘Muslims as backward’ headline appearing in papers despite so many other figures and different points.  

Now, even if Muslims were behind — moving fast or slow, the journalists rarely mention overall figure of illiterates, as it will reveal something else — almost 250 million or nearly 25 crore Hindus are illiterates.

3. In India, every data is analysed in newspapers and reported in a way that it must not show majority community in poor light or backward. When there are figures, they are picked in a way to ‘reveal less, hide more’, and also presented in a particular manner — that’s the status quo of reporting.

Perhaps, it’s due to conditioning that just this aspect or on these lines, the story on social indicators is believed to be written and rarely people try to look deep into the reports and see the changes.

4. So extrapolation, NFHS surveys & reports like PLFS or others give us a picture. Even if we tilt towards positive side and believe that figure will reduce dramatically by next Census, still around25 crore or 250 million [illiteracy] are illiterate in India. Imagine extent of the problem.

5. If a community is small, then it’s comparatively easy to catch up. Small groups have shown way. Bigger the group, the tougher it is. As per 2011, illiteracy figures were 25.8 cr and 5.42 cr for Hindu & Muslim. 2021 are estimates.

6. If you imagine a rosy picture & say 25 crore, even this is bigger than population of 190 countries, only less than China, US and India. Still, we focus on nonsense, every day discuss those issues. Politicians, Anchors want not just illiteracy but probably want to snatch our brains too.

7. Now coming to second part of the article. I didn’t want to write it but such is conditioning of journalists that I have to write and I must remind — remember, as per statistics, Hindus still have the lowest level of educational attainment of any major religious group according to international studies. Jews are at the top but Christians and Muslims are also much ahead.

8. Globally, the average is 5.6 years of schooling, and 41% of Hindus have no formal education of any kind. On average, Hindu men have 2.7 more years of schooling than Hindu women, and just over half of Hindu women (53%) have no formal schooling, compared with 29% of Hindu men.

9. Whoever owns media can make you believe anything and such is power of ‘mainstream media’, its narrative that you blindly start believing them. If someone says something, talk on statistics and look at the complete picture. 

Ideally, educational backwardness or anything should not be linked with religion. In a huge country, there are regional differences, also state support, many factors, and any ‘issue’ should be seen as just an ‘issue’, not on communal lines.

But in India, media and channels’ job is apparently just to communalise and show entire Muslim community permanently as ‘backward’, hence, when it is linked to religion all the time, we too need to explain it with statistics.

10. As a citizen in world’s biggest democracy, we must know our real situation — it shouldn’t be that we are either too self-critic, gullible and believing that ‘we are bad, we don’t want to study, our community is really against education’ or even turn over-optimist. 

11. Opportunity and state support can make a community prosper fast and taking away support can have negative affect. We must know reality, neither turn pessimist, nor self-hating, but be aware and always make efforts to move ahead. 

12. Communities that are so big that they number hundreds of million, are so easily termed ‘backward’. This sort of crass generalization, ignoring the regional differences [the regions too are huge, states that have population over 100 million and even 200 million — ranging from Maharashtra to UP and are 175 most countries of the world] and without evidence and bringing focus on all indicators, is not just careless but dangerous.

One last point — never believe media’s narrative blindly, as the social conditioning and training of most journos in news rooms [or just because they feel it is the model or style going for generations] is to present news in a fashion by cherry picking data, so that Muslims feel they are indeed ‘poorest, backward, and behind everyone else’.

*It's true now, as per latest government survey results.

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NOTE: The photo of child with skullcap is deliberately used as Indian Media has made this photo as symbol of backwardness. Though it shows how presence of maktab and madarsa ensures that even without availability of schools, Muslims do far better and get basic literacy with ease due to these institutions. 

Muslims ahead on nutrition, health indicators: Status of women, dietary discrimination in other communities

Shams Ur Rehman Alavi

Firstly, this post is not for those who've no interaction with Muslims but have preconceived notions about the community and without statistics or any report, generalize, branding entire community as backward.

This is about the fact that in Muslim households, girls are valued much more, comparatively, and this is evident, statistically, also.

Even when female foeticide was rampant in North India, this was not a major problem in Muslim society.

In households, you often hear, 'Hamare huzoor ki nasl bhi unki beti se chali'. Many people don't understand that at ground level, even among the poorest of poor, this slight difference in attitude due to religion, plays a major role.

READ: 4.6 crore girls 'missing' in India due to 'son preference'

This is to highlight how certain religious teachings, sayings about women's status, have impact. Those working in social sector sector for years, knew difference but said, 'ya, they [Muslims] have less of this problem among women' (or in malnutrition too) but won't tell more.

There are big regions where Muslims don't have much land holdings, less than even 1% in govt jobs, yet, on these indicators like nutrition among girls, doing much better & despite less affluence, attitudes towards girl child-daughters, different-visible. Problem is sweeping generalization, false narrative.

