JAMAAT-E-ISLAMI HIND
JAMAAT-E-ISLAMI HIND
|
|
The social classes
in the Muslim community, elitist character of the Indian politics and the domination in the political arena have given
birth to a number of Muslim political parties
and groups. These organizations are partly religious
and partly political.
For them religion is the source of their ideology
and political program. It is the biggest
integral element of the so- called identity of the community.
After Independence
the Muslims were left with two Alternatives -quasi-secular
approach of Maulnna Azad, and the communal approach
of the fundamentalists. Maulana Azad and others
were exhorting the members of their community to avoid communalism and
Join the national political parties.
They also believed
that the political and economic unity
shall bring the
various communities together and help
in establishing a secular and democratic
society, ensuring necessary cultural and religious freedom to all the minority
groups. The burden of the
argument was that the Muslims might have separate cultural and social
organizations
but in the
political field their identity should be merged with the larger national identity.
M. Shakir points out that, this leadership had its limitations and weaknesses
because at 'the mass level it could not bridge the gulf between fundamentalism and secular· political attitudes. It had no courage to implement elementary reforms
in the
religious and social system of
the community. Therefore
·the increasingly alienation of the leaders with
the people
made them quite ineffective.
The fundamentalists took the maximum advantage of the limitations of the so-called
"nationalist" Muslim leadership.
A question may be asked
here, what are the prospects
of any Muslim party/group,
based on religion in a predominantly non Muslim society?
The arguments of the fundamentalists are
quiet interesting, 'notwithstanding the communal aggressiveness of the Hindus, India has always been a
religious, moral and spiritual country. We the ·people of India have
urge for spiritualism and truth.
Even after the technological and
scientific developments,
we are not devoid of religiosity and
spiritualism. There has been a legacy
of preaching Islam in this country right from the early days of
Islam. The Muslim traders, and the
religious leers like Khwaja
Moinuddin Chisti, have been converting thousands
of the Hindus to
Islam. It is possible even today. It is also argued that the
people of this country have chosen a
democratic path. Democracy
and democratic path are conducive to a drastic change, a revolution, without shedding blood and without
violence. Now a revolution is possible with the
change of outlook and change of opinion.
It means that Islamic
movement has a bright ·future in India.
There are number of Muslim
political parties and groups, some of them operate
at the regional level and some on the national level.
Here in this paper we deal with the Jamaat-e-Islami which is a staunch fundamentalist group and operates at the national level.
we shall make an attempt to cover the beginning and the objectives of the Jamaat, the structure of Jamaat, the Jamaat and secularism and the Jamaat and politics.
The Beginning and the Objective of the Jamaat:
|
|
Western notion of democracy, fascist regimentation and Turkey's deviation from Islam were not satisfactory conditions at all. The only ideal state is the Islamic theocracy. Maudoodi opposed the Indian National Congress and the Musim Leagues policies.
In Maudoodi's view the programs of both the Muslim league and the Indian National Congress represented
a non-Islamic emphasis on Nationalism and were counter to Islam. Nationalism, whether that proposed by the league or the congress
was a selfish principle that was prohibited by Islam and the people
who espoused the nationalist cause were leading Muslims away from the legitimate goal of a truly Islamic society based on universal
principles. As a whole he did not agree with the methods and objectives of the national movement.
But after the partition of the country, Maudoodi., moved to Pakistan and indulged in worst kind of opportunism in the public life of the country, all in the name of Quran and Hadith.
A separate Jamaat-e-
Islami Hind was established in April 1948 with Maulana Abul Lais Islahi as its Ameer (Chief).
However independence and partition of the country did not bring about any change in the
policy and character o f Jamaat.
What
is the root cause of the ills
of the contemporary society? According to the Jamaat, it is materialism and this worldliness.
The present social structure is without any ethical foundations. What is needed is a religious revolution and an awakening of the religious consciousness of the people such a revolution
can be brought about by the righteous Muslims who constitute the Kahir-e-ummat (the chosen- virtuous among the people).They are a symbol of goodness and are blessed
with divine light. The Muslims, therefore, are
not a community or a minority or a
geographical entity but by superseding them constitute into a
party-the party of God, Hizbullah.
According to Jamaat a society based on materialism
produce a civilization which forcibly separates religion from the state and
society. In the non-Western world it has created a slavish mentality. The West and
Western civilization
have crated
the false gods of nationalism and democracy. Nationalism is nothing but national
selfishness. It treats man as not as part of humanity but as a member of particular country set against other countries. Maudoodi
held that freedom struggle which motivated by the philosophy of nationalism was not righteous. Because
the Indian National Congress was political1y- Indian, ideologically communist and culturally Western. Since the congress was manned by the revivalists and communists both are dangerous to Islam and the Muslims.
Democracy is undesirable because it considers people as sovereign,
while as Islam says God alone can be sovereign. Also it believes in
the existence of different political
parties. Islamic polity can permit only
one party. Besides adult franchise and political
participation in democracy are prohibited by religion. In the same way socialism was opposed
to Islam as it abolishes property and it is atheistic.
Against
this background of the philosophy of the Jamaat le us analyze its role in Indian politics.
