World Largest Democracy and Discriminatory Policy Against Muslims

On Sunday (March 1, 2020), a number of Hindu fanatics took on Muslim demonstrators in the North Eastern part of the Indian capital, New Delhi. At the attack, 50 Muslims were killed and 400 others were wounded. Moreover, two mosques, houses and shops of Muslim were set on fire and all Muslim residents in the area have fled their homes as a result of fear from Hindus assailants.

Muslim’s protests had instigated approximately three months ago, following the amendment of the Indian Citizenship Law. According to the law, all non-Hindu minorities can have Indian citizenship, but Muslims are cruelly exempted from this. Muslims regard this as a violation of the Constitution of India and outright discrimination against them. The immoderations and violence against Muslims in India has been more likely since the BJP came to power. Bloody Sunday events are one example of this. The Indian police are also accused of collaborating with fanatical Hindus on the day of the incident. This analysis seeks to shed light on the different dimensions of this matter.

Concretive Role of Muslims in Indian History

India, the land of thousands of religions and the most democratic country in the world, is one of the most spectacular regions of the globe which is usually called seventy-two nations. The diversity of religions, faiths, ethnicities and cultures has made this country unique in the world.

Indian religions have deep historical roots that contemporary Indians have them in mind. South Asian old culture has at least 4500 years of history, which primary transmitted to India as religious texts. The artistic heritage as well as the logical and intellectual participation owed most to the religious thought of this land. Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Buddhism, Christianity and Sikhism are the main religions in India.

India is a very religious country. Indians can easily accept different religions. In fact, Indians live side by side with tolerance and forbearance because they are pluralistic, and therefore believe in polytheism.

Hinduism is the religion of this country and 80% of the people in India follow it. Besides Hindus, Muslims are the dominant religious group that plays a complementary role in Indian society.

India is comprised of 200 Million Muslims which officially constitutes (12.1%) and actually roughly 20 percent of the entire populations. Muslims ruled India for 800 years, and the Indians, despite their different religions and cultures, enjoyed security, justice, and equality at that era and India became a symbol of wealth, commerce, civilization and science at the times.

Indian historian Kishuri Saran Lal, a Hindu, says:

The difference between the Islamic occupation and the British occupation was as the one between Heaven and Hell. India had become the richest land in the world when Muslims saw India’s progress in science, construction, and commerce, but the British focused on nothing except the plunder of Indian resources and enslaved the nation and killed millions who were involved in wars against the invader Great Britain.

In India, Muslims are not allowed to be politically active and have not got a dense population that is in a particular area (except Kashmir whose case is completely different); but in other parts of India Muslims live with Hindus. Meaning that they are not concentrated on a particular city or region, state, or place. They don’t have much power because of this problem. A Muslim who wants to work must be a member of one of India’s most influential parties, such as Congress or the BJP. So they usually operate within the framework of these parties. Even the Jamaat’e Islami has nothing to say politically.

Current Situation of Muslims in India

After the partition of Pakistan and Bangladesh from India, which led to many political and social conflicts, the Muslims were weakened on charges of trying to divide India, and this social group, which had become an accusative religious minority, became exposed to insecurity.

Jawaharlal Nehru, the founder of New India and his party at the time, rushed to the aid of Muslims to absolve them of the charges. Since then, this tradition has been established among Muslims to regard the Congress Party as their supporter and friend. But Muslims in recent years have realized their mistake and have found that both parties have only sought for their votes.

After the demolition of the historic Babri Masjid at the hands of extremist Hindus and the disregard for Hindu parties, Hindu Muslims realized the essence of Hindu parties. India’s Muslims have played a major role in shaping the country’s vibrant civilization for centuries, and a glorious period in its history has now become a minority whose role and destiny have been subjected to complex political games. In recent years, there has been a calculated effort to marginalize the Muslim community and to diminish its importance every day. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has consistently supported Indian policy for Hindus by intensifying propaganda against Muslims as the country’s largest minority since taking power in the last three years.

In a report describing the situation of Muslims, the South Morning Herald newspaper wrote: Now Indian politicians are clearly saying that there is no room for Muslims in India and that millions of Indian Muslims should be expelled.

Even after the parliamentary elections in 2014, some members of the BJP wanted to expel a large number of Bengali-speaking Muslims from North Eastern India. Ruling party leaders believe that Muslims are not actually citizens of India but are intruders who have been forced into India from neighboring Bangladesh.

A number of local media have stresses that the current Modi government of India’s Prime Minister should expel millions of people before the election next year.

A Declining Democracy

The International Committee on Religious Liberty recently said in a report that religious freedom in India has been declining in 2017 as nationalist Hindu groups continue harassment and violence against non-Hindu groups.

The victims of these acts include Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists as well as Hindu Dalits. These groups face challenges such as acts of violence or intimidation, loss of political power, increased feelings of deception and strangeness, the US Committee on Religious Liberty added. In 2017, conditions for freedom of religion in India has continued to decline.

Former Indian Interior Minister Amit Shah had once said: “We will continue on the path of America and Israel. And, the next move is to change the names of Islamic places, which have been put on display by Muslims. The ruling party leaders pick Indian names for Agra City in Uttar Pradesj, where the Taj Mahal is located. They also want to change the name of Ahmadabad in Gujarat and the city of Dadullah. Critics say removing Islamic names is a way of disabling Indian Muslims and refusing to give them a share of Indian history and glorious past.

India’s Muslims believe the BJP’s extremist government is seeking to put pressure on Muslims with the intent to have them emigrated. More than 200 people were injured and more than 50 were killed in clashes over the past week. Hindu extremists fear the rapid spread of Islam in India; The number of Muslims in the country has increased by about 3.5%, according to statistics from 2010-2015, despite the government’s restrictions showing the growth of two Islamic religions. The burning of Muslim sites, the expulsion of Muslims and the recent rejection of Muslim citizenship that have been resident in the eastern part of India for years, signifies the inherent and longstanding hostility of Hindu extremists against Muslims residing in the Indian subcontinent.

It is very disastrous that despite their vivid history, there is no place for Islam and Muslims in a land where its leaders advocate democracy and freedom of expression and faith.