In many ways it is just like any other Lucknow winter day. Sun has come up and my mother is watching her pickles dry on the roof. Our neighbor, Shukla-ji’s daughter has come for a lazy winter
afternoon conversation with my mother and is oiling her hair. I am struggling with unsolved papers from previous years’ JEE tests. This year’s JEE is going to be my first big test in the real world.
It all looks normal – even the muffled background loudspeaker blaring somewhere from Sadhwi Ritambhara’s famous “Baabar ki aulaad? cassette seems almost natural part of this. The cassette has been repeated so many times that I can now tell in advance where she will pause for effect, where she will raise the pitch and where she will go almost hysterical. Occasional chants of “jis hindu ka, khun na khaula, khun nahin woh paani hai? are nothing new to me. Neither are lectures from some other orators played one after the other, who forcefully argue that those who want a mosque have full liberty to go and build their mosques in Pakistan and Saudi Arab. I have heard this for 2-3 years by now and accepted it as normal. However old-timers insist that it is not normal – at least not for Lucknow. Not long after, they will start recollecting old tales of how Lucknow remained peaceful even in the days of partition. Everyone will finally and grimly agree that times have changed.
In the adjoining room my father, two cousins, my elder sister and her husband are engaged in heated debate. I know it is the same old topic. Will they or will they not?
My elder cousin is vehement:
“These kar-sevaks are gathering in thousands. If no action is taken by the government now, nothing else will be possible later.?
My sister has her own views:
“This is all politics. BJP may be able to get some votes from this, that’s all. Relations between Hindus and Muslims of Lucknow will remain the same.?
My cousin doesn’t agree:
“Relations have already changed and they have changed forever. Now, there is no going back.?
My father – a retired bureaucrat – continues to think in sarkari terms even after retirement:
“Raising a populist sentiment is one thing and acting on it is another. The police and the law enforcement agencies have no choice in this. They will have to go by the law.?
I remember it is the same argument he had when we were at our relatives’ place in Karachi a few months back. My relatives in Karachi had heard of Ayodhya and were wondering how Muslims of India surrounded by an overwhelming Hindu majority were able to resist the tide of such a massive movement for so long.
“It is not a question of resisting anything?, my father would reply. “It is a question of rule of law. We are not a banana republic. There is judiciary, the free press, the opposition, the law enforcement agencies. When it comes to the brass task, none of the mob tactics will work. One thing is certain that they cannot take it by force. There are constitutional guarantees in India that no government can take away.?
My relatives looked impressed and awed. “We have a long way to go in Pakistan?, they conceded in defeat.
My reverie is broken as I can hear some commotion down below at our door. It is our neighbors. They seem to be discussing something important with my father:
“Rizvi saahab. We can take responsibility for our own people. But what if someone comes from the outside? There may be reaction of Ayodhya here.?
Reaction?? I am puzzled. All I know is that thousands – perhaps lakhs – of kar-sevaks have gathered around an old dilapidated disputed mosque with the intention of pulling it down. If these kar-sevaks succeed in demolishing the structure, there could be “reaction�? against Muslims living in our locality! Why? I am struggling.
“You see, from the outside, your house is indistinguishable. It is the name plate….?
“But the names are in stone. Do you want me to break this wall and remove the stone?? my father sounds more hurt than angry.
“No, no. All we suggest is that you paint over the names and write something else on it…for your own safety.?
My jiju and cousins have also come outside. On top is the name of my late grandfather – Dr. Masood Rizvi. A medical doctor with Indian Army, he served in three wars and died couple of years back. It is time for the next generation to show their gratitude and this generation has given its verdict: name of a late war veteran is a nuisance to social harmony because his beliefs were different. His memory is too communal. It has to go.
“Think of some “neutral? name for your house and write over it?, suggests someone.
“Aman?, my father mumbles in defeated tones. “Aman means peace. What better name in these troubled times??
Others are not so sure. “Aman is too Urdu-ish. It sounds Muslim. Think of something else- something more neutral.?
