Achi news desk-
The already boiling communal pot has turned hotter in India. Ironically, the division along religious lines is “constitutional and judicial” in shades. Ever since the run-up to the 2024 parliamentary elections began building up two months ago, a series of court judgments and constitutional measures announced by the BJP-led central and state governments have ensured that the minority Muslim community would be pushed to the fringes, leading to polarization that would favor the ruling party.
Courts have allowed archaeological surveys to ‘discover’ relics of destroyed temples in prominent mosques. Some historic mosques and seminary compounds have been razed, even in the heart of the capital Delhi. The controversial Uniform Civil Code, which repeals Muslim personal laws, has been introduced in BJP-ruled Uttarakhand, and the central government plans to implement it at the national level. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has been implemented with a notification of its rules to grant citizenship to Hindus and others, except Muslims, who had sought asylum or crossed into India due to persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan .
The Supreme Court’s verdict on the minority status of the historic Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has been reserved and speculations that it could be pronounced anytime before or during the election.
Courts have allowed archaeological surveys to ‘discover’ relics of destroyed temples in prominent mosques. Some historic mosques and seminary compounds have been razed, even in the heart of the capital Delhi.
Do Madrasas ‘Unconstitutional’
The latest is the rendering of the UP Madrasa Board Education Act, 2004 as “unconstitutional” by the Allahabad High Court. The court, in its ruling on March 22, found that the Act “violated the secular values” of the state, and therefore endangered the future of more than 10,000. madrasasover 13 lakhs students and over 10,200 teachers and other staff with one stroke of “judicial bias.”
The UP government is led by BJP hardliner Yogi Adityanath, who, despite being the chief executive of the state, also runs the Gorakhnath Temple from Gorakhpur city as its chief priest. Interestingly, it is found that a CM is the head priest of a prominent temple and attends office in religiously inspired attire as is appropriate, but madrasas endowment of education to underprivileged Muslim students according to rules set by the state education policy has been declared “communal.”
In a double irony, the court’s decision comes after the BJP government announced an upgrade madrasas and had even conducted their state wise survey months ago. In addition, the central government, as part of its program to help madrasa students, runs Bridge Courses so that they become eligible for admission to mainstream subjects. The ruling will jeopardize this reform program that even Prime Minister Modi and several central ministers have used as an example of their concern for the Muslim community.
“The anti-Muslim frenzy is electorally productive, and it suits the BJP if it is whipped either by the party itself, or by ‘partisan’ elements in the judiciary.”
Professor Shah Alam, professor of Mass Communication at IMS Unison University, Dehradun, says the court’s ruling is in violation of Article 30 which allows all religious minorities to establish institutions of their choice to impart education. “However, the existence of Article 30 now appears to be under threat. There are indications that the Article may be deleted or amended to change its core in the future. The anti-Muslim frenzy is electorally productive, and it suits the BJP if it is whipped either by the party itself, or by “partisan” elements in the judiciary,” he said.
Saad Usmani, senior journalist with Hindi daily Punjab Kesri, agrees that the government’s community initiatives stem from its plan to reap electoral benefits in the upcoming election. He said, however, that legal loopholes in the HC verdict would be exposed in the Supreme Court and the verdict could be overturned. But by then, the election would be over and the ploy would have played its part. The Madaris Arabiya Teachers Association has announced its decision to challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.
The Friday Times talk to a number of people associated with the madrasa education in India and they were disappointed that the court had “misjudged” so harshly and ignored even the basis of madrasa education.
Dr said. Iftikhar Ahmed Javed, chairman of the UP Madrasa Board, said the government had established the Act to help promote education in languages such as Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian. “As per the Act, the boards for Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian were established. The government does not provide financial support for religious education given in the madrasas. It is for keeping languages like Arabic and Persian alive. However, we do know that madrasas also teaches the Quran and other Arabic books which are mainly religious. Similarly, in the Sanskrit institutes, the Vedas and other religious literature are taught as they are available in the Sanskrit language. The basis of HC’s decision is therefore flawed,” he said.
Dr Javed added that the Yogi Adityanath government had not decided to implement the order immediately. “Our legal team led by advocate Afzal Siddiqui is vetting all legal options to appeal in the Supreme Court,” he said.
