Taking notice of recent incidents of mob lynching by cow vigilantes and others, Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Hind Maulana Syed Jalaluddin Umari called on the Central and State governments to take immediately ‘firm political, legal and administrative steps’ against mob lynching. Besides, he appealed to Muslims to try their level best ‘to prevent the situation from escalating into becoming a reason for communal and religious strife’.
He was addressing monthly press meet held at JIH headquarters in New Delhi on 12 July. Apart from JIH leaders, one of the survivors of mob lynching Iftikhar Alam and his brother Ehsan Alam were also present at the press meet. Iftikhar Alam narrated his story how a mob started assaulting him suddenly for no reason at Sarai Kale Khan in New Delhi on 7 July when he came out of his car. His brother accused the police of implicating the victim in false cases.
Seeing this grim situation, Maulana Umari issued an appeal reminding the Central and State governments of their duty and urging Muslims to avoid any communal confrontation. Here is the full text of the appeal:
Jamaat Chief’s Appeal to the Government, Indian Citizens and Muslim Youth
The communal situation in the country is deteriorating very fast with peace and stability suffering a severe blow. The chain of attacks on minorities, Dalits and other oppressed classes continues unabated in the name of “gau-raksha” (cow protection) and other excuses. The spate of mob-lynching rages persistently in trains, buses and public places. It is highly regrettable that there is a feeling of fear and insecurity among citizens in many places of the country.
Those in power assure us that breaking the law will not be tolerated and the guilty will be awarded exemplary punishment but the reality is that this assurance is not having any impact on the ground. A brutal incident of mob-lynching took place in Jharkhand on the very day our Prime Minister gave a statement against killing in the name of cow protection. Such incidents are now happening in broad daylight in New Delhi – the capital of the country.
We demand that the government must feel the seriousness and grave nature of this issue. The people of the country feel that these assaulters are related both ideologically and organisationally with the ruling class and this relationship has further emboldened them. In such a situation the responsibility of the government increases even further. The government should immediately take firm political, legal and administrative steps so that the confidence of minorities and other oppressed classes is restored and the mischief mongers get a clear message that any attempt to take the law into one’s own hands will not be tolerated and the offenders will have to face the full brunt of the law enforcement machinery.
It is very heartening to see that public opinion has been aroused in the entire country against these atrocities and irrespective of caste and creed, all sections of society have spoken in defence and in favor of the victims. This is the true spirit of our nation and its real strength. We support these justice loving people. We must spread this voice of truth and justice and the entire country should stand behind the victims and become united against oppression.
In order to improve the situation, some suggestions have been proposed by civil society members. Especially noteworthy is the proposal to pass a new law against mob-lynching with the provision that if such an incident occurs in any district, then action should be taken against the police officers deputed in that area, action against those who are spreading venom on social media, arresting those who spread rumors etc. We support these suggestions and demand of the government to immediately accept these recommendations. The government must give a loud and clear message that oppression and violence will not be tolerated and people who take law into their own hands will face strict punishment.
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind appeals especially to the Muslim youth that they should not get depressed and lose heart. They should avoid being instigated and avoid giving any emotional reactions. The communal elements want Muslims to either get disheartened or lose hope or should become isolated from the mainstream in this country. We should not use the language of fear and despondency nor use the language of confrontation and communalism. Our emotional reaction and an unbalanced narrative will only help the divisive agenda of the communal forces. We should try our level best to prevent the situation from escalating into becoming a reason for communal and religious strife. According to the teachings of Islam, the most important work in such a situation is to run a vigorous campaign for establishing communications, contacts and connections with our non-Muslim brothers and sisters. We should remove their misunderstandings and apprise them of the true teachings of Islam and enlighten them of its pristine message. We should raise our voice against oppression and injustice hand in hand with our non-Muslim brothers and sisters.
Come, let us all pledge together to improve the situation and to maintain the peace and tranquility in our country. We hope to get the cooperation of all well-wishers of our nation and if God wills, we will succeed in giving a correct and constructive direction to the nation.
Syed Jalaluddin Umari
Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Hind