‍A New 'Preaching Concept' Of ‍‍GHMC 'Pakeezgi Aadha Emaan Hai' On Caution Board Attracts Many Muslims At Charminar In Hyderabad

The new creative concept of religious preaching towards betterment of the society hails many Muslims in Hyderabad. This is the GHMC initiative to the betterment of the society.

In a historic move towards stimulating a sense of cleanliness among the people using "carrot and stick" policy as deterrent tool to realise the goal, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is contemplating to start a cleanliness drive especially in Charminar circle by erecting caution boards inscribed with Islamic holy sermon like "Pakeezgi Aadha Emaan Hai" (Cleanliness is half of the faith) only as a last resort to deal with uncouth littering their surrounding in the colonies on the expanse of other denizens.

Besides carrying a holy message about the importance of a tidy environment across human habitations, these caution boards, under CCTC surveillance, also speak firmly about the penalties and confinements for people abrasively littering the colonies giving a hoot to the GHMC laws hitherto.
The inscription on the caution board carries a message that anyone found violating the rule under sec 485 & 596 of GHMC Act 1955 will be penalised with Rs.1000/- fine. The sub section (1) even says that the punishment may extend to three months jail or with fine which may extend to Rs.10,000/-. Beside, the board also carry a translation of a Quranic verse that says "Attahuru Shatrul Emaan" (Cleanliness is half of the faith) that explicitly speaks about the importance of cleanliness in Islam.

It is said that over 500 tons of garbage generated from different localities of Charminar circle every day however, it accounts for only half of the total quantum of the trash being thrown out on the roads, streets and open places rest of the day while densely populated colonies with tight grain housing makes it difficult for the civic body to cart away the filth time and again.

"We hope atleast this way the people can mend their way of littering the colonies as all the requests and appeals in this regard have yielded no fruitful result and put us into more trouble all the time instead. Thus, we have decided to erect atleast 50 caution boards in each circle to stimulate the people about the importance of cleanliness. Using the reference of Quranic verse on the caution board to drag the point towards the cause of cleanliness would be of more helpful to achieve the goal," informed a senior GHMC official on the condition of anonymity.

"May be the financial issues don't give poor people the liberty to pay even a meagre amount to the collection teams but throwing garbage on the roads and on open plots in their neighbourhood too can't be justified. People should maintain the garbage bin in their houses till the garbage collection team reaches out to them to collect the same," contended Mohd.Shoukat Ali, a resident city based community activist. #KhabarLive #hydnews

How Akhila became Hadiya – and why her case has reached the Supreme Court?

A young woman adopted Islam, defying her Hindu family. The case has roiled Kerala.

It is called Devi Krupa – the blessings of the goddess. But inside the modest single-storeyed house in TV Puram village in Kerala’s Kottayam district, a young woman has been confined against her wishes, on the orders of Kerala High Court. Outside the house, six policemen stand guard round-the-clock.

Oppressive personal laws aren’t the only thing standing between Muslim women and happy lives

The nation cannot swoop in to save the Muslim woman while Muslim communities are simultaneously being brought to their knees.

I am glad it is over. I refer to talaq-e-bidat, the practice of Muslim men uttering talaq, talaq, talaq in a single setting to instantly divorce their wives, which rightfully belonged in a trash can, but also to the television nation’s delirious excitement at having “saved Muslim women”.

In A Historic Verdict, Supreme Court Strikes Down Triple Talaq

For many women in India, the Supreme Court stood on the right side of history today after it struck down the practice of instant divorce called triple talaq, practiced by Sunni Muslims in the country.

In a 3-2 judgment, Justices Kurian Joseph, RF Nariman and UU Lalit struck down the practice of instant divorce, describing it as "illegal and sinful" and ruling that it violates the right to equality enshrined in the Indian constitution.

India’s Pioneering Women Qazis Ask Muslim Men: Have You Read The Quran?

Newly trained women Islamic clerics, or Qazis, have started work in towns across India, offering an invaluable support system to Muslim women, and inviting opposition from orthodox circles.

Iqra's world fell apart in six months.

In her telling, it began, as it often does, with marriage. The 23-year-old's marriage to Ali was an exchange programme of sorts. Ali was her cousin, son of her khaala, her mother's sister. In turn, Iqra's brother married the same khaala's daughter. Her khaala also became her mother-in-law. Such marriage between first cousins is commonplace among Muslims in South Asia.

'Kashmir is not Syria!' Is The Rise Of Hard-Line, ISIS Supporting Jihadists In The Valley More Myth Than Reality?

Many feel that pictures of ISIS flags in Kashmir are a clear indicator of the Islamic fundamentalists having made inroads into the Valley but police in conflicted area tell a different story. 'Kashmir is not Syria. An organisation like ISIS establishing a base in Kashmir and working the way it does in Iraq and Syria is just not possible. Let us not underestimate our grids', said a top official. The only tangible link between ISIS and Kashmir has been found among youths who were attracted towards the ideology while outside the country. Over the years, only three such cases have come to light.

The Journey of the Hijab – From the Afghan Burqa to Fashion Magazines

How did this versatile piece of fabric get so controversial?

July 12 is National Hijab Day in Iran, a celebration that has been met by defiant protests by women driving headscarfless in their cars.

At the same time, the American glossy Allure has featured, for the first time, a hijab-wearing model on its cover. The Somali stunner Hamali Aden demonstrates just how beautiful and fashion-forward Islamic style can be.

