[sacw] SACW #2 (25 Oct. 01)

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | Dispatch #2.
25 October 2001
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

------------------------------------------

#1. Interview with Pakistani American activist Surina Khan
#2. Amartya Sen To Deliver 2001 Draper Lecture, October 30 in New York
#3. Lecture on Feminism & Resistance To Globalization of Capitalism=20
30 Oct., Ottawa
#4. India: Vandalizing Taj [ Mahal]
#5. Junoon for Peace concert in New York
#6. Press Statement by Dalit Solidarity Network [UK]
#7. Book Announcement: Fundamentalism & Popular Resistance in Bangladesh To=
day
#8. Book Review: Hinduism and Secularism-- After Ayodhya

________________________

#1.

http://www.bostonphoenix.com/
Boston Phoenix
October 25, 2001

INTERVIEW WITH SURINA KHAN.

by Michael Bronski,

----------------------------------

As a native of Pakistan working full-time in the field of human=20
rights, Surina Khan, executive director of the San Francisco-based=20
International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), has=20
a lot to say about America's war on terrorism. Her family fled=20
Pakistan in 1973 after her uncle, Air Marshal (Retired) Asghar Khan,=20
began laying the groundwork to run for president. Zulfikar Ali=20
Bhutto, who was then the Pakistani president, retaliated by accusing=20
Surina Khan's father, who owned a business that was a subsidiary of=20
a U.S. corporation, of being a spy for the CIA. Asghar Khan later=20
ran for prime minister against Bhutto in 1977. He lost and was placed=20
under house arrest. Bhutto was eventually overthrown and hanged.

Khan's family, which relocated to Connecticut, maintained its ties=20
to the country. Her father kept his business, and Khan went to=20
junior-high school in Pakistan. Most of her siblings have moved back=20
to Pakistan or elsewhere in South Asia. Her cousin Omar Asghar Khan=20
is now a member of General Pervez Musharraf's presidential cabinet.=20
But Khan and one of her brothers, a lieutenant colonel in the US=20
Marines, have put down roots in the U.S. She is one of the nation's=20
leading experts on the political strategies of the Christian right,=20
and at IGLHRC - which defends the human rights of all people who are=20
subject to discrimination because of their sexual orientation,=20
gender identity or HIV status - she works with the United Nations=20
and human-rights groups around the world.

Khan spoke to the Phoenix from her office in San Francisco.

Q: I know that things have changed in Pakistan since you were there=20
in late January [for a conference organized by Pakistan's=20
Sustainable Development Policy Institute], but do you have any sense=20
of how long Pakistan will be able to maintain its alliance with the=20
United States?

A: I think it is going to be very difficult. There is enormous=20
popular discontent and uneasiness. A large number of people of=20
Pakistan do not agree with what the US is doing in Afghanistan. At=20
the very least this resentment of the US has to be addressed.

Q: Do you think there could be another coup?

A: I think that this is possible, given that General Musharraf has=20
replaced three of his generals with people who agree with him. I=20
don't know where that leaves the three dismissed generals, but they=20
have people they could rally.

Q: Could we reach a point where fundamentalists gain more power and=20
take over? Obviously, the worry here is Pakistan's nuclear=20
capabilities.

A: I think that is entirely possible.

Q: What is your immediate family's reaction to the "war on terrorism"?

A: They are generally critical of U.S. foreign policy. We are in=20
agreement about that and agree also that the U.S. has certain=20
responsibilities. For example: going in and bombing Afghanistan and=20
reaching the particular goal of wiping out the Taliban is not=20
enough. There has to be follow-up work there and in other countries,=20
such as Indonesia, India and Pakistan, in which the U.S. has played=20
a role. They have a responsibility to rebuild the infrastructure of=20
a country. We also agree that the U.S. has to deal with the issues=20
of Israel and Palestine. Beyond that, we have disagreements. I don't=20
think that waging war on Afghanistan is a solution. Whereas some=20
members of my family think that wiping out the Taliban will [be the=20
answer] - as long as the U.S. follows through on rebuilding the=20
country.

