July 19, 2004
The Police
Commissioner
Police
Commissioner’s Office
Mumbai
Dear Sir,
We are writing
to draw your urgent attention at the Mumbai daily, Urdu Times’
insidious attempts in the last two weeks to incite religious
hatred and instigate violence against the renowned lyricist Mr.
Javed Akhtar, President of ‘Muslims for Secular Democracy’ (MSD)
in particular and other office bearers and members of MSD in
general. The Urdu Times’ repeated incitement to communal
violence must be taken with all seriousness and urgency and we
urge that the police launch a criminal prosecution against the
editors, publisher, proprietors and columnists of the above
mentioned newspaper under Section 153 A and other relevant
sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Muslims for
Secular Democracy (MSD), a new all-India organisation committed
to the promotion and protection of secular democratic values was
launched in Mumbai on Gandhi Jayanti, October 2, 2003. The over
50 founding members of MSD included progressive-minded Muslim
men and women from Mumbai, Pune, Kolhapur, Jalgaon, Delhi,
Bhopal, Hyderabad, Allahabad, Kolkota.
The office
bearers of MSD are:
President:
Javed Akhtar (Mumbai): Urdu poet and lyricist;
Convenor:
Gulam Mohd. Peshimam, (Mumbai): Businessman,
educationist;
Vice-President:
Hasan Kamal, (Mumbai): Former editor, Urdu Blitz,
columnist and lyricist,
Vice-President:
Sajid Rashid, (Mumbai): editor, Hindi eveninger,
Hamara Mahanagar and chairman, Maharashtra State Urdu
Academy.
Organising
Secretary:
Advocate SMA Kazmi (Allahabad):
chief standing council, Government of UP.
General
Secretary:
Javed Anand (Mumbai); co-editor, Communalism Combat.
MSD’s launch
received very favourable coverage in the national media. In
December 2003 and January 2004, MSD’s office bearers were
invited to Delhi, Aligarh, Kanpur, Allahabad and Lucknow. In
each of these places they addressed large public meetings
attended by Muslims with different socio-economic and
educational backgrounds.
At the request
of MSD’s office-bearers, special efforts were made by the
organisers of the meetings to invite Muslim religious leaders
and others who may differ with some of the principles and
perspectives that MSD stood for.
This was done
with a view to promote a genuine culture of dialogue, discussion
and debate among people with differing points of view. In each
of the city’s visited, talks by MSD office-bearers were followed
by question answer sessions.
MSD’s
office-bearers were gratified with the enthusiasm with which
they and their perspectives were received by the overwhelming
majority of Muslims in every city they visited. MSD is currently
in the process of opening chapters in the cities visited and
finalising dates for visiting other cities in Maharashtra, UP
and elsewhere in India from where they have received
invitations.
Needless to
say, not all Muslims agree with MSD’s secular-democratic
perspective, progressive outlook, aims and objects. Urdu
Times, published from Mumbai has been highly critical of MSD
since its inception. Committed as it is to fundamental rights,
freedom of conscience and a free press, members of MSD had no
problems with criticism per se. But MSD is now compelled
to demand the launching of a criminal prosecution against the
daily since in the last week or so, in blatant disregard of all
norms of journalistic ethics and responsible journalism, it has
intensified its campaign of character assassination and slander,
in its highly irresponsible attempt to spread hatred and incite
violence against the MSD, its members and office-bearers by
projecting them as part of an “international conspiracy against
Muslims by the enemies of Islam”.
To illustrate
our point, we reproduce below, translated in English, excerpts
from some of the ‘news reports’ and signed articles published in
Urdu Times in the last week or so:
Urdu Times,
July 5, 2004, Page 5:
Headline:
‘Javed Akhtar should become a Muslim
first’
Strapline:
‘Communists have no right to give their opinions on Muslim
Personal Law, say the Ulema’
MUMBAI: “Top Ulema and muftis who assembled at a meeting
specially convened in the city have strongly condemned poet and
lyricist, Javed Akhtar for his statements against the Muslim
Personal Law Board and triple talaq (Talaq Salasa)…
The assembled ulema were of the unanimous view that if a
husband gives talaq to his view three times at one go,
the wife stands divorced….
