ஏன் முஸ்லீம்கள் நக்ஸலைட்டுகள் ஆவதில்லை?

ஏன் முஸ்லீம்கள் நக்ஸலைட்டுகள் ஆவதில்லை?

Why Muslims are not part of Naxal outfits in Bihar
Sunday, 04.06.2008, 11:50pm (GMT-7)


Dalits and Muslims constitute more than 28 percent of Bihar's population. The two communities share a number of similarities being at the lowest level of socioeconomic development in the state. They are misused as votebanks by the political leaders and parties and their representation in the government services is far below their numerical percentages.

They often also bear the brunt of the tyranny by upper castes in the villages. However, there is also a distinct dissimilarity between them - while many Dalits have joined the Naxal outfits in Bihar to fight for justice or to seek alternative sources of income and social respect, the Muslim community has distanced itself from the Naxals.

Many reasons can be attributed for this phenomenon. Since Independence, Bihar has consistently ranked the lowest among India's larger states in terms of urbanization, production, and income. It has the highest number of very large landholders and one of the largest landless populations in the Indian states.

Agrarian issues have long dominated the state's political life as the feudal nature of landholding has remained unchanged despite legislation establishing ceilings on land-holdings by individuals. Naxalite groups, meanwhile, have advocated armed resistance, and have carried out targeted assassinations of landlords.

In turn, the higher-caste landholders have retaliated by forming private militias, known as senas (armies), to fight the Naxalites and terrorize and kill low-caste villagers, who they believe are providing the bedrock of support for the Naxalites. The Sachar Committee report is the first systematic study of Muslims in independent India.

The Committee dealt with core issues relating to security, equity and identity of the Muslim community and concluded that the condition of Muslims is no better than that of the OBCs and often as bad as that of the SCs and the STs.

Why then has the Muslim population shunned Naxal outfits in Bihar despite their poor economic conditions and the low social standing? There are many reasons. First, the main recruitment centers of the Naxals in Bihar are the rural areas, whereas the Muslims are basically city-based. Their strength has declined in the villages over the years.

There are very few Muslims who own land or are identified as landlords. So, they are out of the reckoning in the fight between Naxal groups and upper caste armed groups. Second, most Muslims are petty traders based in district towns or block level markets and do face ransom threats from Naxal outfits.

In a village called Pandura, where a handful of Muslims have their small shops in the block market Sandesh, they are quite often required to pay ransom amounts to the Naxal leaders, and this has become an established practice.

So, the Naxalites cannot be called friends of the Muslims. Third, the Muslim community is already under surveillance by the police and intelligence agencies for one reason or the other. Any involvement in Naxalite activities would further complicate their lives.

Many Muslims of Bihar believe that they are misused by the political leaders for their own ends, denouncing Laloo Prasad Yadav's MY (Muslim+Yadav) formula and squarely blaming the two decades of RJD rule for the poor state of Muslims in Bihar.

The Muslim community strongly believes that any linkage with the Naxals will bring many unforeseen troubles to the community. Fourth, elections are the real battleground for Muslims, which they use strategically for the betterment of the community.

On the other hand, the Naxal outfits boycott the parliamentary or assembly elections. Finally, Islam as a religion does not permit violence. Naxalism has become a symbol of violence, ransom and torture. Ideologically, therefore, Islam and Naxalism are two opposite poles of society.

However, Islam has been treated as a religion promoting violence, and jihad has been misinterpreted. Jihad was only used as a last resort to protect one's beliefs. Hence, those who follow these norms cannot use violence since there is no religious sanction behind it.

Overall, Muslims are not interested in participating in the violence between the Naxals and the upper castes. Unlike the Dalits, many Muslim youngsters are looking for alternative opportunities like migrating to the Gulf countries rather than joining Naxal outfits in Bihar.

The writer is PGT Teacher, Koilwar High School, Ara

Kamla Singh