READ: Why multiple abortions, female foeticide don't bother society?

Either it was about dietary discrimination or birth of girl child, these social evils were prevalent more in other communities. But nobody termed them as 'backward'. Backwardness is in social evils, attitudes. Being less affluent is not being backward. Open mind, shun prejudices.

It's not that we don't know or won't focus on our own shortcomings, we do and we must make an effort to get rid of social evils, try to improve. If on one indicator, we are doing well, we must try to do even more better in coming years. But branding & falsehood will be tackled.

READ: For 40 years no girl could stay alive in this MP village

It's not that you have a sex ratio of 850 in a region but still remain 'forward' or that women-girls in your community are more stunted, anaemic and malnourished, but you continue to term others as backward just because of your power to brand others and use majoritarian privilege to brand the 'other'.

This blog has a series of posts on this issue. Also, regarding backwardness, the false narrative that is shaped and how propaganda is used as a means to brand an entire community. More on this topic, with statistics would be posted, soon.

READ: Indian Muslims are NOT backward, talk on facts, social indicators

It is interesting that if you ask journalists on social sector beat, why they don't give religion-wise figures on these indicators, they quickly say, 'oh ya, we never thought about it'. Nobody else will tell your story, you need to tell it, claim your voice.

READ: Myths about Indian Muslim backwardness

Else, even if community doing well, the report will be published with a classification among Muslims, OBCs, Dalits and Tribals, not as Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Jain, Buddhist--and you won't even know your own progress. Either it is NHFS or similar reports, keep an eye, read, write and tell. This series about the 'backwardness narrative' will continue and figures will be shared in coming posts.

WATCH VIDEO: How media created image of Muslim women as backward

Photo courtesy: Mr Joy Deb, Pexels

Journalism in India: No fresh idea, why not do a cover story on 'Indian Muslims'

 

It's the age-old system in Indian journalism.

For magazines, periodicals and even Sunday papers that needed a special story.

If you don't have a fresh story or run out of all the ideas, just focus on 'Indian Muslims'.

Do a story on 'Indian Muslims', with different angles!

Either term them 'backward' or do a story on 'Muslim vote bank', so-called appeasement or write about the clergy and institutions, terming them regressive. 

This is the level of understanding and it has not changed in the last 70-odd years. 

The stereotypes that journalists carry even after getting a degree, the perception about Muslims and the beliefs about Muslims as monolith who need to be patronized and told about 'their issues', it just never ends.

So even if the community may be doing well against all odds, improving on indicators, the preaching continues. Forget data, statistics. And, why not write on issues concerning the majority. Do a story on 'Indian Hindus', now. It is time to focus.

The superstitions or bigotry among majority community, the radicalism or growth of hate among large sections is a big story. In fact, writers who belong to particular religion or caste, aren't aware about their own misconceptions, how they inherit the false notions and how they are regressive despite education and degrees.

Else, what is the reason that you don't write about your own superstitions, bigotry, privilege, radicalism, superstitions or growing fundamentalism among this huge section! Many people do have serious issues, strange phobias, join these Right-wing groups, Dals and Senas, many of them are involved in lynchings or hate crimes, yet suffer from fears of Muslim takeover, these are strange complexes. Aren't they a community that needs to be covered?

Woman beheaded with sword for going to work, hurting 'Rajput pride' in Rajasthan: Regressive practices, atrocities on women in India

In a shocking incident, a man beheaded his daughter-in-law for defying 'Rajput traditions'.

The woman--Uma Rajput, was hacked to death by her father-in-law, as she 'dared to go out for work'.

In a patriarchal society, this had brought 'dishonour to his family', felt the accused. He publicly killed his daughter-in-law, by attacking her with a sword.

The incident took place in Alwar in Rajasthan. India Today reports, "The woman was on her way to work at a factory in Shahjahanpur village in Alwar district when her father-in-law brandished a sword and allegedly chopped her head off."

"As the woman was attacked, none of the passersby came forward to help her. She died on the spot. Subsequently, police took her body to the mortuary of the local hospital. The victim, identified as Uma, is survived by her husband Mukesh Rajput and two children", India Today further reports.

"Both Uma and Mukesh worked to run the family and provide for the education of their two children. When questioned, family members and neighbours of the woman said that her father-in-law Maamraj was upset with her for working in a factory", the report adds.

In fact, such incidents are so common that they don't make it to the state capitals, let alone getting discussed in news rooms. Also, they don't affect TV anchors who feel that TRP comes only if there is a issue that pits majority against minority, not inward looking or talking about reforms.

Woman beheaded with sword for going to work, hurting 'Rajput pride' in Rajasthan: Regressive practices in India

In a shocking incident, a man beheaded his daughter-in-law for defying 'Rajput traditions'.