“From
the statements of Javed Akhtar at the programme organised by MSD
on the issue of triple talaq (MSD had organised a
press conference in Mumbai on July 2, on the eve of the Muslim
Personal Law Board’s scheduled meeting on July 4 to reiterate
its demand to end the inhuman and anti-women practice of triple
talaq), it is clear that each word uttered by him is an
insult to the shariah. From this it is also clear how
alien such a person is from faith and the shariah. We
request Javed Saheb to stay within the limits and confine
himself to his profession. Do not ridicule the shariah
with false statements. Javed Saheb, the day is not far when you
too will be counted amongst infamous blasphemers such as Salman
Rushdie and Taslima Nasreen…
“Its better for you that you follow the shariah. This is
not the first time, earlier too you have made statements that
are against the shariah. The entire community is keeping
a watch on you. Stay in your senses. Once the community decides
to muakhezah (dictionary meaning: retaliating, calling to
severe account, impeachment, amends) you will find it difficult
to hide yourself. At the same time, we appeal to all Muslims to
totally ignore all such statements and writings that are against
the shariah. Besides, you should retort and retaliate
against those who make such statements and impose a complete
boycott against them. Further, we appeal to the respected muftis
and institutions of Islamic jurisprudence in the country to
declare what the shariah demands against people who
openly ridicule the dictates of shariah who describe a
practice in accordance with shariah as “inhuman” and
‘anti-Quran’ and who changes and reforms in the shariah”.
Urdu Times,
July 11, 2004, Page 3:
Headline:
‘Every new construction demands a
complete destruction of the existing’
By:
Alam Naqvi
“However much the munafiqeen (dictionary meaning:
hypocrites, infidels, atheists, despoilers) try, supporters of
Zionism, the Sangh Parivar and America, be it journalists like
Muzaffar Hussain and Sultan Shaheen, or organisations like the
MSD, that are to be found in every part of the globe inhabited
by Muslims, can do harm to Islam, a religion that accords with
human nature. Muslims for Secular Democracy was born after 9/11.
As such, be it India or the Islamic world, you will find
innumerable Muslim jamaats, organisations, institutions and
personalities who pretend to be Muslims but are in fact under
the influence of western (that is, Zionist), modern, secular,
democratic thought. As for the above named organisation (MSD,
Muslims for Secular Democracy), its basic aim itself is to
provide a platform for secular democracy, meaning an irreligious
democracy.
“The majority of MSD’s members are communists. But also to be
found in its ranks are traditionalists, modernists and
secularists. Also included in it are a large number of
opportunists who never miss an opportunity to be seen in the
company of genuine and true believers. Also in this organisation
are individuals who are as popular among the intellectuals (ulema)
as among the illiterates. The sangh parivar likes them as much
as America does. On the one hand, these people try to win Muslim
hearts by speaking out against atrocities on Muslims, on the
other they conspire to take Muslims closer to America.
“In my earlier columns, I have already named some of them, so it
is not necessary to identify them yet again. However, if there
is one word to aptly categorise this motley lot, that word is: ‘munafiqeen’
((dictionary meaning: hypocrites, infidels, atheists,
despoilers). From the reference that I had made of two American
reporters in my last column (July 4, 2004), it should not be
difficult to guess the objective behind the birth of MSD and who
its real benefactors are.
“Recently there was some good news, along with the bad, in the
newspapers that, as usual, was ignored. The good news was that
in the Ontario province of Canada, the government has initiated
a move for the formation of Islamic Courts (Darul Qaza).
The only reason why the Canadian authorities have granted this
concession to Muslims is because Jews there have the right to
deal with their family affairs according to the prescriptions of
the Talmud. But, just as in India, the initiative in opposing
the move to form Shariah courts has been taken by the
munafiqeen among Muslims, similarly in Canada too, the
battle cry against the formation of Islamic courts has been
launched not by Christians or Jews or heretics, but by the
munafiqeen among Muslims like the MSD”.
Urdu Times,
July 14, 2004, Page 3:
Heading:
Allah save us from these
munifiqeen
By
Basarat Shikoh
“By publishing a false news report, The Times of India
has, as usual, provided an opportunity to enemies of Islam to
ridicule its tenets. So-called progressive Muslims who in their
own personal lives do not even consider it necessary to perform
a nikah, who consider a nikah as unnecessary and
who are happy marrying non-Muslim women in a Registrar’s Court,
how would they understand the importance of nikah. Why
are they so concerned about Muslim women? Only to create
divisions in Muslim homes… Those who ridicule namaz, roza,
haj and zakat, those who do not pray even on Fridays,
how can they interfere in the personal laws of Muslims? MSD is
one such enemy of Islam."
In the above
articles, the word munafiqeen has been deliberately and
repeatedly used since in the mind of the ordinary Muslim, this
word alone conjures up images of “traitors”, “enemies of Islam”.
The Sunday, July 11, 2004 issue of Urdu Times has four
separate articles tarnishing the MSD and/or its president, Javed
Akhtar. We are including photocopies of all these articles along
with this letter.
The less said
about the ‘enemies of Islam’ canard against the MSD the better.