Book Review: How a journalist’s journey to being a secular Muslim in India began at home and in school

Seema Mustafa reveals her first encounters with the need for secularism.

It was the History period for Class IV in the Convent of Jesus and Mary in New Delhi. The topic was the history of Islam. Not a particularly interested student at the best of times, I was delighted to find that I knew something that perhaps others did not and so jumped up to narrate a story about Abraham – except that I had confused him for Prophet Mohammad.

So, according to my version, Mohammad was against idol worship, and spent a great deal of time trying to convince idol worshippers to stop the practice. One day when the elders all left for work, he cut off the limbs of the idols and left an axe near the largest idol.

In-Depth Ground Report: How A Facebook Post Broke The Communal Peace Of A West Bengal Town?

While the violence was low scale compared to riots in other parts of the country, it has scarred the Basirhat area.

Maulana Yasin Mondal speaks slowly, his voice heavy with dismay. “I have never seen anything like this,” Mondal said. “Hindu-Muslim [tension] is unknown in Magurkhali [in the Basirhat sub-division]. We are still in shock.”

Mondal is the imam of Milan Masjid, a mosque which stands opposite the house of the Class 11 student who had been accused of posting the explicit cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad on social media that triggered the first large-scale communal trouble in the area in living memory. From July 2, the Basirhat sub-division of North 24 Parganas district in West Bengal was in the grip of violence that lasted for close to a week and claimed one life.

Islamic Style: How The Hijab Has Grown Into Fashion Industry?

Muslim spending on fashion is expected to touch $488 billion by 2019.

Nike, the well-known US sportswear company, recently introduced a sports hijab. The reaction to this was mixed: there are those who are applauding Nike for its inclusiveness of Muslim women who want to cover their hair, and there are those who accuse it of abetting women’s subjugation.

Exclusive: Is Muslim's Festival 'Ramadan' Commercialized?

Ramadan already began. Ramadan,  as I mentioned in an earlier posts, is supposed to be a month of fasting, increased reading of the Qur’an, and prayer. In the 20th century, the spirit of Ramadan has taken a different turn in parts of the Muslim world, where commercialism has tapped into the financial potential of the month.

This aspect of Ramadan is most obvious in the Middle East where for many Ramadan has become a month of feasting, increased shopping, and parties! In the United States, while there are some companies such as Hallmark which are starting to make greeting cards for Ramadan and Eid ul-Fitr (the holiday marking the end of Ramadan), Ramadan has yet to be as commercialized as Christmas.

The Muslim Law Board has proposed a social boycott of men who use triple talaq – but is this legal?

The Supreme Court in 1962 struck down a law banning excommunications. But Maharashtra criminalised social boycotts last year.

The Supreme Court is expected to pronounce its verdict on the constitutional validity of triple talaq soon, having concluded hearings in the case on Thursday. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board – an NGO that claims to represent India’s Muslims – is doing all it can to convince the court not to ban the practice.

How A Muslim MasterChef In Michigan Is Fighting Islamophobia By Inviting Strangers Over For Dinner?

In her book 'A Room of One's Own', Virginia Wolf had written, "One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." 28-year-old Amanda Saab, a Michigan-based social worker and a blogger probably believes in Wolf's words.

At a time of fear and uncertainty, and when the world is full of hate, Amanda is showing how generosity and passion for food can bring people together; one dinner at a time.

She hosts a type of gathering that she calls "Dinner With Your Muslim Neighbor." For over a year now, she has been inviting guests over to her home where she serves them a home cooked meal. And while they dine, she likes to have open conversations about what it's like to be Muslim in America today.

Earthy, Caustic, Funny And Declining: Dakhani Gets Due In Documentary ‘A Tongue Untied’

The language of the Deccan, famous for its humour and literature, has been relegated to dialect status, as filmmaker Gautam Pemmaraju finds out.

Subah ki dhoop mein agar saaya lamba nazar aya, tum apney kad ke baarey mein ghalatfehmi mey mat rehna (If in the morning sun you see that your shadow is long, don’t get deluded about your height): Ghouse ‘Khamakha’ or ‘Khamakha’ Hyderabadi.

When people hear of Dakhani, they tend to associate it with the unique dialect spoken in Hyderabad, often understood by outsiders and locals as a form of hybridised Urdu. There are other associations with Dakhani too – ribald humour and wry social commentary; an idiom so earthy and direct that it might border on insult to more sensitive ears; philosophical reflections on human nature, as in the verse above.

Gautam Pemmaraju’s ambitious documentary A Tongue Untied: The Story of Dakhani explores the cultural history of the language. The production began as a grant from the Indian Foundation for the Arts in 2012 to document the tradition of humour and modern satire in performance poetry. The filmmaker soon found that mere documentation would be inadequate.

“This began as a very conventional art history project, but it has expanded slightly,” Pemmaraju said. “Very soon, the mandate expanded into not just looking at humour and satire through poetry, but at the elephant in the room, which was, ‘What is Dakhani?’ That became something I needed to tackle in order to explain everything else.”

Dakhani is far more than a dialect, he said. It is a language that developed in northern India alongside Urdu. When it moved to the Deccan plateau, it gradually developed a literary culture that lasted 350 years, from the 14th century when the language first seems to have appeared, to the early 18th, when Aurangzeb finally gained control of the Deccan.