The woman--Uma Rajput, was hacked to death by her father-in-law, as she 'dared to go out for work'.

In a patriarchal society, this had brought 'dishonour to his family', felt the accused. He publicly killed his daughter-in-law, by attacking her with a sword.

The incident took place in Alwar in Rajasthan. India Today reports, "The woman was on her way to work at a factory in Shahjahanpur village in Alwar district when her father-in-law brandished a sword and allegedly chopped her head off."

"As the woman was attacked, none of the passersby came forward to help her. She died on the spot. Subsequently, police took her body to the mortuary of the local hospital. The victim, identified as Uma, is survived by her husband Mukesh Rajput and two children", India Today further reports.

"Both Uma and Mukesh worked to run the family and provide for the education of their two children. When questioned, family members and neighbours of the woman said that her father-in-law Maamraj was upset with her for working in a factory", the report adds.

Child marriages in India: 27% girls are married before they turn 18

Child marriages are widely prevalent in India.

One of the biggest social evils, the practice of child marriage is yet to be checked in the country.

Millions of minors tie the knot every year because of social acceptance in several regions.

The latest figures suggest that 27 percent of girls, or nearly 1.5 million girls, get married before they turn 18 in India.

Though there has been a decline in number of child marriages in India, compared to last decade, the figure is still mind-boggling. In rural parts of the India, child marriages are more common.

In Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and other North Indian states, tens of thousands of children are made to tie the nuptial knot on the day of 'Akshay Tritiya'.

UNICEF claims that the steps to check child marriages have brought the numbers down, yet, the practice is so widespread that it is difficult to stop it.

India leads the world in child marriages. It recorded six times more child marriages that Bangladesh. It is far ahead of Nigeria, Brazil and Ethiopia that are other countries on the list.

While India is on the top, the other countries in the list include Bangladesh, Nigeria, Brazil, Ethiopia
Pakistan, Indonesia, Mexico, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania. Clearly, in seventy years, India hasn't done enough to eradicate social evils. 

Social evils in India: Caste discrimination form of apartheid, rampant in Indian society

Caste is the fundamental identity in India, at times, even stronger than religion.

Every day, there are incidents of casteist violence and oppression all over the country.

Many people who pretend to be modern and flaunt their liberal credentials deny that caste exist and vehemently say that they don't believe in caste.

But when it comes to marriage, they always go for a match from their own caste. It's a harsh reality. Caste groups hold events regularly, organise their conventions in cities and towns, inculcate sense of pride among their members.

They also hold introductory meets for youths so that the youngsters marry within the caste. The so-called 'honour killings' are just an example of this deep-rooted caste phenomenon in Indian society.

Casteism is a mental ailment. People afflicted it with are conditioned from childhood. It's like apartheid, even worse. Here, the race is same, religion is same and even skin colour is same. But hate overcomes everything.

A girl is writhing in pain on the floor after she was made to drink poison by her own family. Sushma was given this punishment as she loved a man outside the community and wanted to marry him.

This incident occurred near Mysuru in Karnataka. Sushma wanted to marry a Dalit youth. Hence, the family decided to kill her. Her father forced poison down her throat. See report

And that's so common that it doesn't prick the conscience of people or shock the nation, anymore.

It is no aberration but a regularity. It happens in rural parts, it happens even in town and big cities of the country.

Just see the matrimonial advertisements and you find how caste functions. Everyone wants to marry within caste.

And those who are exceptions--say 'Caste no bar', yet don't want to marry Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe  (ST) or Other Backward Caste (OBC).

Stop generalizing, calling Indian Muslims 'backward': Talk on facts, social indicators

Shams Ur Rehman Alavi

'You don't look like Muslim'.

Many people have heard this line time and again from their non-Muslim friends.

This is because it is deeply embedded in their mind that Muslims are backward.

It's a bias, they have grown up with. Either at home or through media, the society--it's conditioning.
 
Backward, on what social indicators? How the entire Muslim community can be termed backward?

And aren't Hindus backward? But many Muslims also keep repeating the line 'Muslims are backward'.

Either its sex ratio or discrimination with women and girl child, infant mortality rate or acute malnutrition, dowry deaths, even other social backwardness parameters like child marriages or other indicators, Muslims don't perform bad.

Yes, as far as education is concerned, Muslims are a bit behind. But there are Hindus too, large sections who are far behind. Visit rural parts of the country or tribal hamlets, you'll see the poorest of poor--sans proper clothes, malnourished and without bare minimum facilities.

More people who die of hunger or the poor and homeless who die because of natural factors--heat or cold in extreme seasons, while sleeping in the open, are Hindu. Ya, but in that case, it becomes another category--caste or tribe, not 'Hindus'.