But I think that even if the U.S. were successful in wiping out=20
Osama bin Laden and all of his terrorist cells in Afghanistan, and=20
presumably here in the U.S. and in Germany and how many other=20
countries in which they exist =8A which would be very difficult=8A there=20
is still a younger generation of 15-year-olds who will grow up and=20
be even more resentful of the US. And unti l we deal with that issue=20
of resentment from generation to generation, the answer is not more=20
military attacks but, rather, a just foreign policy and general=20
respect for everyone in the international community. That is what it=20
essentially comes down to.

Q: How have the U.S. actions against Afghanistan, and the whole=20
region, affected your work so far?

A: We've been very concerned that the level of support and attention=20
given to human-rights issues will be compromised. For example, last=20
May, 52 men were arrested in Egypt for alleged homosexual activities=20
or for being perceived as homosexual. In the past few months we have=20
worked hard to build international solidarity and pressure on the=20
Egyptian government to release those men, on the grounds that it is=20
a gross human-rights violation. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty=20
International have both partnered with us, which was great because=20
they are both mainstream groups and we received a lot of media=20
attention. Because of this there has been an enormous amount of=20
pressure put on the Egyptian government from individual citizens of=20
the U.S. and even 34 congress people, who wrote a letter. Any news=20
of that has been wiped out by coverage of what is happening in=20
Afghanistan. This is true for a case in India we are following in=20
which HIV-prevention workers were arrested. It's hard, right now, to=20
get people concerned with what is happening.

Q: What effect do you think Bush's war on terrorism will have on=20
GLBT issues in the U.S. and internationally?

A: I think that they've already gotten worse in the U.S. There are=20
huge similarities between the fundamentalist Christian right wing=20
here and the fundamentalist elements of Islam or the Taliban. There=20
are many issues where they would agree, and homosexuality is=20
certainly one.

Q: Isn't that too easy a connection? Certainly there is a big=20
difference between having a stone wall toppled on you, which is what=20
the Taliban does to homosexuals, and being denied the right to civil=20
marriage?

A: Well, yes, of course. There are differences. We don't live in a=20
theocracy, so the right wing has less political power. Another=20
important difference is the sophistication the U.S. right wing has.=20
They are able to prey on people's fears to rally support. While this=20
is similar to Islamic fundamentalists, the right wing here=20
understands that they have to tone down their rhetoric=8A. You will=20
routinely hear the Christian right speak of " love and compassion=20
for the homosexual. " I don't think you ever hear the Taliban speak=20
of love and compassion for homosexuals. The Taliban is able to be=20
ideologically pure in what they believe and how they are able to=20
carry out those beliefs.

So we are talking about degrees of sophistication of presentation=20
and what people can get away with. But there are very real=20
similarities. They both have a deep contempt toward those who might=20
see religion in a different way than they do.

Q: How do you see this affecting gay people in the U.S.?

A: I think what we are seeing is a heightened level of patriotism=20
and nationalism, as well as scapegoating and demonization. To me=20
this is linked clearly to issues of sexuality. In the U.S., people=20
who are most active in promoting nationalism are essentially=20
right-wing organizations, who promote a culture that is defined by=20
the qualities of being white, heterosexual, and of European descent.=20
So we see nationalism at work in the attacks on Muslims, Arabs,=20
Sikhs, and other South Asians because those people are seen as "=20
other. " This same system can be seen functioning, as well, in terms=20
of sexuality, when only one type of person is seen as having the=20
right to be here - the white heterosexual male, his wife and their=20
children. This leaves out, obviously, gay, lesbian, bisexual and=20
transgendered people.

Q: Isn't this all sort of theoretical?

A: Not at all. Just because you are a gay person with money and=20
status doesn't mean that there is no homophobia. Look at the words=20
of Jerry Falwell on the Pat Robertson show only a few days after=20
September 11, when he placed the blame for the attacks on gay=20
people, feminists, and the ACLU - all of which fall outside of their=20
vision of what is appropriate in America. And then, after that,=20
several right-wing leaders were publicly stating that gay or lesbian=20
people who had lost partners should not be allowed to be=20
beneficiaries of any relief funds.