People across the Deccan speak forms of Dakhani with regional infusions even today, from its northern reaches in Aurangabad, to Marathwada and Telangana, down southwards to the northern parts of Karnataka. There are a few Dakhani speakers in Tamil Nadu and north Kerala and in Hyderabad, there is even an entire news channel in Dakhani.

Pemmaraju is now looking to raise funds to complete the editing of A Tongue Untied.

The film will be a culmination of conversations that began nearly seven years ago. Pemmaraju began his research by meeting poets and organisers of mushairas, or forums where poets congregate to perform their art.

Everyone Pemmaraju met had different ideas of and associations with the language, many of which were stereotypes. Pemmaraju decided to bring some academic rigour to his study. He also met scholars and experts such as historians and philologists who worked with language and history to pin down what Dakhani really was and what were its origins.

“The film in that sense is an aggregation of poets and artistry on one side, and an aggregation of scholarly opinions on the other side,” he said. “What I have been attempting to do is to put these into a narrative that makes sense and gives viewers a broad picture of the language and the colour of the language.”

With 60 interviews, 70 hours of filmed footage and 40 hours of archival footage, Pemmaraju has had a difficult task cutting the film down to a viewer-friendly length. The final film will be driven by around five experts in the language as well as by poets and artists. Parts of the film are devoted simply to hearing how people in different regions speak the language today.

“What is striking immediately is the diversity of Dakhani,” Pemmaraju said. “It’s a large region, and there are many forms of the language.” There were also many interlocutors, who had a lot to say because of their deep sense of ownership and pride in the language, he added.

While Dakhani is broadly thought of as a language of Muslims, its presence across the plateau also means that there is a rich body of material available in the Devanagari script, for instance, which has not been studied well. Dakhani is also heavily influenced by Marathi, and many Persian words that appear in Dakhani seem to have travelled there via Marathi.

One of Maharashtra’s famous poet saints, Amrutray of Paithan, even wrote a Sudamacharitra, or the story of Sudama, friend of Hindu god Krishna, in Dakhani at some point during the 18th century.

Mushairas have been a crucial part of the culture of Hyderabad and areas around it for decades now. From the 1970s and ’80s, the Hyderabadi diaspora began to organise mushairas where they stayed as well, leading to such gatherings in places as disparate as Chicago and countries in the Middle East.

Zinda Dilan-e-Hyderabad, an organisation formed in the mid-1960s to promote literary activities, particularly those pertaining to humour and satire, organised the first modern mushaira at that time. The organisation’s last mushaira was in 2010, but there are other groups who still conduct them.

Senior poets and scholars all agree that the quality of poetry is declining, Pemmaraju said. The texture of poetry has also changed greatly in recent times, he added. Early poetry tended to have pithy statements about poverty and the immediate circumstances of people. There was also a fair amount of sharp satire directed at religious figures, political leaders and even at poets themselves. Now, poetry is far more political.

Take one, by Sardar Asar, a couplet in a ghazal that says:

Bam key nazdeek jaako dekha mai,
Zafrani hai, hara thodeech hai
I went near a bomb to look at it
It was hardly green – it was saffron.

“Of course there is a milieu of social conservatism [in Islam] which informs all this, but you can very clearly see the poetry has shifted from pithy folk wisdom to this direct commentary on politics,” Pemmaraju pointed out.

That said, Dakhani is ultimately a cultural history of southern India, particularly of the “Islamic encounter” south of the Narmada that is pre-Mughal. “I don’t think it’s a counterpoint between the north and the south,” the filmmaker said. “It’s not a battle. It’s looking at a vernacular region’s oral traditions which reveal to us a richer history.”

The Ayodhya evasion: Why is the Supreme Court reluctant to pronounce verdict on a property dispute?

The top court has never shied away from instituting policies on everything from the organisation of cricket to the auctioning of coal. What gives here?

Wouldn’t the world be wonderful if we could all just get along? Unfortunately, people don’t always achieve that ideal, which is why we have laws and courts. Imagine now, that organisations which don’t get along at all have been fighting each other in court for decades, as sometimes happens in Indian trials. Nearly 70 years on, individuals among the original petitioners have all died of natural causes, hundreds of citizens unconnected with the case have died of unnatural causes as a result of the dispute, and the nation’s Supreme Court finally gets ready to pronounce a verdict. Having listened to all sides, and considered the complex issues carefully, the most senior judge in the country addresses the litigants. Why do you need courts at all, he asks, can’t you just sort this out by yourselves? Can’t you all just get along? He offers to play mediator, but is reluctant to play the role assigned to him, the role for which tax payers provide him a salary and perks, that of a judge.

That’s what Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar did on Tuesday in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi case. He might as well have entered the field of Kurukshetra and asked the Kaurava and Pandava armies to sort things out amicably. Barack Obama was fond of saying that every decision he made was complex and tough because anything simple would already have been done by somebody else.

Supreme Courts of every country are in the business of making difficult decisions. Ours, though, shies away from matters pertaining to law and basic rights while instituting policies on everything from the organisation of cricket to the auctioning of coal.

Babur to Babri
For those who came in late (which is a majority of Indians, since half of those alive today were yet to be born when the Babri Masjid was demolished, and about 15% more had not got to secondary school), here’s the gist of the back-story. The Central Asian king Babur defeated the army of Ibrahim Lodi in 1526 CE, founding what came to be called the Mughal dynasty. He spent four years consolidating his rule before losing the unequal battle against Indian bacteria. In 1528, his governor in Awadh province, a Shia general named Mir Baqi, constructed a large mosque in Ayodhya town, which came to be called the Babri Masjid.

