The Blame Game

A section of Muslims in India are in a state of denial. Afterthe famous Mufti of Dar al Ulum Deoband refused to see the difference betweenrape and marriage and pronounced that rape of Imrana Ilahi annuls her marriage,it was time for some Indian Muslims to announce that no rape happened at all. Itwas all a media creation to malign the image of Islam and Muslims. A Muslim manafter all cannot rape; such things do not happen in Muslim society. And if atall such a thing happened, it must be the women’s fault since she is theeternal temptress. ‘Rape’ cannot take place without the consent ofwomen. 

Such are the conclusions of a ‘Muslim delegation’ whichwent to Imrana’s village and came back with ‘proof’ that no rape tookplace and that it was merely a fight over property which was blown out ofproportion by the media. Without asking what gives this ‘Muslim delegation’the authority to conduct its ‘investigative journalism’, I must say thattheir conclusions bring added shame to the Muslims of India.

According to an article in the MilliGazette, written by no less than its editor, the delegation was led by a Maulana who ‘counselled’ Imranaon "virtues of family life, forgiveness and solving problems in private".The women herself, when she tried to speak was asked to shut up. No questionswere asked to her. Going by the tone of this piece, which calls her "anilliterate, low caste village woman", it seems that the delegation did notsee it fit to consider her opinion. 

After all despite the fact that there are nine women to tenMuslim men in India, the AIMPLB, with its lone women member is doing quite well!What is the need for women to speak for themselves? And talking about "illiterate"women, it is demeaning to even listen to what they are saying. Their work is tolive inside their homes, rear a family, learn to forget and forgive and moreimportantly never make a private matter public.

Imrana is guilty. She chose to make a matter a ‘private’matter public. She has transgressed the normative boundaries so well laid byMuslims like the Maulana who led this delegation. She has brought bad name toMuslims and Islam. She must be proven guilty and punished. And she has been. Thebest and time tested way to do this has been to play with a woman’s ‘character’. 

The article approvingly quotes an opinion of a local residentwho is more that willing to say that she is a ‘loose character’ woman. Thealleged rapist himself is made out to be a ‘toiler’ and a ‘good man’. Hesimply can’t do such a thing, since he is too old. No one heard the scream ofthe woman and there was no medical examination. 

After being shamefully exposed of their double standards,sections of Muslims took refuge in the argument that Imrana’s issue was acriminal case and that the law of the land should take its own course. Accordingto the law of the land, a woman’s complaint that she has been raped isadmissible as evidence. What right then these ‘investigators’ have notto believe in what she is saying? Going even beyond that I would like to askwhat right do they have to make this investigation?

But Imrana after all, is an illiterate woman. She herselfcannot do all this. The artcile says that she was bribed and coerced into makingthis a public issue by "secularists, feminists, communists and Hindutvites".After all, it were these very people who made it into a big issue, whichotherwise would have remained a local ordinary and even routine happening. 

So much glare on the Muslims? And all for wrong reasons. Thisis not tolerable. Secularists are fine when they fight the Modi governmentagainst the atrocities in Gujarat. But what is this; they are now attacking theMuslim community. What kind of secularism is this? Did not secularism meannon-interference in Muslim affairs? Secularism should only mean fightingHindutva. And these communists? We know in heart of our hearts that they are theworst enemies of Muslims and Islam. But they fight against the BJP and RSS andthat’s why we befriended them. But now they have shown their true colours andare defaming us through this episode. The artcile also blames the media. Theyargue that had it not been for the media, the issue would not have got so muchpublicity. 

The article also sees a grand conspiracy to abolish the MuslimPersonal Law in India. This is simply not true. Barring the BJP and someindependent voices, there was no talk of abolishing Muslim Personal Law. And theBJP does not need an Imrana to voice its age old call for a Uniform Civil Codein India. The arguments that were made were in favour of reform in MuslimPersonal Law, given the fact that in light of the Imrana incident, that law didnot seem to do justice with the victim. 

Blaming secularists, communists and the media only shows thewriter of this article in poor light. Secularism does not mean protectingconservative Muslim interest as they seem to believe. And it is within the rightof any Indian to voice their concern on denial of justice in any community.Similarly women’s organizations have done credible work to make our laws moregender just and they are within their right to raise this issue. Muslim issuesare not and should not, be made immune from the general concerns of Indianpublic, as sections of Muslims would like to have. 

And before blaming the media, Muslims should recall theircommendable role during the Hindutva sponsored Gujarat carnage. It is completelyhypocritical to blame them now that they are raising issues of the Muslimcommunity. Imrana’s issue was not an isolated stray incident, but hasimportant implications for the rights of Muslim women and even inter-communityrelations. The media is well within its rights to debate this issue of publicimportance.

Blaming secularism and media have been the pet themes ofHindutva parties. For all the ills that have plagued India, they have blamedsecularism. In more recent memory they have blamed the media for the Gujaratriots. The truth is that it was only through a very courageous media that it waspressured to do something about it. A section of Muslims and the forces ofHindutva speak the same language. Both blame secularism and a free press. 

While I can well understand Hindutva’s dislike forsecularism, its articulation by the Muslims is simply baffling. Had it not beenfor secularism and secularists, the status of Muslims would have been verydifferent by now. Instead of strengthening secularism, they are castingaspersions on it. But as I said before, there is a section among Muslims whothink that secularism is nothing but the protection of orthodox Muslim interest.They want a secular state, not secularisation of their society.

Rather than blaming others for conspiring against them allthe time, it would be far better if Muslims turned inwards for someintrospection. There are lots of issues which should make heads hang in shame.Appalling is the level of education, even more appalling is the level ofemployment. There is a reluctance to plan families. There is the shameful caseof forcible marriage of girls in Malabar and Bombay. I say forcible because theyare given away in ‘marriage’ often by their poor parents to visiting Sheikhsfrom Gulf, who after paying a dowry throw them out like used condoms. 

Will these issues ever become a matter of debate within theMuslim community? I am not very hopeful. Part of the reason is that Muslimpoverty and despondency has become functional for the survival of sections ofMuslim political elite. And till the time these parasites are at the helm,nothing good is going to happen to Muslims in India.

Arshad Alam is International Ford Fellow, Department of Muslim Religious and Cultural History, University of Erfurt, Germany.