My father is speechless. This is Lucknow! … birth place of Urdu; this is where during Ram Charit Maanas akhand-paaths, someone will invariably ask for – and be provided with – a copy of Ram Charit Maanas in Urdu script, since this is all he can read. This is where you could be surprised by a chaste Urdu diction from a tonga-wallah. But, no; “aman” is too-Urdu-is. It won’t do in Lucknow. When did these fault lines become so sharp?
My jiju suggests “Samandar? – the sea. Sea is neither Hindu nor Muslim. It is perfectly neutral. Or, is it? “Samandar is Urdu?, corrects someone. “In Hindi, it is Samudra.? My father now cannot take it any more. He has limits to his self-respect. “I think Samandar is OK. If it means trouble for us, let it be so.”
Private channels have now arrived in India, but they are in their infancy and their coverage is insipid. BBC is still the only reliable source and it is hardly coming with any comforting news. Number of kar-sevaks has now swelled into lakhs. On DD, the Prime Minister has warned that he would not allow anyone to take law in their hands. Advani has clarified that the purpose of this mobilization is only a show of strength of popular sentiments, nothing more. This sounds reassuring. But Uma Bharati has insisted that the gathering is there for the purpose of pulling down the mosque and so has Bal Thakerey. Then there are scores of unaffiliated outfits that do not know why they are there.
Total confusion!
Atal-ji has appealed to both the sides for showing restraint. Atal-ji is a statesman. He doesn’t take sides. It is an hour of crisis for India. Hindus and Muslims – both – will have to demonstrate restraint.
There is another news clip that Chief Minister Kalyan Singh has filed affidavit in court affirming that his government is taking all action to maintain status quo. My father is jubilant. “Raising populist sentiments is one thing, acting on them is quite different. We have judiciary, the free press, the opposition. We are not a banana republic. There are constitutional guarantees…?” I suddenly feel a surge of inexplicable pride. Yes! We are not a banana republic! Among the darkness of South East Asia’s dictatorships, we are the only nation built on secular and democratic principles…
The morning after is the big day. I hear that police bandobast is fool-proof. Center has taken strict action and an army division has been stationed to build confidence. There are reports that even RSS workers are requesting volunteers to return back peacefully! People elsewhere are glued to BBC. And then suddenly, I hear bursting of crackers in the air, then more and some more… followed by chants of “Jai Sri Ram”? and the gratuitous, “Pakistan Murdabad”? My father has switched off the radio set, gone to his study and locked the door from the inside.
My mother and sister come rushing from the kitchen, “Is the mosque broken?” I do not know, and frankly I do not care. All I know for sure is that something else has broken that was much more precious and sacred than any mosque or temple in India.
Amit you say:Sameen, you reach that conclusion based on one instance, one data point? That’s not very scientific nor sufficient. Surely there are many other factors that need to be looked at before deciding that a country and society is democratic or not, and comparing two of them, unless you are looking at it very superficially
I do get your point. But have you not seen the Turkish P.M. seemingly so helpless in front of his own military. It is very much like the case with civilian P.Ms. like Mr. Nawaz Sharif or Ms. Benazir Bhutto in recent times in Pakistan.
sameen, no I haven’t seen the Turkish PM. It’s possible that there are some parallels between Turkey & Pakistan’s situation, and it’s also possible that Turkish democracy is in name only, but there need to be more solid points to support that thesis convincingly.
Rafay Kashmiri,
Now that you have established your ancestory and you have also desclosed that you live in Europe somewhere. Earlier we were told that you were for some NGO and had access to lot of information.
Dont think people will trust you more and find you credible if you were unbiased and not so much aligned. Why would you not say anything about Kashmiri Pandits who were asked to leave their homes overnight. Who were told on loud speakers that they did not belong there and they will be killed if they did not leave. So millions of them left overnight. Lot of them lived for years in worst possible refugee camps in Jammu (they continue to do so) and rest of them went to their relatives in rest of India. Kashmiri Pandits were the original people of Kashmir they had every right to belong there.