From the middle of the 19th century, there were attempts by Hindu groups to take over the site under the pretext that it was Ram janmabhoomi, the birthspot of Lord Rama. A local akhara forcibly wrested a part of the complex for itself and commenced prayers in the open. Later, it sought legal sanction to build a shrine on the platform. Muslims protested and successive layers of the colonial administration ordered maintenance of status quo, with a section of the land held by the akhara, and the bulk of it controlled by the mosque’s caretakers.

The dark night
In December 1949, a group of Hindu activists entered the mosque at night and placed idols of Rama and Sita inside. The following day, the Akhil Bharatiya Ramayana Mahasabha declared the idols had appeared miraculously. As credulous devotees flooded the venue, the state administration locked the gates, disallowing both Muslims and Hindus from praying there. Jawaharlal Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel tried to reverse what the trespassers had accomplished by ordering the state to remove the idols, but the district administration refused to do it, fearing riots. Within a year, the issue ended up in court, and there it has stayed ever since.

In the 1980s, right-wing Hindu organisations launched a political movement to construct a temple where the mosque stood. They claimed Mir Baqi had demolished a Rama temple and built the Babri Masjid over its ruins. On December 6, 1992, a Hindu mob broke through the paltry police cordon placed at the site by Uttar Pradesh’s Bharatiya Janata Party government, and reduced the Babri Masjid to rubble. A criminal case related to the demolition against BJP, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and Vishwa Hindu Parishad Hindu leaders has been stalled for years.

In 2010, an Allahabad High Court judgement divided up the land where the mosque had stood, giving a third to the Sunni Waqf board, a third to the Nirmohi akhara, and a third to the human representatives of the infant Lord Rama. The court based its judgement substantially on a 2003 report by the Archaeological Survey of India which claimed to have found ruins of a temple under the erstwhile Babri Masjid.

The great red herring
The demolished temple has been the great red herring in the Babri Masjid saga. Secularist commentators played into Hindutvavadi hands in the 1980s by allowing it to become the centrepiece of the debate. The secular position should have been something to this effect: Islam’s iconoclastic streak is one of the repugnant aspects of the faith from a liberal perspective. A number of Hindu temples were, indeed, demolished by Muslim rulers in centuries past. There is no evidence that the Babri Masjid was built on one such demolished temple, but it shouldn’t matter anyway. A modern state cannot turn back the clock of history, and should restrict itself to addressing contemporary injustices.

Since the Allahabad court, like most left-wing commentators and all right-wing ones, accepted the notion that the mosque’s history counts, here’s a summary of the facts. Babur is renowned for his remarkable memoir, Baburnama, in which he put down details about everything from his drug use to his wars. Unfortunately, not long after the Babri Masjid’s construction, a sudden storm brought down Babur’s tent in the midst of a campaign, drenching his books and manuscripts. He saved what he could, but most of his 1528 and 1529 entries were probably lost at this time, and he died the following year before he could rewrite them.

In the parts of the memoir that have survived, Babur expressed no fondness for demolishing Hindu shrines. We know he left temples intact in forts he took over from Hindu rajas. At the same time, he wasn’t above the odd act of vandalism against places of worship that offended his sensibilities, even Muslim ones, and may not have objected to a general’s proposal to bring down a temple and build a mosque in its place. The contemporary record, in other words, is of no help whatsoever in resolving the Babri Masjid question.

The Archeological Survey of India’s report to the Allahabad court isn’t much better. The ASI asked a private company to map the area using ground penetrating radar, and drew conclusions on the basis of that data. The radar detected a few anomalies, which the ASI concluded were remnants of a temple’s pillars. If it was a temple, it was a pretty small one, far from the grand monument to Lord Rama’s birthplace we were led to expect. The report provided hints that the Babri mosque was built on the ruins of another mosque, which in turn might have been built on the ruins of a temple or after demolishing a temple.

Irrelevant history
Whether it was mosque on demolished temple, or mosque on ruined temple, or mosque on ruined home, or mosque on ruined mosque on ruined temple, or mosque on ruined mosque on demolished temple, cannot be ascertained on the basis of a radar scan.

Which is fine, because, as I’ve said, the history is irrelevant to the case. The Supreme Court ought to set aside myths of the birth of an avatar, and dubious archaeological reports, and treat the matter as a dispute over property rights. In such a dispute, it is difficult to envision the infant Rama as a beneficiary. The property ought to be divided unequally between the Waqf board and the akhara (since squatters gain some rights if they occupy land for long enough). This would return the site to the status quo of the 19th century with one difference: no mosque stands on the spot any longer.

At that point, a BJP government could use eminent domain to take over the land and construct the temple it’s been promising for decades. Or a secular government could build a hospital there, on the basis that Ayodhya’s Hindus and Muslims have plenty of places to pray, but inadequate health care. But neither secular parties nor religious will make such a move. The secular parties are weak and scared, while the BJP prefers to keep the pot of the public’s emotions simmering.

Who can blame them for indecisiveness when the nation’s highest court is reluctant to pronounce verdict on a property dispute?

In Mughal India, Holi was celebrated with the same exuberance as Eid

There were no barriers of caste, class or religion, and even the poorest of the poor could throw colour at the Emperor.