Q: Would another example of this be the bomb that was sent from the=20
USS Enterprise on which sailors had written "high jack this fags"?=20
Clearly they were making the connection between the " enemy " - or=20
the " other " - and homosexuals.

A: Sure, absolutely. But that raises another whole complicated=20
issue. Writing those words was clearly wrong and homophobic. But I=20
would also argue that dropping bombs on Afghanistan was also wrong.=20
At IGLHRC we feel that the response to the murder

Issue Date: October 18 - 25, 2001
=A9 2001 Phoenix Media Communications Group=20

______

#2.

[ The Pakistan Govt in the last year or so has increasingly been=20
pushing for modernisation and streamlining of education at Madrasas=20
[Muslim religiouss schools].

o o o

The News International
Thursday October 25, 2001

Ulema reject Madaaris reforms package

KARACHI: The administrators and principals of leading religious=20
seminaries have rejected Madaaris reforms package of the government=20
terming it 'a Western conspiracy to destroy Deeni Madaaris and the=20
Islamic education imparted there. They said it was a threat to=20
religion and religious values and declared that they would not permit=20
any checking of their accounts or funding, nor any review of their=20
curriculum.

Chief of Wafaq-ul-Madaaris-ul-Arabia (Federal Board of Deeni=20
Madaaris), Maulana Salimullah Khan, Chancellor Binnori Town Madressah=20
Dr Abd-ur-Razzaq Iskandar, Dr Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzi, Mufti Muhammad=20
Jamil Khan, Maulana Saeed Ahmad Jalalpuri, Mufti Muzzammil Husain,=20
Maulana Naeem Amjad Salimi, Mufti Khalid Mahmood, Maulana Nazeer=20
Ahmad Taunsavi, Maulana Muhammad Ijaz and others said they would=20
resist every move of the government to take control of Deeni Madaaris=20
or introduction of any reforms package in their educational system.

The scholars said Federal Minister Omar Asghar's threat of dealing=20
with the ulema sternly was an open challenge to the honour and=20
dignity of religious scholars. They said none of the scholars had=20
ever used religion as a weapon, instead, it was always the rulers who=20
used that against the masses. They said ulema were already properly=20
trained to cope with every issue and would not permit any checking of=20
their accounts and funding, nor any review in their curriculum.

______

#3.

AMARTYA SEN TO DELIVER 2001 DRAPER LECTURE, October 30
The John W. Draper Program and Catharine R. Stimpson, Dean of New York
University's Graduate School of Arts and Science, are pleased to announce t=
hat
Amartya K. Sen, recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Economics, and Master =
of
Trinity College, Cambridge University, will deliver the 2001 Draper
Distinguished Lecture. Professor Sen's talk-"The People of the World"-will =
be
given at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, October 30, in Tishman Auditorium,=20
Vanderbilt Hall,
40 Washington Square South.
The lecture is free and open to the public.
Sen has published work in many areas of economics and philosophy, focusing =
on
development economics, welfare economics, social choice theory, the theory =
of
measurement, ethics, and political philosophy.
In "The People of the World" Professor Sen will argue against the "clash of
civilizations" thesis, which attributes all current global political=20
struggle to
confrontations among the incompatible values and beliefs of such major worl=
d
cultures as Islam and the West. Though the terrible events of September 11t=
h.
have had the effect of making this thesis look much more plausible, Sen arg=
ues
it can scarcely be right.
For him, however, the important question is not whether this thesis is wron=
g,
but why it is wrong. He will argue that the robust source of unity in the w=
orld
is not any imagined uniformity, but the multiplicity of our diversities. We=
are
definitely not the same, but we are different from each other in very many
different ways. The people of the world can indeed be classified into diffe=
rent
boxes, but there are many alternative rows of separating boxes. Any singula=
r
classification makes distinctions into barriers. For unity and universality=
, we
not only have to appreciate the value of what makes us similar (including o=
ur
basic humanity), but no less importantly, the uniting significance of our
diverse diversities.

______

#3.