One such family is the family of actor Sanjay Suri who travelled overnight to Jammu with their father’s deadbody who was earlier killed by terrorists. (ref his website).
I dont expect any non-Indian looking at India with same love what Indians have for their country. Some criticism of India coming from those who are looking from outside is also good.
I dont mind your comments at all. I think you are speaking your mind but when you talk on behalf of Kashmiris people will respect you more if you did not speak only about Muslims. When you talk about injustices to Kashmiri Muslims alone you somehow lose credibility.
The problem is with the culture of our country. We dont know how to wipe of tears from each other’s eyes. If that is done a lot of problems get solved.
Muslims never say a word about Kashmiri Pandit exodus and Hindu’s keep quite about security forces excesses.
Suresh Sharma,
You see its good to know one’s ancestory, you do know, how deep your
roots are when engaging in social and civil activities. Helps you a lot
understanding Human nature !
2nd Para:
I am obliged to stay unbiased, atleast maximum possible, otherwise we could’nt have worked with Bosniacs-Serbs, Tutsi-Hutos, Palestinians- Israelis, Kenyan
tragedy today. You have to make the world see with her eyes what is
going on and have the courage to take “just” position on identifying the
‘ agressors ‘ and the ‘agressed ” . I will do my utmost to handle the same
way between Kashmiris and Indian Army, between Alqaidah and USA,
and between Talibans and Pakistani politicians, you have to draw a line and
say what the diplomates don’t have the courage to say. This is my 10 cents.
Last two paras :
The info is contested, Many Hindus and Pandits are living in Kashmir.
But, many, politically motivated so called Pundits, were recruited to ” settle” in Kashmir Valley in support ‘for the Military presence of ’700.000′ Indian soldiers in Kashmir, according to the UNO Refugees Commission, who checked in priority their identities, the outcome was deliberately held confidential .
Since I prefer staying independant of all “diplomatic officialities” some times
UNO is very very ” lethargic” in case of NGOs
I must remind you that working with Associations is not the same as working for UNO, we all have problems with UNO for not releasing sufficient infos required for many ‘Independant’ NGOs on subjects like this. As occurant
aspect they were ” simply expelled ” thus making such headlines, impressing the world against Kashmiri freedom militants.
You can not deny the historical fact that Kashmir Valley was and is always very strong majority muslim since Gorkha, British, Sikh raj.
Ladakh is another thing, its beyond dispute that the Buddhists, hindus have
their population present there, but I would strongly doubt the contrary for
The Valley.
And when I talk about Kashmir I am sure, no one can, for one second, imagine
that only muslims exist in that region.
But the fact is, that the “massacres” are only perpetrated ON muslims of and
around the Valley of Kashmir, and that is not at all ignorable.
P.S
( In case 700.000 contested, say approx.)
Rafay Kashmiri,
After reading your comments and response to my comments I am sure of at least one thing.
I will not discuss anything with you in future.
Amit
There is an article I am posting here. That reflects upon the position/strength of the Turkish government vis a vis their military.I hope it will make things more clear to you. Good reading.