Hori kheluungii, kah Bismillah.
Naam Nabi ki ratn chaRii,
BuuNd paRi Allah Allah.

I start playing Holi with a Bismillah.
Covered with the light of Prophet’s name,
Showered by blessings of Allah.

When I celebrate Holi, Muslims often tell me that the practice is haram (forbidden), because colour is prohibited in Islam. But the 18th-century Punjabi mystic Bulleh Shah’s words above provide the perfect frame for the subcontinent’s centuries-old syncretic culture, our Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb that is under threat from fundamentalists of both religions.

As it turns out, Islam does not prohibit colour: it’s just that when we perform our ablutions for namaz, water should touch the skin, so there should be no colour at that point. Wash the Holi colours away before praying, I tell the critics. It’s simple. I do it.

Tale of harmony
This fundamentalism is a recent phenomenon. In the past, the influence of the Sufi and Bhakti movements encouraged harmony between the communities.

In Alam Mein Intikhaab Dilli, Maheshwar Dyal writes,

“Holi is an ancient Hindustani festival which is played by every man and woman irrespective of religion and caste. After coming to India, the Muslims also played Holi with gusto, be it the Badshah or the Faqeer."

Basant Panchami would signal the onset of the festivities and people would be carrying squirt guns with colours and smear gulaal (red powder) on each other’s faces. Mustard flowers would be offered in temples and abiir/gulaal would be flying in the air.

Flowers from the Tesu/Palash/Dhaak plants (flame of the forest) would be immersed in earthen water pots. It is believed that Lord Krishna played Holi with Radha using colours made from the red Tesu flower, which blooms during the spring season.

All colours used were natural and plant extracts. There were neither chemicals nor hooliganism.

Holi is one of the most delightful and colourful festivals of India. It is aimed at uniting people by forgetting their complaints and embracing one another.

Early references
In the 13th century, Amir Khusrau (1253–1325) is said to have written many verses in celebration of Holi.

kheluungii holi, Khaaja ghar aaye,
dhan dhan bhaag hamare sajni,
Khaaja aaye aangan mere

I shall play Holi as Khaaja has come home,
blessed is my fortune, o friend,
as Khaaja has come to my courtyard

The Mughal Emperor Akbar encouraged syncretism and tolerance. During his reign, all festivals were celebrated with equal gusto and it was a practice that was followed by all his successors barring Aurangzeb.

In the 16th century, Ibrahim Raskhan (1548-1603) wrote:

Aaj hori re Mohan Hori
Kaal hamare aangan gaari dai aayo, so kori
Ab ke duur baithe maiyya dhing, nikaso kunj bihari

It's Holi, Mohan, its Holi today
Who was it who came yesterday to our courtyard and swore at us
Now you hide behind your mother, far away , Oh come out Kunj Bihari

In Tuzuk e Jahangir, Jahangir (1569 –1627) writes:

Their day is Holi, which in their belief is the last day of the year. This day falls in the month of Isfandarmudh, when the sun is in Pisces. On the eve of this day they light fires in all the lanes and streets. When it is daylight, they spray powder on each other’s heads and faces for one watch and create an amazing uproar. After that, they wash themselves, put their clothes on, and go to gardens and fields. Since it is an established custom of among the Hindus to burn their dead, the lighting of fires on the last night of the year is a metaphor for burning the old year as though it were a corpse.

Much fanfare
Holi would be celebrated on the same scale as Eid in the Red Fort or Qila e Moalla (Exalted Palace). It was called Eid e gulaabi or Aab-e-Pashi (Shower of Colourful Flowers), with everyone joining in.

There would be melas or fairs behind the Red Fort on the banks of the Yamuna. A huge crowd would gather from the fort till Raj Ghat. The dhaf, jhanjaen, nafiri (tambourine, cymbal and trumpet) would be played and nautch girls would dance. Groups of traveling musicians and artists would gather under the Red Fort and display their tricks and talents. The mimics would imitate the Emperor, prince and princesses too and nobody would take offence.

The queens, princesses and noble women would be sitting in their jharokas (overhanging enclosed balcony) and enjoying the entertainment. The Emperor would reward these artistes handsomely.

At night, there would be a grand celebration of Holi in the Red Fort with singing and dancing throughout the night. Famous courtesans from throughout the country would come here. The most popular song would be Bahadur Shah Zafar’s Horiyan. Bands of entertainers would go around Shahjahanabad entertaining the aristocrats and the rich in their Havelis. There would be much good-natured leg-pulling with the slogan “Bura Naa Mano, Holi Hai!”Don’t take it the wrong way,it's Holi.

Children would also go around entertaining elders with their acts. At night there would be mahfils (soirees) in the walled city with the aristocrats, traders and shopkeepers all enjoying themselves.

Emperor joins in
Bahudar Shah Zafar (1775–1862) would join the celebration with great gusto and enthusiasm and mingle with his subjects. He wrote a song for the occasion:

Kyun mope maari rang ki pichkaari
dekh kunwarji du’ngi gaari

(Why have you squirted me with colour?
O Kunwarji I will swear at you)

bhaaj saku’n main kaise moso bhaajo nahin jaat
thaa’ndi ab dekhu’n main baako kaun jo sun mukh aat

(I can’t run, I am unable to run
I am now standing here and want to see who can drench me)

Bahut dinan mein haath lage ho kaise jaane deoon
Aaj main phagwa ta sau Kanha faita pakad kar leoon.