South Asia Partnership Canada cordially invites you to a mid day
presentation on

FEMINISM AND RESISTANCE TO GLOBALIZATION OF CAPITALISM
By
Dr. Vanaja Dhruvarajan
Senior Scholar, University of Winnipeg

Date: Tuesday October 30, 2001
Time: 12.00 to 2.00 PM
At: Room 202, 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa [ Canada]

Dr. Vanaja Dhruvarajan's presentation will offer a provocative discussion o=
f
what she calls a corporate sponsored globalization and delineate its
negative impact on life in this planet. Rejecting the argument of
inevitability of such globalization, and drawing upon the life experiences
of women who are bearing the burnt of these changes across the world, she
provides an alternative paradigm to organize life that would be just and
caring for all. Her argument is that it is imperative that coalitions acros=
s
gender, race/ethnicity, nationality and class be forged with full
understanding of their intersecting and interlocking nature, under the
unifying vision of an emerging feminist paradigm to bring about social
transformation.

Dr. Vanaja Dhruvarajan completed her Ph. D. and Masters degrees at the
University of Chicago. She has taught courses on Sociology of Sex and Gende=
r
Relation, Socialization and Development, Women and Society, Indo-Canadian
Women: Change, Resistance and Adaptation, Women of Color in Canada, Feminis=
t
Theory at various Universities including University of Winnipeg, Carleton
University, Ottawa University, Simon Fraser University, St. Mary's
University and University of Manitoba.

Her publications include Thinking Through Difference: A Global Perspective
Women and Well-being, Hindu Women and the Power of Ideology.

Currently she is doing her research on Second Generation Hindu Indo-Canadia=
n
Women: Change, Resistance and Adaptation and Popular Women's Magazines and
the Empowerment of Women in India.

There will be an open discussion after the presentation.

Space is limited and prior registration is required.
Please send your confirmation of attendance to: Faruq Faisel
ffaisel@s... by October 29, 2001.

Faruq Faisel
Canadian Program Manager
South Asia Partnership (SAP) Canada
1 Nicholas Street, Suite 200
Ottawa Ontario K1N 7B7
Canada

Phone: (613) 241 1333, extension 226
Fax: (613) 241 1129
URL: www.sapcanada.org

______

#4.

[ Sangh Parivar =3D The Family of Hindu Far Right]
o o o

Date: Wed, 24 Oct 2001

VANDALIZING TAJ

by Ram Puniyani

Taj has stood as a splendor, a seventh wonder in the world for over
centuries. It symbolizes a tribute to love. No visit to India by the
discerning tourist can be complete without a trip to Agra on the banks of
river Jamuna, where this marvel is located. All this came to one's mind
while going through the news of the 'eventful visit' by the members of BJP
youth wing, who had a convention at Agra and probably to express their
future agenda a la Babri Masjid, they did utilize this occasion to
vandalize this beautiful mausoleum.

Unlike the case of Babri Masjid where the Sangh parivar (Sp), whose
progeny BJP is, was propagating that the mosque was built by destroying
the Ram temple, in the case of Taj the myth being popularized is that this
itself is a Shiv Temple, which Shah Jahan took over and converted it into
a tomb.
As per the version of history being popularized by Sp, Taj Mahal
originally was a Shiv temple or a Hindu king's palace, which was procured
by Shah Jahan and converted into a tomb for his wife Mumataj Mahal. Mr.
P.N. Oak, the Sangh parivar ideologue who has propounded this theory after
apparently studying Badashahnama, the biography of Shah Jahan, claims that
it was procured from Mirza Raja Jai Singh, grandson of Man Singh. This
'Historian' from Sp stable says that Taj Mahal word is a distortion of the
word Tejo Mahalaya, meaning a Shiv temple.

At one level such claims should be dismissed out of hand as they are based
neither on facts nor on sound historiography, but since they have a
communalizing impact on the society, since they are influencing the social
common sense, it is necessary that we take them up for proper analysis.

