Muslim leaders criticise Vajpayee's comments on Islam >From Indo-Asian News Service
New Delhi, Apr 15 (IANS) Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's apparent bid to make amends for a supposedly anti-Islamic statement found no takers Monday. Two Muslim leaders told IANS that they were not impressed by Vajpayee's admission late Sunday that he did not criticise Islam but only militant Islam or jihad. Addressing a meeting of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Friday, Vajpayee made comments that were widely seen as denigrating Muslims. He was reported to have said that wherever Muslims lived, there was bound to be strife. On Sunday, after his statement was widely published, the prime minister sought to draw a dividing line between Islam and what he described was militant Islam. "There is no two Islam. Islam is just one and teaches love and brotherhood," said Mohammad Abdul Qayyum, assistant secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. "To say that Muslims don't live in peace is an irresponsible statement." Agreeing, All India Muslim Personal Law Board spokesman S.Q.R. Ilyasi said: "Vajpayee was not speaking like a prime minister but like a leader of a hardline Hindu group. We demand an unconditional apology from him." On Sunday he tried to whitewash his reported statement saying he had drawn attention to two contradictory forms of Islam. "I had said Islam has two forms. One that tolerates others, preaches compassion and sensitivity. But these days militancy in the name of Islam leaves no room for tolerance. It raises the slogan of jihad." Reacting to his statement, Qayyum said: "Now he can give whatever interpretation he wants. But given the situation in the country and the way he was speaking, everything is clear. "He was rubbing salt into the wounds of thousands of Muslims who are still living in relief camps all over Gujarat." The BJP-ruled Indian state of Gujarat has been in the grip of sectarian violence since February 27 after a Muslim mob burnt a train carrying Hindu activists killing 58 people. Nearly 830 people, mostly Muslims, were killed in a brutal backlash that followed. Businesses and houses of thousands of Muslims were burnt and thousands of Muslims are now packed in relief camps. "While visiting Gujarat Vajpayee said he was ashamed of the violence. That raised some hopes. Now he has taken a U-turn. It is clear that the BJP is openly going to play its Hindu card," said Qayyum. "He has painted nearly 140 million Muslims of the country with same brush. This has tarnished our image in India as well as in the outside world." Ilyasi added: "The BJP wants to polarise India on religious lines. Vajpayee's comments were part of their agenda." --Indo-Asian News Service >From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Mon Apr 15 15:32:38 2002 Date: Sat, 13 Apr 2002 23:26:32 -0700 (PDT) Dear friends Looking at yesterday's newspapers, you (assuming that you are an Indian Muslim) must have realized that you are a Jehadi, according to the Prime Minister Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpai. Look at some of his comments in yesterday's BJP meet at Goa: "Wherever there are Muslims, they do not want to live with others (who practise different faiths). Instead of living peacefully, they want to preach and propagate their religion by creating fear and terror in the minds of others.'' "No one should challenge us about India's secularism and no one should teach us about tolerance...We were secular even in the early days when Muslims and Christians were not here. We have allowed them to do their prayers and follow their religion. No one should teach us about secularism." Earlier, in the RSS meet in Bangalore, they have already told the muslims to beg the hindus for their favour and goodwill etc. for survival. The point is that all these comments and speaches are giving a very wrong message to the people at large, and since not very many muslims are speaking up against them, things are getting worse. How long can we sit and tolerate being dubbed the Jihadis whereas most Indian muslims wish to live in this country peacefully. Shouldn't we stand up and talk to the prime minister and the BJP govt. directly and ask for explaination. We request all of you to please come for a rally of Indian Muslims who want peace, that we are planning in the near future in Delhi - to take a memorandum of protest against what his govt. is doing. Please keep in touch for a final date for this rally. And kindly visit this website for more details. Also send us contact details and emails of Indian muslims who want a peaceful livelihood in India. The site is: <http://indianmuslim.sphosting.com/>http://indianmuslim.sphosting.com/ Kindly give your suggestions, and forward this mail to more interested people. Yousuf Saeed, M. Naim, Sabia Khan and others Indian Muslims for Peace <http://indianmuslim.sphosting.com/>http://indianmuslim.sphosting.com/ -- _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ SACW is an informal, independent & non-profit citizens wire service run by South Asia Citizens Web (http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex) since 1996. To subscribe send a blank message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> / To unsubscribe send a blank message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-W-E-B---S-I-T-E-=-=-= To Subscribe/Unsubscribe from GoaNet | http://www.goacom.com/goanet =================================================================== For (un)subscribing or for help, Contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dont want so many e=mails? Join GoaNet-Digest instead ! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Help support non-commercial projects in Goa by advertizing!! * * * * Your ad here !!
