Jinnah in jannat - India at war

Life is at it again and the sailing isn't too smooth these days. Jinnah is the last thing on my mind, and the whole controversy surrounding Jaswant Singh's book on Jinnah is certainly not distracting me from the turmoils life has to offer. BJP may be on a soul searching spree and there may be too many sacrificial goats who will readily give up their lives for the party. One such man being Jaswant Singh. He knows he might never see the chair of power, ever again. His jaw dances every time he speaks and so, he'd rather use his brains and write a book on none other than 'Quaid e azam'- The man India would rather not talk about. How many Indians would jump at the prospect of reading a book on Jinnah?? not too many. I for one wouldn't read it even if someone gifted it to me. reason, well too many.

However what Jaswant singh has managed to do is, rake up a small spot of my brain where I had hidden the plight of muslims in India. They aren't a minority, if we go by numbers, but how many people actually make it to the most prized careers in India. Most muslims are towed away to professions like weaving, stitching, carpentry and other menial jobs. The educated ones have managed to carve a niche` in various professions. They are present in Journalism, engineering, medicine or for any other profession. The numbers are less but their presence can be felt.


Hindus and muslims have co - existed in harmony, but for the interference of some selfish, self centred people. My chidhood days were the most secular phase of my life. That was when we waited for months to eat the delicious sewai at a friends place on the occasion of Id? The whole month of Ramzan was a celebration with various iftar parties and gosht and biryani. These days were clouded by the hindu - muslim riots, which ruined not only properties but also lives of people. The incidents mostly occurred during the Ram navmi - Muharram processions. Civilian authorities dreaded the time and hoped and worked at making it a peaceful day. The temple and mosque were constructed on teh same road and the colourful prosessions leading to the temple/mosque were a show of power. Swords clanged. Tazias glittered in green. The whole place was a riot of colours. The peaceful day was about to change into a dreadful ghory tale and no one knew.

Young men, or were they boys, who played football and cricket matches together were on two other sides, when something happened. The peaceful marchers turned into a mob. Swords which had glistened in the air attacked others. The happiness and gaiety in the air had vanished. Blood thirsty younsters were at each others throat. In no time at all word spread to other parts of the city and in no time a muslim dominated area was burnt down. Muslims attacked hindus and women and children on both sides were also affected. A bus full of women and children were burnt down. Curfew was clamped in the whole city and we could hear police sirens, as they made rounds of the city. My father's friend and his three grown up daughters had taken shelter in our relatives place. Hindu mobs had followed them and they left the house only after they were convinced that the muslim family wasn't there.

The processions were banned on that road after that episode and life switched to a more peaceful pace. However, scars had been imprinted on the lives of the people who had lost their houses and loved ones. The other ocassion when hindus and muslims were at loggerheads was when there was an India Pakistan one day match. If India won, things would be fine. But, if Pakistan was victorious, we still heard crackers burst. That was enough to instigate the Hindu neighbourhood. The green flags with moon and star were dragged down and burnt. Muslims were beaten up. All this happened some 30 years back. India was all of 32 and we had Indira Gandhi ruling the country. Restlessness in society was dominant. Religion was still the basis of all social activity and tolerance was at ground zero. That was the time when a new generation was either being conceived or was in the womb.

Muslims in India have lived in fear. Each time there is a bomb blast, muslim men are targeted as an aftermath. There is an unsaid sense of dissatisfaction that exists in the silent eyes that look on, in anticipation of being a part of the countries secular fabric. The divide however, is so large that it would take many years and lots of effort to bridge the gap. That, muslims form a major part of the society is something that hindus would rather deny but the fact remains that they are an integral part of India and will always be so..