(After many days have I caught you, how can I let you go
I will catch you by your cummerbund and play Holi with you)

shokh rang aisi dheet langar sau khelay kaun ab hori
mukh meedai aur haath marore karke woh barjori

Who can play Holi with such a mischievous Kanha
My face you have coloured and my wrist you have twisted in your playfulness.

Jam-e-Jahanuma, an Urdu newspaper, wrote in 1844 that during the days of the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, special arrangements were made for Holi festivities, and goes on to describe the frolicking and exchange of colour made from the tesu flowers.

Nazeer Akbarabadi (1735–1830) was the "people’s poet" who wrote:

Jab Phagun Rang Jhamakte ho,
Tab dekh bahaare’n Holi ki
Jab Daf Ke Shor Khadke Hon
ab Dekh Baharein Holi Ki
Pariyon Ke Rang Damkte Hon
Tab Dekh Baharein Holi Ki.

When the month of Phagun shines with colour
Then see the celebration of Holi.

Mehjoor Lakhnavi (1798-1818) in his book Nawab Syadat Ali Ki Majlis-e-Holi talks of the sensuous aspect of Holi , with which many can associate today.

Gulzar Khile Hon Pariyon Ke
Aur Majlis Ki Tyari Ho
Kapdon Par Rang Ke Cheeton Se
Khushrang Ajab Gulkari Ho

Roses are blooming on fairies
Preparation is on for a soiree
Clothes are smeared with colour
As bright as painted flowers.

Shah Niaz’s (1742-1834) Holi song has been made immortal by Sufi singer Abida Parveen.

Holi hoye rahi hai Ahmad Jiya ke dwaar
Hazrat Ali ka rang bano hai Hassan Hussain khilaar

Holi is being played at beloved Ahmad’s doorsteps
Hazrat Ali has become the colour and Hasan and Husain are playing.

Lasting tradition
Royal patrons who were mostly secular in those days like Ibrahim Adil Shah and Wajid Ali Shah used to distribute mithai (sweets) and thandai (a drink) to everyone in their kingdom. It was a common and beloved festival of all.

This is the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb that prevailed all over India right till the 19th century. It still does in most of India despite attempts to divide and rule.

The famous poet Mir Taqi Mir (1723-1810) wrote on Nawab Asifud Daula playing Holi:

Holi khela Asifud daula Vazir
Rang sohbat se Ajab hain Khurd-o-Pir

Asidud daula plays Holi
Commoners and kings are happy after being drenched with colour.

Munshi Zakaullah (a mid-19th century Delhi intellectual) in his book Tarikh-e-Hindustani, even questions the fact that Holi is a Hindu festival and describes the Holi festivities lasting for days during the Mughal rule. There were no restraints of caste, class or religion and even the poorest of the poor could throw colour on the Emperor.

I don’t think there can be a better ending than Gauhar Jaan singing:

Mere Hazrat ne Madeene mein manaayi Holi.

Five Questions And An Appeal: An Open Letter By Dr Zakir Naik’

By M H AHSSAN ! INNLIVE

'If you’ve decided to target a community,' says the televangelist, 'you’ve to first target the biggest name and the most popular figure of the community.'

Controversial Islamic televangelist Zakir Naik has been under scrutiny for allegedly inspiring militants behind the Dhaka café attack on July 1, though the Bangladesh newspaper which had been quoted as having made the allegation came out with a categorical denial and said “it did not report that any terrorist was inspired by Zakir Naik to kill innocent people.”

The Centre had ordered an investigation into the funding sources for Naik’s Islamic Research Foundation and also warned cable TV operators of penalties if they broadcast his channel, Peace TV, which, incidentally, was also banned by Bangladesh.

It was later reported that the IRF may be listed as an “unlawful organisation” in India, and the Centre was likely to file terror charges against him for allegedly motivating more than 50 people accused in various militant activities including the Dhaka restaurant attack.

Naik and his organisation should be booked under anti-terror law for hate speech, Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar was reported to have told the Narendra Modi government.

The IRF had donated Rs 50 lakh to the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation in 2011, it was revealed on Friday. Officials said this was one of the irregularities ignored by a few Home Affairs Ministry offcials, for which they may be suspended forrenewing the IRF’s foreign funds licence.

On Saturday morning, Naik released what he called “Five Questions and an Appeal: An open letter to Indians” with the broad theme that “if you’ve decided to target a community, you’ve to first target the biggest name and the most popular figure of the community”.

After having thus assumed this mantle of being "the biggest name and the most popular figure of the [Indian Muslim] community", Naik went on to add: “If you can bring down and demonise this figure of the community, the rest becomes a cakewalk. That, I think, is what is happening. It may sound like a conspiracy theory, but I honestly cannot find any other plausible reason.”

"If the government can misuse its authority on a popular figure like me," Naik says in the letter strewn with quotations from the Quran, "average Muslims don’t stand a chance. And we’re talking about 20 crores of them."

But apart from seeking to play the victim card on religious grounds, Naik raises questions that assert the need for due process. "I’m open to any investigation," the letter adds. "Have always been and will always be."

The full text of his letter is given below.