Muslims are more urbanized and have a different social system, there are a lot of factors that need not be explained here, but they helps them survive despite all odds. But by parroting the sentence that Muslims are backward, many educated Muslims too fall in this trap.

WATCH VIDEO: How media created image of Muslim women as backward

It is defaming Muslims for no reason. There are tremendously educated people among Muslims, there are actors and sports persons, there are Muslim achievers in all fields just like in Hindus or Sikhs, Christians or Jains.

Yes, benefits of schemes don't reach large section of Muslim masses just like certain other sections. Often, state policies and lack of due representation are among the reasons. But that doesn't make Muslims 'backward'.

Muslims are working hard, also making progress despite the fact that they are under-represented in government jobs, in MNC's management, politics, and don't get reservation. Still, the community members are doing their bit, trying to move ahead despite all odds.

But it is need of the hour to expose this 'backward community' narrative. It is not at all true that Muslims are backward. There is poverty, there are issues, but terming 'Indian Muslims' as a whole is backward, is wrong.

Nasty but cleverly crafted. This propaganda, this vilification campaign has serious affects. It hurt self-belief, confidence of youth, many of whom genuinely believed that, 'there was something wrong with the community', 'we are most backward'. It's a bad joke, terming a huge population--200 million as 'backward'.

We must be realistic, we must be aware, we must know where we lag. But we definitely don't allow ourselves to be branded. We understand how some do get a sadistic pleasure in spreading such lies. You can't generalise and target a community, using falsehoods.

It has no basis. It is just an attempt to sully the image of Muslims.

READ: Myths about Indian Muslims and backwardness among community

WATCH VIDEO: How media created image of Muslim women as backward

Power-less in UP: Hand-held 'pankha' & battery fans

Uttar Pradesh is the biggest state in the country in terms of population and nearly 20% of Indians live in this state, which has the most fertile land and has rivers like Ganga, Jamuna, Gomti and Ghaghra.

But it is probably the only state in India where the 'pankhas' (hand-held fans) sell in lakhs every year. Except Mayawati's hometown, the small Badalpur village, there is no other town that can boast of regular electricity supply.

When Mulayam Singh Yadav was the Chief Minister, his village Saifai was the VVIP Town for the Electricity Board officials. The State capital Lucknow and Rampur, which Mohammad Azam Khan represented, were two other places that had a comparatively better power supply than other districts.

But the day Mayawati took over the reins of the state, a newspaper report quoted a senior functionary of the Board that the VVIP status was now conferred to Badalpur, leaving Saifai in near permanent darkness. Lucknow, the State capital, gets a slightly better deal than other districts. As Mayawati's chief advisor Satish Mishra hails from Kanpur the status of the City has also gone up.

Rest it is all dark in UP. In cities like Benares (Varanasi), the boards at the reception of hotels, say it all. The visitors are asked not to expect electricity during the day and only in the night, the electricity would be supplied through generator.

In rest of the country, the situation isn't as bad as in UP. Where else you will see generators of all possible kinds, outside every shop in the markets. Even inverters have lost their utility. After all, they can store electricity only when there is electricity. But when there is no power for days, inverters can't work. So it's generators working on government-subsidised cooking gas, diesel, petrol, kerosene and the latest innovation--the battery-run fans.

The picture on the right shows a fan that works on battery. The blades of the fan are lighter and at least the family members can get some relief in the night and have peaceful sleep after braving the entire day without power. In millions of households that can't afford them, the hand-held pankhas are used by sweating men and women to beat the heat.

It is foolish to expect industrialists to come here when there is such paucity of power. In villages the situation is worse. For days there is no power and even if it comes, the voltage is so bad that nothing can work.

Neither tube wells nor motors can work. Farmers use age-old techniques for irrigation. And for electricity, a unique 'katcha bulb' that only works on low voltage, works. It explodes if the voltage goes up.

In areas represented by a strong legislator or the MP, the power supply is slightly better but it can't be more than 8-10 hrs in every 24 hrs. The difference in power production and it's demand is nearly 50% of the electricity that is generated in the state.

No wonder, the 'haath ka pankha' remains a must in most houses. For the rest of India, especially the Western and Southern regions, the sight of people drenched in sweat and using the 'pankha' could come as a shock.

Ironically, Kanpur was probably the first town in India to have street lights during the British rule. And this City that was once growing so fast that it was often termed as fifth metro of future in the decade of 70s, is now a redundant urban agglomeration of nearly 3 million where factories and tanneries have closed.

Either it's Congress, BJP, SP or BSP, each political party has exploited the electorate of Uttar Pradesh over the last 20 years when the Arun Nehru-Rajiv Gandhi combine brought Ayodhya to the centre stage and the politics of caste and religions swept all real issues aside.