DECEMBER 27

Inter-Religious Dialogue

In his book The Destiny of Indian Muslims, Dr. Syed Abid Hussain (1896-1978) pointed out that the revolution culminating in India after 1947 wrought certain basic changes in the social and political situation in India. But now that India is a democratic system, Indian Muslims are still living in the past dictatorial age. It is this backwardness of thought on their part which is the basic, underlying reason for all of their problems.

Prior to 1947 during the British period the Muslims were faced with a government which was not answerable to the public. It enjoyed the position of a supreme arbiter which was able to take any action whatsoever without taking the public’s approval into consideration. But now that India is a democracy, the present rulers have to take public opinion into account. Under such circumstances Muslims must now try to solve their problems through the people, instead of the rulers. Abid Hussain says: “But Muslims still labour under the impression that the solution to their problems is in the hands of the Government. To the Government alone they take their troubles and from it alone they expect a remedy.” (p. 295)

This review of the recent history of Indian Muslims is very apt. The movement launched in the name of Ayodhya’s Babri Masjid serves as the worst example of it. The way the incompetent Muslim leaders led this movement after 1986 amounted to adopting a path of confrontation vis-à-vis their Hindu counterparts on this issue. And Muslims, very naively indeed, believed that the government would come to their assistance, as it was its responsibility to do so, and that, in its capacity as supreme arbiter, the government would give its verdict in favour of Muslims.

But the event of December 6, 1992, revealed that this supposition was totally baseless. In his speech on August 15, 1992, the Prime Minister of India had proclaimed that he would not allow the demolition of the Babri Masjid. In December he despatched a 20-thousand strong police force to the border of Ayodhya, besides making a number of other official arrangements. But, in reality, what happened was what the public wanted. On December 6 the Kar Sevaks forced their entry into the Babri Masjid and demolished it. Afterwards they removed the debris in order to build a makeshift Ram Mandir on exactly the same spot. Furthermore, they managed to secure permission from the Court of Law to place idols of Ram Lalla in this new mandir in order to start darshan and puja.

This incident is a clear indication of the public’s supremacy over the government. It is a final proof of the fact that in this country it is the public which enjoys a superior position, and not the individuals who have been elected by the people to form ministries for a limited period of time. Now only a person totally bereft of sanity can believe that the central government, which could not save the historical structure of the Babri mosque from demolition, would be bold enough to demolish the newly erected makeshift mandir, remove the idols of Ram placed therein, and then rebuild a Babri Masjid on exactly the same site.

Most surprisingly indeed, even this incident, though it was as clear as daylight, could not puncture the unawareness of the incompetent Muslim leaders. As we learnt from the newspapers, on April

5, 1993, about twenty well-known members of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board arrived in New Delhi in order to draft a memorandum by consensus. This memorandum demanded that the government remove the present makeshift mandir of Ayodhya and the idols placed therein, and rebuild the Babri Masjid on the former site. Afterwards this delegation met Prime Minister, Mr. Narasimha Rao, to hand over the memorandum to him.

This is no doubt the worst example of anachronism. The greater lesson that Muslims should have learnt from the 6th December incident was to turn towards the Hindu Janata, that their efforts should all be directed to the Hindu Janata rather than to the rulers of Delhi. But how strange it is that the unwise Muslim leaders are still engaged in circumambulating Delhi.

Given the state of affairs, the Muslim Personal Law Board’s meeting with the Prime Minister to press the demand for rebuilding the mosque at the same site is incomprehensible. Only their supreme unawareness can account for it. They are still living and thinking in the India of fifty years ago. They have yet to grasp that India is at present being ruled by the Indian people and not by an absolute dictator.

Now it is high time that Muslims change their ways. Instead of looking up to the government or administration they should look up to the Hindu public. The Muslim leaders should meet the Hindu leaders. The Muslim people should develop contacts with the Hindu people. Opportunities for Hindu-Muslim meetings should be created at every level in order that misunderstandings against one another can be removed, mutual tensions eased and both communities can start living together harmoniously.