RSS chief doesn't know, Indian Muslims respect Lord Rama, Lord Krishna and all major figures of Hinduism for ages

Now, RSS Chief Sudarshan has asked Muslims to give respect to Krishna and treat him as a paighambars [one among the messengers of God].

This is a strange wish. Firstly, all people must follow own religion and also respect others' religions.

No one should disrespect other religions and faiths. In fact, Islam teaches Muslims to never put down the holy figures of other religions.

I feel you need to know more about the culture of this country, which is too vast.

Any Hindu or Muslim should follow own religion and there is no need to interfere in others' faith.

Still, Muslims always treat Rama and Krishna respectfully. As a child my father always used to chide me if I said Krishna or Rama.

He always asked me to say Krishna Ji and Ramchandra Ji. Unlike just Rama or Krishna as many of my Hindu friends used to say.

This concept of 'waza-daari' and the mutual respect of culture was part of Oudh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and all over Northern India including Bengal.

KS Sudarshan may not be aware of it as he hails from a different region. It is not just cultural reason or because we are living in India among Hindus, but also as per our religious beliefs, our neighbours and other faiths' religious figures are not to be disrespected.

The Holy Quran says that Allah sent messengers to all lands, to all people and amongst all religions. How is it possible that  he didn't send them to India? Does RSS have an idea about the culture that existed for centuries in India.

In fact, Muslim poets used to write poetry praising Krishnaji and Hindus wrote 'na'at' in praise of Prophet Muhammad. This was not for sake of any social responsibility or show off. But for one's inner self, beliefs and the true feeling of respect towards the great and reverential figures. 

The right-wing fellows would never appreciate this because I dout they read Hasrat Mohani's verses or Mohsin Kakorvi's 'Simt kashi chala jaanib-e-mathura baadal...' which are in Urdu.

In India, many ordinary Hindus continue to observe Muharram despite the rise in anti-Muslim rhetoric. So what if you consider going to Dargah as a 'Muslim practice, Hindus continue to go to Sufi saints' graves, though even sections of Muslims now avoid going to mazaars. 

Hate never succeeds in real sense. The RSS has a huge cadre. They should try to reach out to Muslims. Why don't they go to Muslims, meet Muslims, increase the level of interaction with the minorities? Learn about Islam and Muslims with an open mind. 

This would be a real step towards integration. Those with right-wing allegiance-- Hindutva groups use harsh language for Islam. You talk about ghettoisation but ever raise voice about the fact that section of Jains and Gujarati Hindus [housing societies] stop Muslims from buying flat in their areas?

Ancient Indian arts of self-defence: Akhadas carry the age-old tradition

Raeen Muslim Akhada boys test their skills

Shams Ur Rehman Alavi

Many of you must have heard about 'baana', banethi, binwat [binnaut], khari gatka.

These are all traditional arts of self-defence. These days, it's not easy to find the experts, as Akhadas are losing popularity to the sophisticated Gyms.

Some may have even seen the skills of people--a hen pushed under a cot and a man standing on the cot moving the lathi so fast that the hen unable to find away to get out of any of the four sides of the cot.

It was because the hen felt that a cloth was wrapped all around the 'palang' from four sides. Such was the lightning fast movements at which he moved his lathi!

The poor hen would rush towards all sides but couldn't come out because of the speed at which lathi moved, on all four sides made it impossible for it to get out. Umpteen such martial arts like the one in which a coin was tied in a piece of cloth and even this 'weapon' turned lethal for the attackers have now become history.

Or the breathtaking display of fire where a man plays with balls filled with embers creating a brilliant spectacle at night. Unfortunately, lot of practices and demonstration of the skills stopped, in most of the places. Akhadas still exist. But mostly before Muharram, a few days' practice.

When the martial arts came to us from the West, everybody imitates them and classes are run to teach them but our native arts are all gone. In fact, the native arts brought Hindus and Muslims nearer. There was display of such skills on Muharram, Dussehra and other religious events.

In Akhadas, Hindu Ustaads often had Muslim disciples and vice versa. Due to the vows of using such arts only in defence and for saving the weak against strong, the exponents of these arts never misused their skills. Still these arts were discouraged after independence.

While the thugs of the political parties on the loony fringe who have no command over any traditional arts are allowed to carry the guns, trishuls and all sorts of weapons, the real pahalwans who used to spread harmony and displayed their skills thereby causing awareness about health and fitness were shunted to the periphery.

On Muharram, Milad-un-Nabi and Dussehra, the Hindu and Muslim akhadas all over India used to display their skills. It was such healthy competition. Today all this is lost, though there are exceptions. in a few cities.