The Jamaat in India has to
function
in a different social and political set up. In Pakistan, the Muslims
are in majority
whereas in India they are in minority.
India, after independence
did not become a Hindu. Country but was declared
to be secular one. The Indian constitution provided for
democracy with adult franchise and equal rights for all. This should
have been unpalatable
to Jamaat. What Maudoodi said before the court of inquiry in Pakistan is quiet relevant
here. The question was, if we
have our idea of
Islamic Government herein Pakistan, will you permit Hindus to have their constitution
on the basis of
their own religion?
Answer, certainly, I should have no objection,· even
if
the Muslims in
India are treated in that form of Government
as Shudras and malechhas
and
Manu's laws are applied to them depriving them of all shares in the Government and the rights of citizen. I n fact
such a state of affairs already exists in India.
The question, what will be the duty of the Muslims in India in
case of war between India and Pakistan?
Answer, Their duty is obvious, and that
is not to
fight against Pakistan, or to do anything injurious to the safety of Pakistan.
The Structure of the Jamaat
The Jamaat is a
rigidly organized and well
disciplined party. Though it is essentially composed of the middleclass, lately it has made a successful
bid to gain the support of all the sections of the Muslims. This is particularly true among the
students and the womenfolk. Its influence should not be
judged by its meager membership. In1967 it claimed to 1360 members, in1974 the number rose to 2064,
in1980 it has reached the figure of 2833, and at present they have 5,683 members. The Jamaat disclaims large membership. In fact the Jamaat has a graded
hierarchy of the membership
structure. They are adherents
(arkan),supporters (Maweneen),
those who agree (muttafaqeen)
and those who are influenced
(muttasinn). The strength of the muttafaqeen is 2232 and of the manawaneen is 46,272. The Jamaat has
23 regionl organization
centers in most of the states
including Andaman, in all the Jamaat has 436 local units.
|
-'
|
The Jamaat
has 648 libraries and 488 reading rooms. Throughout the country. It runs 45 nursery schools, 285 schools, 40j unior high schools and 26 colleges.(This current Data has been collected from the Jammat Branch office – “Dawat Ijitima”,
Hyderabad).. In addition
to this the Jamaat publishes a vast.literature pertaining to Islam
and Hadith,
not only in English and
Urdu but also in different regional languages. The Jamaat also
.have English weekly called the "Radiance" and Marathi weekly Called "Margadeep". The
president
is Maulana Abdul Aziz.·
The Jamaat and Secularism
(This is a questionable stand of Jamaat).
The Indian
situation, according to the Jamaat, is characterized by immorality,
dishonesty, corruption, inefficiency in short moral degeneration. It is because of
nationalism. The
duty of the Muslim is to discard the notion of nationalism.
They should not think in
terms of their national rights". They should
give up the idea of pressurizing the political parties because it will
be of no benefit to them.
The Jamaat believes that Muslims participation in the growth
of secularism is “treachery
to the Prophet". Islam cannot be separated from politics. Secularism is nothing but "irreligiousness". In one of-the statements the former chief of the Jamaat Maulana Abul Lais Islahi said, "we do not deny the value and worth of
some of the slogans of the
Mahasabha. For example, it is against secularism
and supports the incorporation of
the religious ethical values
in the political:- life of the
people." Similar
has been the attitudes of the Jamaat towards
the Arya Samaj and the R.S.S.During the emergency the
leaders of the Jamaat and the R.S.S. found that they could work together.
According
to Maulana Mohammad Yusuf
the then chief of the Jamaat "The physical proximity enabled them
to understand each other's point of view, what
was more,
it started the
normalization of relations between
different communities. This should be encouraged in order to improve the social
climate in the country."
Further the Maulana
admitted that "the role of R.S.S. in the past could not have been to the liking of the Muslims.
However the responsible leaders of RSS
are now adopting non-communal attitude. One does
not know what he really
meant because in the constitution of the Jamaat the non-communal nationalism
has no place.
But on the basis of the writings of the leaders of both the-:organizations it is not difficult to believe that the basis of unity between them was already there. Each
considered the other as
the authentic representative of its
community .Anti-secularism and anti-communalism
is common to both. Both favor the separate religio-political organizations of the different
communities. Both of them resort to violence for their religious stand, and
for opposing the communist movement in the country.
The Jamaat is
especially
concentrating its activities in the Kashmir
valley. It is said that when the
whole country protested the execution of Bhutto by the military regime of Pakistan,
the Jamaat-e-Islamic had the audacity to distribute sweets.
In the year 1990
when Advani's Rath Yatra began the Jamaat had intensified its
activities in the name of protecting
the mosque. Their activities are not confined to propaganda alone they
have started physical assault on
the innocent people of other communities the result was a bloodshed.
In December last year they organized an attack on the
Shiv Sena and other communal parties.
Some of their leaders using mosques,
instigated the people to kill, which according to them is justifiable
under their interpretation of Islam, but which
also consequently led to the ban on the Jamaat by the Government of India.
Now suddenly in the last
month Jamaat-e-Islami started anti-liquor agitation in Anantnag (Kashmir Valley) town which led
to the looting of shops of the minority community spoiling the slow progress of
the communal peace in the town. Everybody
knows that the Jamaat-e-Tulba student wing of the Jamaat-e-Islami was
behind the trouble.