Suffice it to draw your attention to just a few points:
One,
MSD has no intention, or pretension, of being a religious
organisation. It is a forum committed to promoting secular
democratic values and to fighting religious intolerance from any
quarter. All those who agree with its aims and objects are
welcome to join it. The fact is that a large number of MSD’s
founder members and some of its office bearers are devout
Muslims and they in particular are deeply offended being
labelled as munafiq.
Two,
several of the office bearers and founder members of MSD
contribute regular columns for mass circulation newspapers
including those in the Urdu language. Even in recent weeks,
articles on the same triple talaq issue, written by some
of them, have been published in Urdu papers with a circulation
far greater than that of the Urdu Times. Evidently, MSD’s
views are unpalatable only to those who subscribe to
narrow-minded, sectarian and intolerant version of Islam that
the Urdu Times and its correspondents subscribe to.
Three,
three of the office bearers of Muslims for Secular Democracy are
on the Board of Directors of the Citizens for Justice and Peace,
an organisation whose legal battle to bring justice to the
victims of the Genocide in Gujarat (transfer of Best Bakery case
to Maharashtra, etc) is a matter of public knowledge.
Four,
Urdu Times and its columnists have been castigating the
MSD for demanding changes in Muslim Personal Law. Ironically, an
edit page article written by Syed Ali and published on the edit
page of the same Urdu Times on July 17, 2004, under the heading,
“‘Kanpur Declaration’ of the Muslim Personal Law Board” reports:
“It was resolved at the Kanpur meeting that: (1) The Muslim
community must be made aware about the need for reform in the
wrongful practice of triple talaq and must be educated
and prepared for the proper way of talaq!”
Sir, to
reiterate, Muslims for Secular Democracy (MSD) upholds the
principle of democratic dissent and press freedom. But as a
senior police officer, you will know more than anyone else that
the Constitution of India does not permit anyone to preach
hatred and incite violence against any group of citizens. It is
apparent from even a cursory reading of the news reports and
articles published in the Urdu Times and portions of
which have been translated and quoted above, that they are
nothing but an incitement to hatred and instigation of violence
against Javed Akhtar in particular and other office bearers and
members of MSD in general.
For the
Urdu Times to resort to such objectionable writing is not
surprising. In the year, 1996, this paper had received strong
censure from the Press Council of India for some of its
editorial content following the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
Here, for example, was what an editorial in the January 22, 1994
edition of the Urdu Times wrote about the devastating
earthquake that claimed the lives and property of thousands of
people from Latur and Osmanabad districts in the previous year
under the heading, ‘Donors of silver bricks for the Ram temple
rendered homeless’:
“Delays there may be, but Allah’s ways are always just… We
Muslims are of the firm conviction that Allah’s curse is sure to
fall on those who have made life miserable for Indian Muslims.
Latur and Osmanabad are districts from where many villagers had
sent a number of kar sevaks to Ayodhya. They participated
in the demolition of the Babri Masjid on December 6. And the
ones who gave them financial support were living in luxury in
Los Angeles… When the VHP conducted its Ram Shilanyas
movement, the traders from Los Angeles donated silver bricks for
the temple construction… Praise be to Allah Almighty who has
reduced to dust those who committed sacrilege on the sacred soil
of the Babri Masjid”.
Given its
highly communal track record, we are not in the least surprised
at the Urdu Times’ and many of its columnists’
deep-rooted hostility to the very idea of an organisation like
the MSD which is uncompromisingly committed to, among other
things, Rule of Law and Gender Justice.
Sir, the
issues at stake here concern not just Muslims for Secular
Democracy and its office bearers and members. The self-appointed
thought police have imposed silent compliance on the part of
peace loving citizens with increasing frequency in our country
in recent years. Which is why representatives of organisations
other than the MSD have decided to add their signatures to this
complaint in support of MSD’s demand for the criminal
prosecution of the editors, publisher, proprietors and the
columnists concerned of the Urdu Times.
In
anticipation of urgent action on your part.
Yours
sincerely,
Javed
Anand
General
Secretary, Muslims for Secular
Democracy
Teesta Setalvad
Secretary,
Citizens for Justice and Peace.
Shakeel Ahmed
General
Secretary, Nirbhay Bano Andolan
Nikhil Wagle
Editor,
Apla Mahanagar and trustee, Media
for People
Dr.
Kumar Saptarshi
President,
Yuva Kranti Dal, Pune
Vijay
Tendulkar,
Playwright
Mahesh Bhatt,
Film maker
Encl: 1.
Photocopies of the articles in the Urdu Times.
2.
Declaration of Muslims for Secular Democracy.