Unfortunately we are such monkeys that one day these skills would be brought to us in the name of Samurai by Westerns and we will all rush to learn them. Right now, it's Gym and walk, that's enough for the health-conscious!

[In picture: A scene of traditional Indian martial arts in India. Akhadas perform during Muharram and Milad Un Nabi processions]

Man who changed Indian politics forever dies: Shah Bano's husband

Shah Bano

Mohammad Ahmad Khan, the husband of the legendary Shahbano died in Indore this week. Khan was 94.

Khan, a lawyer, had given divorce to his 62-year-old wife Shah Bano in 1978 after she had given birth to five children from him.

Shahbano went to the court seeking maintenance and fought up to the Supreme Court that also ruled in her favour. But the turbulent decade of 1980s brought Muslims on the streets.

It was in the backdrop of the Shilanyas and Hindus saw it as another minority appeasement when Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress brought an amendment and enacted the Muslim Women [Protection of Rights] Act.

From here, came the word 'appeasement' or 'tushtikaran'. The word was coined by right-wing to prove that in case of Muslims, even court's judgement is overturned, while Hindus don't get a fair deal despite being the majority community.

The Shahbano case saw the birth of the fiery Syed Shahabuddin and several other leaders. He made several irresponsible comments and gave suc speeches that angered Hindus. Already middle-class was getting lumpenised.

LK Advani seized the opportunity. The rise in communal feelings led to the resurgence of BJP that increased its number from 2 seats to 86 in Parliament. This later caused the demolition of Babri Masjid. The heat is felt till today. Shahbano case was a watershed.

She died a couple of years back in Indore, lonely with almost no media attention. Her husband died now. Their eldest son is a senior lawyer now.

Jawaharlal Nehru's tribal 'wife': Girl garlanded Prime Minister, regretted it all her life

Budhni was a tribal girl. She had been asked to garland Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to welcome him when he visited Purulia in West Bengal in 1959.

The Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) chose this 15-year-girl working as a labourer to welcome Nehru. But when she returned after welcoming him, the villagers treated her as outcast because as per their tribal custom she was married to Nehru.

It was because of the garland. Worse, she was considered 'wedded' to an outsider so she was to have no relations with them in future. What a cruel joke fate had played on her.

In a meeting of tribal elders it was decided that Budhni was Nehru's wife. She was evicted from village and not even offered a glass of water at any door.

It is really a sad story. For her, it was fate. She didn't do anything on her own but her life was thrown into turmoil just because of a single incident. Later in life, she started living with one, Sudhir Dutta, and their daughter was also not accepted by the tribal community.

But suddenly she was sacked by DVC for reasons that were never made public. In 1985 she went to Delhi and met the then PM Rajiv Gandhi who ordered her reinstatement. Her fate is not known thereafter.

[Source: Deccan Chronicle and Ambedkar.org]

UPDATE

Budhni is alive in the year 2012. After false news about her death was reported in English media, the Hindi newspapers located her. See her photograph and read the news AT THIS LINK.

Congress party's 'anti-Urdu' policies: BBC planning to launch Urdu TV channel

Once again I feel frustrated at the brazen opportunism of the Congress party.

For more than a decade all the major languages have television channels run by government except Urdu.

Several months back the government promise that it will start the DD Urdu channel. There is no channel in sight even now.

Meanwhile, Sahara group is all set to launch Urdu channel and now the BBC is also planning the same along with a Hindi channel.

This is the same Congress that came on pro-minority plank. It appointed a governor in UP that did his best to stall the establishment of Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar University at Rampur.

For decades it was in power in UP and systematically killed Urdu. This linguistic genocide is unprecedented in world history. Overnight Urdu medium was abolished in lakhs of schools and UP with 35 million Muslims remain the only state in India where there is a clause that does not allow running schools in any language other than Hindi and English.

This Congress party has a government in Delhi that gave Urdu the status of official language and what has happened. Another famous Urdu school in the walled city is on the brink of closure. No new schools are opening.

They sound pro-Muslims but are responsible for keeping Muslims backward, betrayin them, making them insecure with the veiled threat of BJP and think the Muslim vote is their birthright. Leaders like Gulam Nabi Azad, Salman Khurshid and Ahmad Patel who can't win Lok Sabha election  and don't speak the language of Indian Muslims or feel their pain and happiness are the Muslims faces of Congress.

UPDATE

This is an old article, written in 2006. A few years later the Doordarshan's Urdu channel was launched. Read a post about DD URDU on this blog.