Renowned Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad said the HC called the education madrasas religious and therefore against the spirit of secularism. “This is the gap in the HC judgment. Religious education is a global phenomenon. In every country of the world, there is a provision for it. The government in a secular country has no religion of its own and therefore only watches over such education and helps in its maintenance. How can such education be communal?” he asked.
Locals from UP told TFT that madrasa teachers have not received their salaries for over a year and the HC order would erode the chances of them getting at least their backlog of taxes.
When asked to comment on the HC judgment and the predicament madrasa students and teachers Danish Azad, the lone Muslim face in Yogi Adityanath’s cabinet and who holds the portfolio of minority affairs, said he would abide by any decision taken by his government. “The Yogi government in the state is working for the welfare of minorities, we are studying the judgment and we will respond after going through the judgment carefully after analyzing all aspects a minute before responding to it,” he said.
Racing and Removing Mosques
The Gyanvapi Mosque in the historic city of Kashi (Varanasi) has been one of three great mosques that Hindu hardline organizations have been claiming to have been built on the ruins of the demolished temples. Two others are Babri Masjid, which was demolished in 1992, and is now the site of the Ram Temple, and the Mathura Shahi Eidgah Masjid. The Gyanvapi is believed to have been built by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb after destroying part of the ancient temple.
Varanasi is the home constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and any community development around the Gyanvapi Mosque will naturally benefit his electoral chances, and the BJP across the country.
On the petition of Hindu women plaintiffs, the local court in Varanasi earlier ordered an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey of the mosque and after a “Shivling” (sculpture of Shiva) was found in the survey, just before the election, on January 30, allowed the Hindu worship in the basement of the mosque.
Varanasi is the home constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and any community development around the Gyanvapi Mosque will naturally benefit his electoral chances, and the BJP across the country.
The historic dispute over the Shahi Eidgah Mathura mosque near the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple has also been reignited with recent developments. On December 14, the Allahabad High Court ordered a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Eidgah mosque building to assess the historical claims made by both sides.
However, the Supreme Court, on January 16, issued a stay on the survey, but the issue continues to burn and engage local people. Actress Hema Malini is a sitting BJP MP and a candidate in the 2024 polls from Mathura. She often participates in dance programs that revive the devotion to Lord Krishna and highlight the cause of the temple at Eidgah.
On 30 January, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) – a federally run urban planning organization – demolished the Akhoondji Mosque, estimated to be at least 600 years old, and its adjoining madrasa in the famous Mehrauli area.
In another prominent case, the ASI on March 22 began its survey of the Bhojshala temple and the Kamal Maula mosque complex in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district. On March 11, the Madhya Pradesh High Court had directed the Archaeological Survey of India to conduct the survey. The court passed the direction on a plea by a group called the Hindu Justice Front which had alleged that the mosque was built by “destroying” Hindu temples.
On 30 January, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) – a federally run urban planning organization – demolished the Akhoondji Mosque, estimated to be at least 600 years old, and its adjoining madrasa in the famous Mehrauli area. An altar of a sufi saint (Islamic mystic) located inside the mosque complex was also smashed. It was alleged that the mosque, madrasa and shrine had encroached on forest lands.
Moreover, authorities have demolished a few more historic structures in Mehrauli, including what many believe was the shrine of one of the first Sufi saints in Delhi.
Historians have questioned the rationale behind the destruction of centuries-old structures. “Clearly a pattern is emerging and it sets an alarming precedent for a country that treats all religions equally,” said historian Sohail Hashmi.
Milking the Cow for BJP
Mosques and Muslim worship have been the targets of the politics of the BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), from the very beginning. The BJP rose to power on the back of a national political campaign centered on the destruction of the Mughal era Babri Masjid. The BJP claimed that the mosque, in the small pilgrimage town of Ayodhya, was built on the very site of the birth of the Hindu god Lord Ram. The BJP won only two seats on its first appearance in 1984. In 1986, it launched its campaign to demolish Ram Temple and Babri Masjid, and in 1989, it shot to 85 seats. He has never looked back since, and is turning to mosque temple issues for easy electoral gains.