‘Five Questions and an Appeal: An open letter to Indians by Dr Zakir Naik’

It has been over two months since the ghastly terror attack in Dhaka, and over one month since I’ve been asking myself what exactly have I done to become the enemy number one of the media as well as the State and Central Government. For someone who has spent 25 years in promoting peace, spreading greater awareness of Islam and talking about similarities between religions and condemning injustices, the last two months have been a rude shock to me. A shock of immense proportions. I’m not only disappointed in the way things are being conducted but alarmed at where they are heading.

I’m alarmed at the murder of democracy and strangulation of fundamental rights and the precedence it is setting for times to come. I’m also alarmed at how the system, media and the agencies are being used to suit a pre-meditated end result set by none other than our own governments, governments that have taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of India, and a Constitution that allows me the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate any religion I follow. Let’s not be gullible enough to assume that there isn’t a deeper agenda behind this vicious campaign. This is not just an attack on me, it’s an attack against Indian Muslims. And it’s an attack against peace, democracy and justice.

‘Those to whom the people said: surely men have gathered against you therefore fear them, but this increased their faith, and they said:Allah is sufficient for us and most excellent is the protector.’ – Al-Qur’an 3:173

From what I understand, IRF and I have been set up for a ban. Never mind the fact that the legal agencies have found no wrongdoing – financial or otherwise. Never mind the lack of evidence (although I am not guilty of any wrong-doing, much less any offence whatsoever). At least this is what is evident from the media stories being ‘planted’ since the past several weeks.

The message is clear: it’s not a question of whether I’ve committed a crime or not. It’s a question of using desperate measures to kill peace and harmony. And a ban is now imminent. It may happen in days or weeks but the writing is clear on the wall. IRF and I have been set up for a ban. Unless of course, better sense prevails and the ban machinery set in motion is stopped. And if that happens, if IRF and I are banned, it will be the biggest jolt to the country’s democracy of recent times. I do not say this just for me but because this ban will set a precedence of unspeakable injustices against the 20 crore Muslims of India. This action will embolden and encourage every fringe element in the country to do as they please. If you thought intolerance increased in the country recently, this action of the government will take it to an all-time high. The Muslim population is already feeling threatened and insecure and I can’t even imagine how they will feel after this action. Muslims are bound to think that today it is Zakir Naik, tomorrow it could be any one of them. But I still can’t stop asking myself – why am I being targeted? Then I realised some time back that if you’ve decided to target a community, you’ve to first target the biggest name and the most popular figure of the community. If you can bring down and demonize this figure of the community, the rest becomes a cakewalk. That, I think, is what is happening. It may sound like a conspiracy theory, but I honestly cannot find any other plausible reason. Right from the beginning of July, I tried staying away from the current controversy. This was not the first time I was being targeted. For years, there have been groups who have opposed me. Instead of retaliating or reacting to them, I’ve felt it best to continue with my work and not pay attention to these detractors. That is what I tried doing even this time. But I soon realized that this time it was different. There was much greater media involvement, and a much deeper government’s involvement. I’m not privy to internal details so I do not know which came first – my opposition groups, the media or the government. But from what it looks like, this is the best concerted effort used against me so far.

‘...They strive in the way of Allah and do not fear the blame of the blamers. That is the favor of Allah, he bestows it upon whom he wills.’ – Al-Qur’an 5:54

I tried answering all the questions and allegations thrown at me. But soon a lot of my own questions started piling up in my mind. Two months into it, they’ve built up and I’m left with no choice but to pose these questions to you, to my fellow citizens. As my legal advisors evaluate things at their end, I write to all of you to tell you what I’ve been feeling for last two months. Let us keep the legalities aside. Though the witch hunt continues, and I know

I’ve not done anything wrong, either in my talks or in my finances, and till date the agencies have not found any wrong doing. But that is for the legal teams to sort out at both the ends. But here is what bothers me. Try asking these questions yourself and see if you can come up with coherent and logical answers to them –

[A] Why now?

I’ve been preaching for 25 years. Not just in India but across the world. What exactly did I do now to earn the tags of ‘terror preacher’, ‘Dr. Terror’ and ‘hate monger’? Of 150 countries where I’m respected and my talks are welcomed, I’m being called a terrorist influencer in my own country. What an irony. Why now, when I’ve been doing the same thing for over 25 years?

[B] Why repeat investigations?

Despite exhaustive investigations, not a single conclusive evidence of wrong doing was reported by any governmental agency. But now investigations are being asked to be repeated and continued. Why? Wasn’t the first investigation exhaustive enough? Did not they cover every aspect of my talks, every topic, every reply? Or is it because they could not find any wrongdoing? Is this a hunt to get something to indict me?

[C] Why renew, then cancel?

Why would the government renew IRF’s FCRA registration and then cancel it? It seems illogical. Is it because the renewal was against the laid down agenda of the government? Why would you suspend FCRA officials? Is it because they did things by the books and acted honestly without any bias or prejudice when they renewed IRF’s registration? Is it because they were not influenced by the political agenda of the MHA?

[D] Is there design to leaking confidential information of the government, solicitor general and the MHA?

Is there a design to leaking selective government documents to the media? The manner in which stories are being ‘planted’ in the media clearly suggests so. The one and only investigation report submitted till now remains inconclusive, but the solicitor general’s ‘judgment’ of banning IRF and I was duly leaked to the media. Why? Is there a ring fencing happening? Is this how IRF will be banned? By creating an atmosphere of ban? Rather than rely on proofs and evidences?

[E] Forced conversions? Really?

