How did it turn unsafe?

S Gurumurthy
First Published : 09 Nov 2009 11:48:00 PM IST
Last Updated : 09 Nov 2009 01:03:54 AM IST

As usual political parties and their leaders, as also the media, seem to be tracking the trivia and losing the profound. The subject is the fatwa — the Islamic religious edict — issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband seminary directing the Muslim community not to sing the National Song Vande Mataram, and the resolution of the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind at its convention on November 2, 2009 supporting that fatwa. The BJP and the media seem more concerned about whether Union home minister P Chidambaram — who spoke at the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind convention where the resolution was passed — was present at the precise time when the resolution was adopted. Chidambaram is equally keen to deny that he was present when the resolution was passed. But the real issues behind these trivia are far more serious.

First, what is the stand of the home minister on the fatwa and the resolution? He has not uttered a word on what he, or his government, thought of the resolution. Does the government disagree with the seminary’s fatwa against singing Vande Mataram? And does the home minister not disapprove of the resolution?

Here is some history.

The Constituent Assembly, which framed India’s Constitution, had unanimously declared Vande Mataram as National Song with the same status as the National Anthem. According to the Constituent Assembly records, Rajendra Prasad, who was presiding the Assembly on January 24, 1950, made the following statement which was also adopted as the unanimous final decision on the issue: The composition consisting of words and music known as Jana Gana Mana is the National Anthem of India, subject to such alterations as the government may authorise as occasion arises, and the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it. (Applause) I hope this will satisfy members. (Constituent Assembly of India, Vol XII). The Assembly had consisted of 28 members of the Muslim League on the Indian side who had also supported Rajendra Prasad’s statement. It is that decision of the founding fathers of the Constitution that is being defied and defiled. The home minister should first make it clear where the government stands on the fatwa and the resolution.

For the less familiar, here are some details about Darul Uloom Deoband and Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind (JUH), meaning ‘organisation of Indian scholars’, is one of the leading Islamist organisations in India. Founded in 1919, it joined the Khilafat movement against the British, which brought it close to Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian National Congress. JUH later opposed the partition of India. Widely networked all over India, it is politically very powerful. Its general secretary, Mahmood A Madani, is a Rajya Sabha member. The Darul Uloom Deoband (DUD) is an Islamic seminary for turning out millions well instructed on the pure version Sunni Islam in India and elsewhere. Deobandi Islamic movement, which provided the theological motivation for the Taliban, originated from the Deoband seminary. Despite their ultra-fundamentalist Islamic credentials, being church-like in their structure, they form opinions and DUD’s fatwas carry high value among Islamists. Yet, they have been taking responsible positions on different, difficult issues. DUD declared twice — once in 1880s and again in 1992 — that Hindus are not kafirs and India is not Darul Harb — that is, it is not a land of war against which Islamists should carry out jihad. It issued a fatwa last year saying that terror is anti-Islamic. JUH has held several rallies of Islamic religious leaders against terrorism. On the Vande Mataram issue also, DUD and JUH had taken a reasonable approach in the past.

In 2007, which was the centenary year of the adoption of Vande Mataram as the National Song, the UPA government had directed all schools to sing the first two stanzas on September 7. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board — which deceptively shows an official character but is merely a sectarian body of Muslims — had opposed the singing of Vande Mataram by Muslim children. There were reports that the DUD too had issued an edict supporting the AIMPLB. But the DUD steered clear of the issue saying that it had ‘no role to play’ in the controversy. It openly asserted that it had not issued any fatwa against Vande Mataram nor directed Muslim children to skip classes on September 7, to protest against its mandatory recitation in the BJP-ruled states. (See http://ibnlive.in.com/news/if-vande-means-salutation-muslims-to-sing-along/ 20762-3.html). Then why did the DUD do a U-turn now and issue a fatwa against the singing of the song as un-Islamic? If singing of the Vande Mataram in 2007 was not un-Islamic, how come it has suddenly become un-Islamic in 2009? How did the monotheistic character of Islam — belief in Allah and no one else as god — suddenly become the ground for banning the Muslims from singing the Vande Mataram? Recall here the fact that more orthodox Muslims of the pre-Partition Muslim League had participated in the Constituent Assembly to declare it as the National Song.

It is important that the other equally powerful monotheistic religion that is also loyal to one god, Christianity, has no objection to Vande Mataram. Fr Cyprian Kullu, from Jharkhand told Asia News in an interview that “The song is a part of our history and national festivity and religion should not be dragged into such mundane things. The Vande Mataram is simply a National Song without any connotation that could violate the tenets of religion.” The Sikh religion, which too does not believe in idol worship and is monotheistic in character, has openly supported the singing of the song. The Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee, the paramount body of the Sikhs, ordered in 2007 that the song be sung in its schools. In an interview, Jathedar Avtar Singh Makkar asked, “What is wrong with Vande Mataram? It is a National Song and speaks of patriotism. We are part of the Indian nation and Sikhs have greatly contributed for its Independence.” What then is so special about Islamic monotheism that singing Vande Mataram minimises the importance of only the Islamic God and not the gods of other monotheistic faiths? More, when Islamic monotheism was safe from Vande Mataram a couple of years ago, why does it suddenly feel so unsafe now? Why did the DUD U-turn on Vande Mataram? This is the question that media and political parties should ask.

QED: The DUD fatwa is a serious national drift and risk, which needs correction.