Shah Jahan lost his favorite wife Mumtaj Mahal while she was giving birth
to their child. King was heart broken and as per the promise given to her
he gave orders for this magnificent structure to be built. Abdul Hamid
Lahauri the court historian records in Badshah Nama, and gives full
details of the construction, the expenses involved and the mechanism of
supervision of the whole process. The account given by him is corroborated
by the accounts of foreign travelers like Peter Mundy, Tavernier, Nicholai
Manucci and Francis Bernier, who visited Agra at that time.
It was a mammoth project replete with the structures, gardens and all the
paraphernalia of the mausoleum. Mirza Raja Jaising gave the land in lieu
of compensation and this is confirmed by two of the firmans (court orders)
of Shah Jahan. This is what is misinterpreted as that the structure itself
was procured. The details of construction process leave no doubt as to who
built it. The details of regular expenses from the king's treasury on
regular basis are also available. As soon construction began it was
noticed by the European travelers who visited Agra and left a record of
that. Peter Mundy (1631-32) writes "The king is now building a Sepulcher
for his late deceased Queen Taje Mahal (Taj Mahal) whom he dearly
affected. He intends it shall excel all others...the building is big and
goes on with excessive labor"(R. Nath, 'The Taj: a Mausoleum', Seminar
364-Dec 1989). Tavernier, a French Jeweler first came to Agra in 1640-41,
when Taj was still under construction. He confirmed that Emperor Shah
Jahan was building a grand Mausoleum for his beloved queen.

Some ideologues are resorting to carbon dating of the wood of the doors.
Carbon dating of the wood of the doors cannot form the basis of dating of
the structures as carbon dating is valid only for imperishable structures
and wood does not come in that category. Also doors are replaceable and
the life of wood may be different than the date of construction of the
building. Tejo Mahalaya can-not be the name of Shiv, and on the top of
everything else Man Singh clan was a Vaishanvite not A Shaiv. The very
architecture of Taj Mahal goes against the temple theory as temples have a
particular architecture, which does not conform to what we see in the Taj.

This ridiculous claim is in line with many such, which try to prove that
it was Hindu civilization, which has given culture and knowledge not only
to India but also to the whole world. This is in line with the claim that
Christianity is nothing but Krishna Niti, the word Rome derived from Ram
etc. This also brings to our notice how far the average sentiments can be
manipulated by misusing History. As such the current communal constructs
derive heavily from the distortion of Historical events and their communal
interpretation. This in turn drives the average common activist or people
at large to act according to the 'hurt from the past' and to avenge for
the 'historical wrongs'. The deeds like these vandalism, demolition etc.
are undertaken, part planned part spontaneous. It is not just adequate to
punish those who were involved in this vandalization of this monument. We
need to have a look at the teaching of history in schools and colleges.
What type of distortion they are putting in the minds of students. At the
same time, while the process of rationalisation initiated by the NCERT in
late 70s and 80s is being reversed and communal views are further
strengthened, the communal biases derived from misinterpretation of
History are being boosted by the efforts of Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, an
RSS swayamsevak, who is heading the MHRD, under which the department of
Education comes. History books are being rewritten to worsen the communal
slant, which many of them, barring the currently prevalent NCERT one's
have. There is a plan even to rewrite these NCERT books in line with the
Sp understanding of the History. It is not for nothing that BJP wants to
control education and media in the coalition govt. This is in keeping with
their long-term goal of communalizing the society and deriving political
mileage from this.

This act of BJP youth is a shame to the values, which have emerged from
our freedom struggle, which threw up the values of Unity in Diversity, it
valued all the cultural heritage of the country and gave due and equal
respect to the different components of Indian culture, whatever be their
religious linkages. This trend is being abused under the dispensation of
the politics of Sp, and BJP led coalition is subtly promoting this in
different ways.

(Writer is Secretary of EKTA, Committee for Communal Amity, Mumbai [Bombay]=
)

______

#5.

[ Junoon is the best known progressive rock band from Pakistan]

o o o o

Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2001 13:38:01 -0400

Hi folks -

Just to remind you to get your tickets for the Junoon for Peace concert
which will be taped for television broadcast. It will be at the Alliance
Francaise 22 East 60th Street, October 27 at 7:30 pm. You can buy your
tickets through the link below.

http://evite.citysearch.com/sameerybutt@h.../junoonforpeace

Mallika Dutt
Breakthrough
540 West 122 Street
# 42
New York, NY 10027
212-666-3296 - phone
212-666-6156 - fax
duttmallika@y...
www.breakthrough.tv

______

#6.

