JyotiPunwani’s article ‘Profiles of prejudice’ in The Hindu (April 11) is worth reading. It has illustrated the malicious attempts to smear the secular character of the Constitution, by the very institution which is expected to protect it. The manner how the police in the past, showcased the so-called ‘suspects’ by covering their faces with chequered scarves, made them wear skull caps, amounted to rubbing salt into the wounds of the entire Muslim community. The recent police circular in Maharashtra to keep an eye on the Girls Islamic Organisation (GIO) of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind is yet another instance of the brutish attitude of the powers that be. As a matter of fact, such inhuman abuse is validating some disgruntled elements in the community to look up to terrorism as the panacea akin to ‘the hunted becoming the hunter’. It is high time, serious efforts are made to bring the largest minority which constitutes over 15 percent of the country’s population into the national mainstream, and desist from pushing the Muslims to frustration.
Syed Sultan Mohiddin
Kadapa, M.S.