The Jamaat also gone to the extent of organizing squads of their
toughs to launch physical attacks. Some
time they are even armed. To put it in a nutshell to the Jamaat the secularism
is nothing but an irreligiousness which is against Islam.
The Jamaat and Politics
In the political field Jamaat lays emphasis on
three principles to be followed by Indian
Muslims.
Solidarity of
the Muslims on the basis of Islam.
Withdrawal from the political activities
in the country.
A
separate political organization
of the Muslims.
First the Jamaat feels that the
solidarity based on Islam ··alone can be permanent and stable.
Its hall make the community strong
enough to fight the enemies of God
from within and from outside. Its hall constitute a force against the present system which denies he existence of
God and life after death.
It also means that
Muslims should not Join any other
organizations and parties because
its spells dis-organization and disaster.
Secondly, .according to Jamaat the Muslims should not participate
in the elections.
They should not cast their vote also.
It amounts to indulging in un-Islamic
activity. Not only the Elections but the entire
democratic system is an
imitation of the "Godless-West".
Non-participation in the election shall
ensure the maintenance of Islamic identity.
Maulana Abul Lais Islahi points
out many practical difficulties in the context
of India. They are "the Muslim candidates cannot
secure the votes of the Hindus,
unless . they seek the support
of other political parties. But this
is not possible because
every Indian believe .in the
one-nation theory".
Such an alliance shall
disable the Muslim representatives
to act as protectors of the legitimate interests of the whole Muslim community.
If one decides to follow the discipline of a political party, one ceases to
be the master of his own will.
It is also argued by the Jamaait that the Hindus
want to establish a state in keeping with the veda and Dharmshastras
and want to emerge as a
Hindu nation. Once the Muslims become the actual participants in the election politics of India, they may be
"irretrievably caught in the whirl of party politics and may not remain as mindful
of their religious duty towards their Country as they ought to be". It should be noted that in
the Seventies ,this stance of the Jamaat
underwent a change. In1962 it accepted the utility of
elections. It held that they (elections) are the best way to contact with public relations and Muslims by
such contact, can create on the affairs of the nation the impact they want to. So in1972 it decided to take part in the Panchayat elections as a first step for participating in the higher electoral bodies. In advising to participate and not to participate in the elections the Jamaat always has "Islamic" arguments to convince the Muslims.
Thirdly, the
Jamaat believes that the Muslims as a religious community and an important political entity should
have a separate
political organization. It has been working in this direction right from the early fifties but succeeded only in the sixties.
With the formation of the Majlis-e-Musawarat, the Jamaat got a great opportunity to provide religious orientation to a number of issues in Muslim
politics and operate as a
strong pressure group. The Jamaat acted with a
calculated strategy and it had the desired results.
The failure of the nationalist muslim leadership, the claim autonomous
status of the
Minority was also failure. Therefore, the policy of seeking "protection"
and "safeguards"
could not be very effective. So the Jamaat offered the alternatives that Muslims should
accept
and practice the .injunctions
of Islam, where lies their salvation. The Muslims were asked not to prefer the joint
organization of the different communities. One of the organs, the Radiance Weekly, of the Jamaat
wrote that "there . should be separate and strong organizations of the Hindus, the Muslins,
the Sikhs the Buddhists ,and others. None should try to wean away the members of another. Hindu Muslim
unity cannot beachieved by setting up joint organization of the two religious communities. Every religious community should have a separate political organization
and every issue
should be decided by the -
representatives of the communities by holding mutual
talks. "Not only this, the Jamaat advised the national secular parties not to approach the Muslim
masses directly. Those Muslims who belong to these parties are
not "the representatives of the Millat" (community). The Mushawarat was not a single organization
of the Muslims.
But the Jamaat leadership was quite enthusiastic about its formation and growth. The reasons appear
to be that it wanted to get broader mass base and to use Muslim consolidation as a counter with any political party like the Congress or Bharatiya Janata Party.
Summary
In theory we
have seen that the Jamaat is very
conservative, and anti-secularist but in practice the Jamaat betrays conservatism
and seeks political opportuniom.
The Islamic Idiom is only a mask,
Religion isbeing used in order to support reactionary politics, mention has already been made of the Jamaat's attitude
towards the Ary Samaj, R.S.S. and so on.
.Also we have seen throughout the paper a kind of
double standard and sudden shifts in its philosophy for example,
the Jamaat
and the demand for Bangla Desh. According to the
Jamnat, the demand was contrary to Islamic brotherhood and Muslim solidarity.
Further Muslims cannot be divided on the basis of language and region. But when the movement succeeded
the Jamaat advised the Bangla leaders to establish an Islamic rule in BanglaDesh.
The Jamaat's hold on
the Muslims should be viewed with
grave concern. It is giving birth
to a combination of Islamic
fundamentalism
and uncompromising hostility to secularism\democracy. It is promoting anti-historical consciousness and reactionary socio-political and economic outlook
in ·the Muslim country.
|
.
|
Comments
Post a Comment