Isn’t it a well-known fact that in these modern days and times, average men and women cannot be forced to convert? But while chasing IRF for allegations of forced conversions, why are the agencies ignoring the most basic proof of forced conversions? Where is the converted person and where is his or her statement about how he or she was forcibly converted? Isn’t this person the most basic proof of forced conversion? If yes, why is the entire law enforcement machinery working on hearsay? Why is there no effort to gather the most basic proof that comes from the converted? It would be naïve to presume that the agencies mustn’t have tried. The fact is they tried and they couldn’t get proof of any forced conversion. The fact is, there never was forced conversions.

There are many more questions I have been seeking answers to but can’t find them. I know someone has the answers, but rather than dwelling upon it, I have an appeal to make, an appeal to my fellow countrymen, to all sane and sensible people of this great country. If you find any wrongdoing on my part, punish me by all means. Give me the harshest of punishments if I’ve wronged anyone. I’ve made this offer earlier too and I will repeat it again. I’m open to any investigation. Have always been and will always be.

‘They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah refuses except to perfect his light, although the disbelievers dislike it.’ – Al-Qur’an 9:32

Not only do I take my freedom seriously, I take my responsibilities even more seriously. The country’s democratic fabric is under attack. People are being arrested and put in jail for 7-10 years before being proven innocent by courts. But guilty or not guilty, their lives are ruined, their families are ruined, they remain unemployed, their daughters unmarried. This is what’s happening, and this is what needs to change. People’s lives cannot be played with. If the government can misuse its authority on a popular figure like me, average Muslims don’t stand a chance. And we’re talking about 20 crores of them.

I still have faith in the judiciary and I know that truth will ultimately prevail. But it may come at a huge price if the current actions are not checked now.

To all, my appeal is, do not allow subversion of the constitution. My appeal to the government – be fair in your investigation. Be fair in what you allege. Be truthful with facts. To my fellow citizens - Let no one and nothing dissuade you from speaking the truth. Whatever position you occupy, in authority or in media, or as a citizen of this great country, be truthful and fair. Nothing less, nothing more.

Perhaps if I am driven out of India, Allah will open up doors for me better than I could have ever imagined. Many countries would welcome this humble servant of God with red carpet treatment. But this isn’t only about me. It’s about us. It’s about the morals and values of a great country. What will become of India if we let bigotry and injustice seep into the very fabric of our nation? What will be the fate of our country if it falls into the stranglehold of such vices? The answer is frightening, and one we all wish to avoid. It’s time we do something about it.

In these times, my heart bursts with gratitude to those of you who have stood up for justice and harmony, irrespective of religion or creed. Because I know that like me, you care for this country. You care for core values like justice and tolerance. And that shall make a big difference.

'Isn’t Allah sufficient for his servant? And yet they seek to frighten you with those besides him?' – Al-Qur’an 39:36

To my Muslim brothers and sisters, I have this to say: Do not let trials such as these weaken your resolve, and know that the promise of Allah is true. Remember the faith that resonated among the earlier people, of whom Allah said, “’Those to whom the people said: Surely men have gathered against you, therefore fear them, but this increased their faith, and they said: Allah is sufficient for us and most excellent is the Protector.’ (Al-Qur’an 3:173) Didn’t He give victory to His Messenger (SAAWS) when the polytheists deployed every tactic and exhausted every strategy, trying in vain to suppress the Truth? Aren’t the pages of history overflowing with examples such as these? Allah says, “They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah refuses except to perfect His light, although the disbelievers may dislike it.’ (Al-Qur’an 9:32)

My humble efforts to spread the truth are but a drop in the ocean, and these trials are but a speck of dust compared to what was endured by the people of old. I pray that Allah accepts our efforts and makes us of those about whom He said, ‘...they strive in the way of Allah and do not fear the blame of the blamers. That is the favor of Allah, He bestows it upon whom He wills.’ (Al-Qur’an 5:54)

Whatever the outcome, I am assured that the best efforts to squash our work will only help it rise higher and stronger. For Allah says, ‘They plot and plan, and Allah too plans. And the best of planners is Allah.’ (Al-Qur’an 3:54) Beshaq . Without doubt.

Sincerely yours,

Dr. Zakir Naik


The Forgotten Past: Sir Syed And The Birth Of Muslim Nationalism In South Asia

By M H AHSSAN | INNLIVE

Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was the intellectual pioneer of the sense of community among Muslims, of which Pakistan nationalism is a direct outcome.

Pakistan nationalism is the direct outcome of Muslim nationalism, which emerged in India in the 19th century. Its intellectual pioneer was Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.

Why Hindutva Doesn't Like Normalcy – And Seems Indifferent To Social Strife?

By AIJAZ ASHRAF | INNLIVE

The RSS wants to reorder Indian society in accordance with its worldview. An endeavour of this magnitude has to generate social tension and conflict.

Over the last 27 months, there has scarcely been a fortnight in which we haven’t had news of conflict from one part of the country or another. It would seem normalcy is anathema to the Sangh Parivar, including the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, which has consciously triggered many of these conflicts.

Zakir Naik Speeches Pro-Terror, IRF Paid Money To Lure Youth For Conversion: Mumbai Police

By NEWS KING | INNLIVE

No member of the IRF or any other NGO run by Naik was questioned.

In a 71-page report on controversial televangelist Dr Zakir Naik, the Mumbai Police have said his Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) paid anything between Rs 25,000 and Rs 50,000 to lure a youth to convert to Islam.