DALIT SOLIDARITY NETWORK

PRESS STATEMENT

DSN DELEGATION MEETS NEW FOREIGN OFFICE MINISTER

Ben Bradshaw MP, recently-appointed Foreign Office Minister for India today
met with a delegation from the Dalit Solidarity Network (DSN).

In the introduction Rev David Haslam, DSN Chair, outlined the
discrimination, oppression and atrocities that Dalits in India continued to
suffer despite legal provisions. He informed the Minister of the
continuation of the degrading and inhumane practice of 'manual scavenging'
(a term for the clearing of human waste) by Dalits in parts of India and
presented the Minister with a new book on the topic, 'Endless Filth'.

The Minister agreed that human rights should form part of the agenda of his
forthcoming visit to India in November. Rodney Bickerstaffe, (former UNISO=
N
General Secretary) pressed vigorously that the issue of caste discriminatio=
n
be a specific part of that agenda, in the light of the profile of this issu=
e
at the recent World Conference Against Racism in South Africa.

Jeremy Corbyn MP drew the Minister's attention to the forthcoming EU/India
Summit to be held in New Delhi in November and the fact that at the last
such Summit meeting held in Lisbon last year, India and the EU had promised
to "coordinate efforts to promote and protect human rights".

The Minister agreed that the three countries of Belgium, Spain and Sweden -
the troika responsible for the Summit meeting - should be approached to fin=
d
out how the European Parliament 2001 Human Rights Report will be followed u=
p
at the Summit. Paragraph 114 of the Report urges the EU and Member States
to "formulate strategies to counter the widespread practice" of caste
discrimination and paragraph 115 "calls upon the EU to investigate to what
extent its policies contribute to the abolition of caste discrimination".

Revd David Haslam commented, 'Despite his other heavy responsibilities in
central Asia at the present time the Minister was clearly genuinely
concerned about the caste issue and promised to do whatever he could to
follow it up at the most effective moment'.

23rd October 2001

For more information contact:
Convenor: Revd David Haslam, 41 Burbage Road, London SE24 9HB, [UK]
Tel: 020 724 6633 Fax: 020 7733 5637
email:davidhaslam@e...

______

#7.

FREEDOM UNFINISHED
Fundamentalism and Popular Resistance in Bangladesh Today

Jeremy Seabrook

This book analyses the threat. One is the rise of fundamentalism at=20
the expense of the Bengali people's more generous, inclusive Islamic=20
tradition that has coexisted with Bengali identity for centuries, and=20
which now threatens a puritanical extinction of the joyful music,=20
dancing and poetry of secular Bengal. Another is the Western business=20
culture that is seizing the imagination of the emerging middle class.

At the same time, and a hopeful sign, a struggle is taking place.=20
Many Bengalis are resisting this violent attack. Jeremy Seabrook=20
describes and celebrates this fight back The outcome is as important=20
for other threatened cultures as it is for humanity at large.

'Jeremy Seabrook's book is a beautifully written account of the=20
complex struggles over livelihood, identity and politics in=20
Bangladesh. Through interviews with people across the country he=20
vividly captures their hopes, fears, sorrows and spirit and brings=20
alive the story of Bangladesh -- the dream of the liberation war, the=20
post-liberation cycle of frustrations and renewals, the emergence of=20
a wealthy new elite, a leadership devoid of ideology, and the=20
continuing battle between fundamentalist and secular forces over the=20
interpretation of religion and culture. The nuanced description of=20
individual dilemmas and perspectives in Bangladesh in the larger=20
context of globalization makes this study a timely and valuable=20
contribution to the current debates on globalization and development.'

Rounaq Jahan, Professor, Columbia University, New York

Hb 1 85649 907 3 =A345.00 $69.95
Pb 1 85649 908 1 =A314.95 $25.00
256pp Map

Zed Books, 7 Cynthia Street, London N1 9JF , UK
Sales@z...
FAX +44 (0)207 833 3960

______

#8.

