DR. S. AUSAF SAIED VASFI observes that the cat of communal forces has come into open after intensive investigation of recent Malegaon and Modasa blasts. He pleads for taking the investigation to its logical end.
With enormous zest they floated the thesis that Indian Muslims are a security risk, that they are not trustworthy and dependable. What the motivated opinion makers repeated ad infinitum was: “Every Muslim is not a terrorist. But every terrorist is a Muslim.”
The truth is that truth has an uncanny knack for rewarding itself ultimately.
Have you, by the way, ever come across a news item which is comment also? The arrest of Saffron activists is both news and comment.
MUSLIM AGREEMENT
Before proceeding further, let us hasten to record our total agreement with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, asserting that “brandishing terrorists as Hindu is wrong.” Of course it is both wrong and misleading as well as uniformed. All the Hindu brethren of plural Bharat have not lost their mental equilibrium. They are neither malicious nor terrorist. They believe in tolerance and accommodation. It is only the Saffron fringe, believing in Hindutva, who are considered terrorist by their victims. We hope the BJP leadership would not mind describing the terrorist belonging to the majority community as “Saffron terrorists” or “Hindutva terrorists”. And Hindutva is not Hinduism. It is not we Muslims who feel so. It is the Hindutva’s author and exponent, Mr. Savarkar, who says so in so many words. For the sake of convenience, you can call it “militant Hinduism”.
The Saffron assertion that the terrorists are terrorists and have no religion is, however wrong. Had Nathuram Godse no religion?
The news and comment, as referred to above, is arrests of the past and present Saffron activists, including some military personnel suspected to be involved in the September 29 terrorist attacks on Malegaon and Modasa in which six Muslims were killed.
It all spilled over following the needle of suspicion turning towards Ms Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested the flamboyant lady, who does not miss facials and sports boy-cut hair, rides motorcycles and fixes the eve-teasers on the roads.
SAFFRON REACTION
The immediate reaction of the BJP leadership to the Sadhvi’s arrest was “she has nothing to do with us.” So remarked Mr. L.K. Advani. But her past, when she was a front-rank functionary of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the BJP, has been haunting the Saffron Brotherhood. It will be appropriately used by the opponents of the Saffron in Maharashtra and elsewhere.
The timing of the Saffron exposure is significant. The State Assembly elections are just months away, while general elections are next year. If the postponement of action against her and her accomplices is by design, it means that powers-that-be in New Delhi and Maharashtra allowed the motivated baiters of Muslims to tarnish their and their religious ideology’s image wilfully! Would they care to come clean on the issue before the poll?
Ms Uma Bharti, while defending Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, has charged the BJP with disowning Thakur after her use. It is a serious charge. A tale-tell PTI photograph is doing rounds in which the smart-lady has been shown with the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and the BJP chief, Mr. Rajnath Singh.
To quote the Congress spokesperson: “The photograph showing Pragya Singh is recent and cannot be dismissed as just a public photograph of the BJP leaders. It is a very special photograph of a close and tightly knit group inside a small room with high-ranking BJP members like MP CM Shivraj Chouhan and party president Rajnath Singh with Pragya Singh. This is the photograph of a special circle of trust – an intimate and exclusive circle of trust.”
USE OF SADHVI
The sufferers, who suffered at the hands of Saffronites, would vouchsafe that even the defunct Jana Sangh did not hesitate in using women and children for what they call “nationalist” causes.
Now the Maharashtra ATS is reportedly in search of a note-book in which an accomplice of the Sadhvi, Shamlal Sahu jotted down a formula of manufacturing bombs. Along with another accomplice, Shiv Narayan Singh, now the Sadhvi is undergoing forensic tests – polygraph, brain-mapping and narco-analysis.
The suspects have been charged under Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 326 (causing grievous injury with dangerous weapons), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 123 (concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war) and 130 (aiding in escape of rescuing or harbouring state prisoner) of the Indian Penal Code and under Sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the Explosive Act.
‘LARGER CONSPIRACY’
The state ATS Additional Commissioner Mr. Sukhwinder Singh, on October 30, said the Malegaon blasts were a part of a “larger conspiracy.” The nation would definitely feel obliged if the investigation officials fully expose the said conspiracy. But can they? Would they?
The Muslim leadership has also noted the solidarity shown by Mr. Lalu Prasad, Mr. Nitish Kumar and Mr. Ramvilas Paswan against the Raj Thackeray thugs. But had they shown similar solidarity ever against the RSS, BJP, VHP attacks against Muslims?
Do you know that the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has 60 affiliates or side-organisations. The Durga Vahini is one of them. Its former President, Ms Shashikala Shastra has also been taken into custody for her links with the swashbuckling Sadhvi. Other big fish arrested are retired Major Ramesh Upadhya, who is Working President of “Abhinav Bharat”. Another personage is a serving Lt. Colonel, Mr. S. Purohit, who has served with Military Intelligence. Having been moved to Mumbai for “interaction” he is posted at the Army Education Corps Training College at Pachmarhi (MP). He is alleged to be a part of the Saffron terror network. Shivnarayan Singh Kalsangram and Sham Bhavarilal Sahu are also part of the subversive group. They, it is alleged, plotted and planted bombs. The Bhonsle Military School in Nagpur, where they studied, is alleged to be a beehive of suspect elements, owing allegiance to the RSS ideology.
DIRECT LINK
The Congress feels the main Opposition (BJP) is “directly linked with terrorism.” Not only in Malegaon and Modasa the Saffron hand is clearly visible, it was also visible in Kanpur, when, on August 24, two Bajrang Dal activists, Rajiv Mishra and Bhupinder Singh were killed in a flat where they were making bombs. Police found a large quantity of explosives from the flat later on. The police had also recovered country-made grenades, timer devices and chemicals used in making explosives. But the State Chief Minister Ms. Mayawati did not show interest in actively perusing the significant lead.
Be it at the Makka Masjid in Hyderabad or Dargah of Ajmer in UP everywhere the nation was asked to believe that SIMI or HUJI or any other Muslim organisation was behind the blasts. Every time, Muslims were put into dock. Their youngmen, highly qualified engineers, doctors and professionals were picked up either to strengthen the suspicion or reinvigorate the Saffron-floated rumour that Muslims were the villains of the piece. It was done meticulously in a planned manner. The print and electronic media failed to see the trap. They believed in the half-baked stories dished out by the Intelligence apparatus. Now the cat is out. However, is there any guarantee that the investigations would be allowed to reach their logical conclusion?
The Saffron is in panic. It is in search of cover. Even the Shahnawaz Hussains and the Mukhtar Abbas Naqvis are no more confident of winning the election from the safe, Muslim concentration constituencies like Bhagalpur and Rampur.