Muslim
India was my favorite Child, nurtured with love, time, energy and money for
more than twenty years, with the objective of focusing on the Muslims situation
in India, political, economic, social and educational of noting its struggle
and endeavor, its weakness and strengths, and hypocrisy of its friends as well
as its unrealizable perceptions, both internal and external. In one word, the
object was to compile a record for the next generation of the events &
happenings of the last quarter of the 20th century. Muslim India fearlessly
brought together all available authoritative information about political
under-representation, economic deprivation, its educational backwardness &
social degeneration. In the process Muslim India became an institution,
acclaimed for his accuracy and impartiality, as it was community, which was as
proud of being Indians as it was of being Muslims, thus representing a reach
cultural synthesis and confluence. Muslim India was acclaimed both for its
reportage and analysis. In a way it became the fore-runner of the Sachchar
Report.
In 1996,
I lost my seat in the Parliament and thus ceased to have access to official
information. I was also no longer in a position to bridge the financial gap. So
on completion of 20 years in December, 2002, I requested my dear friend Zafrul
Islam Khan, Editor of Milli Gazette, to take it over. He ran it for three years
then stopped.
Pressed
by some Friends & assured of their support, I began the third phase in July
2006 and kept it going until December, 2009.But the friend who had promised
extensive help silently withdrew after the first year! What pained me for 20
years & I kept on distributing more than a thousand complimentary copied to
eminent public figures, academicians and journalists. At one stage I appealed
to them to become paid subscribers but the response was poor. I tried to raise
money through enrollment of Donor-Subscribers and Friends of Muslim India
going. But for how long! The real problem was non-availability of skilled staff
whose cost had risen & the mounting debt.
Agonizingly,
I realized that with poor health and faltering finances had no option to call
it a day. So the last issue is in your hand.
I have
been wondering how to keep in touch with you to share my reaction to the
national situation as it develops. Perhaps occasionally through the internet, I
thank all of you who have helped me all these years in one way or the other.
I pray to
Allah that before long someone, stronger than me and with better command of
resources shall emerge on the scene to fill the gap.
May Allah
bless, Ameen
(These
words are Mr. Syed Shahabuddin’s in his “The Editor’s Desk” of magazine, Muslim
India, 306, December, 2009 page no.5)
To read
Mr. Syed Shahbuddin sb’s Editor’s Desk, about his magazine Muslim India, “Khuda Hafiz, Muslim India” in his reputed
magazine, Muslim India, 306, December, 2009 page no.5, my tear come out and I
was shocked for a long time that how much our community is self centric and
careless about the affairs of Muslims. Now it’s tough for me to stop my pen
without hesitation to blame not only community leaders but those capitalist
Muslims and intellectuals who just ignore this great work and hardly supported
that magazine financially or intellectually during crisis period.
Community
hardly received that kind of efforts, after partition’s shock from Muslim
domain and Muslim society, but if someone comes out for community, they trampled
by a group of people for their own political or social benefits, and the same
thing had happened with him. Our community never approached him for help to
stimulate such great magazine which still very much preferred in readers,
academics and intellectual’s circle due to good information in all respect.
I hope
that some people will sincerely look this issue and will revive this magazine
which is very significant and as Mr. Syed Shahabuddin sb, said in his appeal
that, “the object was to compile a record for the next generation of the events
& happenings of the last quarter of the 20th century “. If such kind of
work will stop so our next generation will be in trouble and a good planner
like him will be again grief and sorrow due to non support from the community.
It’s time
to think about our next generations who will be required such efforts and that
resourceful information for their development and for hard competitive
condition. Now, due to heavy commercialization of education and professionalism
hardly any good supportive figures available around us apart from these people
who always ready to support the community with all their potential. I have few names in my mind which cannot be
ignored due to their past and present serving of this great work in a very
positive and much dedicative way, like
Mr. Wali Rahmani sb., who started RAHMANI-30, Maulana Badruddin Ajmal
sb., who started free IAS/IPS coaching institute, Syed Zafar Mahmood sb., who
are running ZAKAT FOUNDATION OF INDIA, and Mr. P.A Inamdar sb., who are running
many educational institution and many
other organization as well like Hamdard Study Circles etc. who are active to
produce a dazzling next generation.
Despite
all these progressive efforts, we are leg behind from our target and Muslims are
worse than SC/ST. This is the sour fact which is always strike my mind and
others mind as well, why we are so backward? Why our community never achieved
that certain point which could make community self independence, why our
politician and so called intellectuals just ignores the community to proof
their loyalty towards state and some political party, and to just show they are
more secular? Why our religious institutions are only centric about religious
education rather than modern setup but earlier it was well setup like
Al-Nizamia of Baghdad which was setup in 1065 and in just 33 years of age
Al-Ghazali was appointed professor of that school in 1091, where politics,
bureaucracy, math, physics, chemistry, history, astrology and other subject taught among 3000 students.
Not only
that period, after 18th centaury many Muslims scholars who were basically from
traditional educational background done well in Journalism, Politics, History,
sociology, mathematics etc which now madrasas fail to produce such scholars,
specially Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Maulana Shibli
Numani, Syed Suleman Nadvi, Maulana Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali, Syed Ali
Mian Nadvi, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Anwar Shah Kashmiri, Muhammad Qasim
Nanotvi, Maulan Maudoodi, Pir Meher Ali Shah, Allama Iqbal, Rafique Zakaria,
and others.
Now it’s
time to think work that Muslim community must take their own responsibility and
efforts to generate such classic scholar as it was earlier, we have our long
legacy to produce good journalist, doctors, engineers, social scientist,
thinkers, mathematician and many other professional experts by own resource for
next generation necessity, so the next generation will be thankful to us for a
great work which is still due.
If we
commit to do that with full of our dedication and well guided method then we
can change the life of thousand of our people specially children which are
still waiting a liberator (Masiha) and we can develop our secular India in
which all religious and political option will be available for everyone without
any biasness and discrimination. Government assistance is good but our own
efforts should be sturdier.
Before
going to conclude my writing here I would like to remind two couplet of Allama
Iqbal, in which he says that “QUWAT O FIKR O AMAL PAHLE FANA HOTI HAI, PHIR
KISI QAUM KE SHAUKAT PE ZAWAL AATA HAI” and in the second couplet he said that
“Khulte
Nahin Iss Qulzam-e-Khamosh Ke Asrar
Jab Tak
Tu Iss Zarb-e-Kaleemi Se Na Cheere”
The
secrets of this silent sea, however, do not yield
Until you
cut it with the blow of the Moses’ rod.
In the
light of above couplet there is need to unite in all front and work for better
education, political and social participation for the progress of this country
and community and not to be fragmented in the name of Deobandi, Barelvi,
Khanqahi, Hanafi, Ahle Hadees or Jamiat Ulema e Hind, Jamat E Islami Hind,
Jamat Ahle Hadees, Khanqahi, Muqallid and Non Muqalllid etc.. Sometimes Muslim
are treated as a second class citizen of this country due to fragmentation in
our thought and political, sectarian division.
I hope
our religious and political leaders learnt lot from the contemporary politics,
social changes, current crisis from other our people who fought for their right
and demand for participation and existence with dignity. Due to lack of one
voice we are facing lot of problem not only in our village, city, and state but
all over nation is same way. So, it’s my humble request to all those who have
great ideas for community, society for their socio-political and educational
development which is due since long time to come out with fresh mind and take
the responsibility of community and start Muslim India in coming months.
(Syed Mohammad Raghib is a doctoral research
scholar in Centre for West Asian Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University,
New Delhi. He can be reached at raghib.jnu@gmail.com)
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