Date: Wed, 24 Oct 2001

Book Review
Name of the Book: Hinduism and Secularism-- After Ayodhya
Edited by: Arvind Sharma
Publisher: Palgrave, Houndmills [UK] and New York
Year: 2001
Pages: 214
Price: 42.50 pounds sterling
ISBN: 0-333-79406-0
Reviewed by: Yoginder Sikand

The destruction of the Babri Masjid by Hindutva mobs in 1992 marked a=20
major watershed in the history of inter-community relations in India.=20
The controversy has, of course, yet to be settled. With the Vishwa=20
Hindu Parishad ['World Hindu Council'] and allied groups now raking=20
up the issue again, threatening to launch a mass campaign to build a=20
temple on the site where the mosque once stood, the Ayodhya dispute=20
seems to be hurtling back on to the center stage of the troubled=20
world of Indian politics.
This edited volume, a collection of nine essays of varying=20
quality, seeks to provide a general overview of the state of=20
inter-community, particularly Hindu-Muslim, relations in India in the=20
years following the destruction of the Babri Masjid and the tragic=20
loss of thousands of precious lives that followed in its wake. Seven=20
of the nine contributors are openly critical of the politics of=20
religious hatred that now seems to be engulfing India, seeing=20
secularism, variously defined, as the only hope to preserve the=20
country, despite its enormous diversities, as an on-going=20
proposition. Two writers, the Belgian Catholic-turned-Hindutva=20
apologist, Koenraad Elst and the Indian-born and Canada-based=20
Shrinivas Tilak, differ, and unabashedly argue the case for Hindutva=20
as the basis of a Hindu polity for India. The reader is thus treated=20
to a variety of different perspectives on the direction in which=20
India seems to be moving today.
Secularism is defined in different ways by the contributors=20
who insist that a secular polity alone can stem the tide of ethnic=20
civil war in India. In his survey of the post-Babri Indian Muslim=20
predicament, Theodore P.Wright, Jr. argues that while the Indian=20
state has increasingly been veering round to a Hindu nationalist=20
position, the Indian Muslims have sought to resist the threats to=20
their existence by, among other means, seeking to ally with various=20
'secular' parties, in the process abandoning the Congress for its=20
soft Hindutva. The shrill rhetoric of some Muslim groups can only be=20
counterproductive for the community, he insists. In his view, the=20
only way in which Muslims can hope to stave off the Hindutva=20
challenge is by working for the preservation of secularism,=20
practically abandoning demands such as a separate personal code and=20
other 'communal' agendas, on the one hand, and, on the other, by=20
accepting the status of what he calls 'Hindu Muslims'. This abject=20
surrender to the Hindutva camp would, of course, hardly seem a=20
reasonable option for most Muslims, and Wright does not tell us how=20
Muslims could be made to see the 'wisdom' of his advice. But then, in=20
the rarefied atmosphere of conference rooms and the academia anything=20
is possible.
More to the point is John Carroll=92s understanding of the=20
prospects for secularism in India. He argues that the uniquely Indian=20
version of secularism=97equal treatment by the state of all religions,=20
rather than a rigid separation between religion and the state or=20
state hostility towards religion=97has actually enabled the Indian=20
state to dabble in the politics of inter-religious contestation. In=20
the process, Indian nationalism has, for many, been seen to be=20
synonymous with Hinduism. An urgent task before the Indian state,=20
Carroll argues, is to consciously display complete neutrality in=20
matters of religion. A rigid separation of the state from religion is=20
also stressed by Subhash Kashyap and Dhirendra Vajpeyi, who make=20
roughly the same argument as Carroll.
The Ayodhya dispute, centred as it is on rival understandings=20
of Indian history, has had momentous consequences for the way many=20
Indians understand themselves and their traditions. Matthew Cook=20
writes that the symbol of Rama, on whose birth-place Hindutva=20
extremists insist the Babri Masjid stood, is to be seen as=20
sufficiently broad and encompassing to mean different things to=20
different social groups, while grounded in a vision of a utopian=20
social order. The Hindutva vision of Rama Rajya ['The Rule of Rama']=20
he says has little to do with tradition as statically defined.=20
Rather, it is to be seen as a modern construct and as, above all, a=20