Turkish military shuns head-scarf debateISTANBUL (AP) – Turkey’s military has a tradition of interfering in politics, even staging several coups in past decades. But on Wednesday, the chief of the secular armed forces refrained from direct comment on one of his country’s most explosive debates: the Islamic head scarf. Parliament is considering a bill that would lift a ban on female students wearing head scarves at universities, reflecting a conflict between the Islamic-oriented government and military-backed opponents who view the religious attire as a threat to Turkey’s secular traditions. As the debate among lawmakers has intensified in recent days, many Turks wondered whether the military would get involved in a replay of a political crisis last year that derailed the first presidential candidacy of Abdullah Gul, an observant Muslim. For now, however, Turkey’s top general is staying out of the fray even though the military has periodically spoken up against what it views as official moves to undermine secular principles introduced by the national founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. “”I know why you are here. You want to know what the military thinks on the headscarf issue,”" Gen. Yasar Buyukanit said to a crush of live broadcast crews that turned up at military headquarters in Ankara, the capital, for his meeting with the Macedonian defense minister. “”There’s no one in all levels of the Turkish society who doesn’t know what the military’s views are,”" Buyukanit said. “”To say anything would be nothing more than stating the obvious. That is why I don’t want to say anything.”" The Turkish military rarely elaborates on its decision-making process, and analysts were left to speculate whether Buyukanit’s comments signaled a preference to sit out the head scarf debate, or augured a robust intervention, with either public statements or behind-the-scenes lobbying. “”He appears as if he is not stressing the issue, but it means that the military is still resolutely against the head scarf issue,”" said Rusen Cakir, a political analyst with NTV television. “”I believe the military will make its opinion more clear in communications with state institutions in the coming days.”" The military showed no such restraint last year, when it jumped into an acrimonious dispute over Gul’s candidacy, issuing a dire warning that secularism was at stake. But the tactic backfired when the government won a landslide in general elections and Gul, whose wife wears a head scarf, became president on a re-try. The tumultuous year appeared to signal the diminishing political influence of the military in a country with an emboldened class of devout Muslims and aspirations to join the European Union, which says Turkey must do more to keep army generals out of politics. Since then, tension between the military and the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has eased, and the two have cooperated in the fight against Kurdish rebels based in Iraq. But the military still resembles a parallel institution as much as an apolitical instrument of its civilian leaders. “”The chief of staff’s views are his own views,”" Burhan Kuzu, a ruling party legislator and head of the parliamentary constitutional committee, said after Buyukanit’s news conference. The committee is scheduled to discuss the head scarf bill on Friday, and constitutional amendments that would include the lifting of the ban will be debated in parliament next week. Under the new proposal, female students would be allowed to wear head scarves at universities as long as they tie them under the chin, leaving their faces more exposed. The attire, which is accepted in barracks and military guest houses and is not necessarily associated with Islam, appears to be aimed at appeasing secularists who view another, tightly-wound version of the head scarf as a direct challenge to the secular state. However, the nuance was unlikely to win over many government opponents. The government, which characterizes the debate as a freedom of expression issue and says it will uphold secular ideals, has enough support from lawmakers to get the ban lifted. But an opposition party has vowed to challenge the measure in the pro-secular constitutional court if it is passed.
Changing trends,
@ The history teaches us that WW 1 & 2 militarys had to do the
dirty job, executions, ethnic cleansing, final solutions & Genocide,
after Goolag by communists, Viet-Nam etc, the last job militarys did was in Kashimir (still today), East Pakistan action (under Bhutto and Yahya) , Chechnia by USSR, Yugoslavia, alone in Srebrinica, 11.000 muslim males were seperated and executed.
Currently, in Iraq and Afghanistan by USA, but what is astonishing is now the
same job is done by civil militant thugs of a political party, e.g. in Rwanda,
Huto-tutsi and in India, the muslim victims in thousands.
P.B.
All these atrocities can be confirmed by UNO Human Rights, and Refugees
High Commisssion, Amnesty International, International Human Rights Watch,
and many other NGOs active in different countries.
@Chirag, Sudie, Mahesh S, MaheshT, Arya, Girish
Can you, dear commentators, produce one single official
document pertaining to your claims that Hindus in Pakistan have
been victim of ethnic cleansing, genocide, massacres or mistreatment ? or
their temples destroyed, demolished or intentionally burned ?
Documents must be cofirmed report from UNO and any of her subsidiaries
or any recognized organisation authentic documents.
looking forward to hear from your goodselves.
Rafay
You have not got the point as yet.You see, even if what they allege about Pakistan is correct it does not give Hindu terror organisations like V.H.P./Shiv Sena/Bajrang Dal etc. license to kill Muslims in India. Pakistan is being used to corner Indian Muslims whenever they try to open their mouths. You must have heard all about “Miyan Mushsharaf” taunts of Narendra Modi.
Rafay, I challange you to start a discussion on any topic ranging from ‘Exinction of dinosaurs’ to ‘Sarkozy’s marriage’ on this blog and see how Pakistan butts in. Hence you should not take things to heart.
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