political device, and not simply a call to resist the inevitable=20
march of modernity.
This debate over tradition and history is brilliantly=20
examined in another essay included in this volume, Steven Hoffman's=20
piece on 'Historical Narrative and Nation-State in India'. Closely=20
examining the history textbooks produced by 'secular' historians for=20
the National Council for Educational Research and Training [NCERT] in=20
the period under Congress rule, Hoffman shows the complex process of=20
the construction of the notion of the secular, multi-religious Indian=20
'nation-state'. Challenges to this understanding of the Indian state,=20
he says, come principally from two quarters=97the subaltern historians=20
with their critique of state-centric historiography and from the=20
Hindutva right-wing. Hoffman's analysis is sharp, incisive and=20
enlightening, although discussion of the saffronisation of the NCERT=20
in recent years is totally absent.
While the other contributors to this volume seem to imagine=20
Hindus and Muslims as two clearly defined groups, neatly set apart=20
from each other, Vasudha Narayanan challenges this reified notion of=20
community identity in her fascinating essay on Hindu-Muslim relations=20
in Tamil Nadu. She writes of the remarkable give-and-take between=20
Hindus and Muslims at the everyday level, from Tamil Muslims writing=20
on the Ramayana to the Muslim wife of a Hindu deity at a popular=20
temple and Hindu attendance at the dargahs of Muslim Sufi saints.=20
Although Hindus and Muslims are aware of the boundaries between them,=20
Narayanan writes that often these boundaries are porous and 'fuzzy'.=20
Hindus and Muslims need not always, or even at most times, see=20
themselves as inveterate foes.
In sharp contrast to this understanding of Hindu-Muslim=20
relations are two jarring pieces written by Hindutva apologists Elst=20
and Tilak. Elst's essay, written in a journalistic mode that=20
ill-befits an academic treatise such as this, deals with the Hindutva=20
ideologue Sita Ram Goel, proprietor of the Delhi-based Voice of India=20
publication house. Goel, Elst tells us, is critical not just of=20
'secularists' and 'pseudo-secularists' but even of the Rashtriya=20
Swyamsevak Sangh, the apex body of Hindutva, arguing that the RSS=20
itself has become a victim of the discourse of secularism. He insists=20
that the Hindu-Muslim problem can only be solved by attacking Islam=20
as an ideology, for, in his view, Islam and terror are inseparable.=20
Elst seems to fully agree with this uninhibited outpouring of venom.=20
No account is taken of Muslim arguments against the Goel thesis.=20
Although not as openly abrasive as Elst and Goel, Shrinivas Tilak,=20
too, sees India's only hope in Hindutva. His essay is more scholarly=20
though not less unenlightening than Elst's, and but for the elegance=20
of its style, differs little from the standard arguments to be found=20
in the columns of the Organiser, the official mouthpiece of the RSS.
The contributions included in this volume thus present a=20
variety of understandings of the interplay between religion,=20
religious communities and the state in post-1992 India. All, except=20
for Narayanan's piece, work with the faulty premise of Muslims and=20
Hindus being two well-defined homogenous communities, something that=20
sociologists and social historians have for long been challenging.=20
Nor do any of the contributors take serious cognizance of the caste=20
question. If Hinduism, as is well known, is predicated on the caste=20
system, surely no analysis that purports to speak of 'Hinduism and=20
secularism' can afford to ignore the crucial issue of caste. For=20
instance, the very notion of Hinduism that all the contributors work=20
with is itself problematic from the Dalit point of view. Radical=20
Dalits would find Hinduism and its latest avatar, Hindutva, as thinly=20
disguised forms of Brahminism. In their reading of the current=20
situation in India, Hindutva is seen as the latest weapon in the=20
hands of the =91upper caste=92 minority to continue to keep the vast=20
majority of Indians, particularly dispossessed groups like the Dalits=20
and tribals, in the thraldowm and servitude that they have been=20
subjected to for centuries.
Its prohibitive price, besides the very general treatment of complex=20
issues in most of the essays that give little information that an=20
regular newspaper reader would not already possess, makes this a=20
safely avoidable book.

_____

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