Saturday, 23 March 2013

Islam and Terrorism


#IandT
New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad~ big names in the high profile and the city which never sleeps list. However these are also the recipients of some of the most deadly bombing our nation has ever witnessed. The illusionary possibility of a Moriarty like mastermind as depicted in the Benedict Cumberbatch’s TV series, Sherlock fades in real life, where mostly the post blast claims are proudly accepted by radical groups specially Terror Outfits…more specifically Islamic Terror Outfits.

The Dilsukhnagar shopping area in the city of Hyderabad witnessed serial bomb blasts on February 21st 2013. The first bomb exploded outside the ‘Konark Movie’ hall on a roadside eatery called ‘A1 Mirchi’. The second serial blast took place two minutes later near the bus stand for ‘Route 107’. Moreover a third unexploded bomb was also recovered and defused from a vegetable market in Vanasthalipuram area (8kms from Dilsukhnagar). Sources say that the original target for the bombs was the Sai Baba temple (which had already witnessed bomb attacks in Nov. 2002). However due to the unexpected visit of the Hyderabad Police Commissioner, IPS Anurag Sharma, the temple was swarmed by police officers which induced the bombers to displace the cycle bombs. According to latest updates (25th February) 16 people lost their lives and 119 injured.

Moving ahead with the reporting job, let’s now contemplate on the graver matter about the responsibility claims of the bombs. The initial suspect was the IM (Indian Mujahedeen), based on the interrogations done on IM operatives (caught in 2012 Pune blast investigations) picked by the Delhi police. However a recent letter to G Kishan Reddy, the unit president of BJP, AP draftet by Lashkar-e-Taiba (Let) proudly claims the blast responsibility. Besides the claim, police is interrogating Tahsin Akhtar alias Monu, alias Hasan, and his associates Asadullah Akhtar alias Tabrez and Wakas alias Ahmed, who, according to the NIA, are key to unraveling the Hyderabad terror attack and are related to IM not LeT.
Lashkar, Mujahedeen, Tabrez, Akhtar, Hasan no matter how many suspects and key subjects we may focus on, the vision always displays the image of a subject associated with ISLAM. I am an educated, informed and a conscious citizen however this contemporary relationship of ISLAM and TERRORISM disturbs me because of an unrequired state of inability which is the conclusion of an all-inclusive world scenario. By “state of inability” I mean to critic the prejudices build for an Islamic, which are constructed by the dynamics of radical terror organizations, mostly Islamic in religion; And by “world scenario” I refer to the all-inclusive socio-economic and cultural mechanics followed by different Governments, Groups, Organizations, Associations and Individuals.

I wish to explain this relationship between Islam and terrorism with 3 bifurcations:
  1. Misinterpretations
  2. Political mechanics
  3. Social dynamics
Let’s put some light on Misinterpretations.
Disturbed people (viz. survived victims to terror attacks) often claim that ISLAM propagates TERROR; “Muhammad was a terrorist.  Based upon Muhammad's actions and teachings, Islam justifies terrorism.  Today, Muslims use that justification to attack and murder those who differ from them.  Muslim terrorists follow in Muhammad's footsteps.”(Article- “MUHHAMAD ISLAM and TERRORISM” by Silas).


Removing the fear factor to loose someone dear, in a possible terror attack, such derogatory remarks are a shame to the entire human culture for two reasons. First, MUHAMMAD, CHRIST, NANAK or RAMA for that matter are Holy figures propagated in human cultures and societies for centuries to act as a dais for common public to connect themselves with their inner selves and proceed on the path of mental enlightenment and since it depends on how we perceive their teaching, considering any of them as a propagator of TERROR simply reflects our cowardliness to use them as a refugee to our own castle of firm misinterpretations.

Above mentioned misinterpretations of ISLAM is just one contributor to the faulty world scenario. Another is political, which I wish to explain using the 9/11 incident. I am not a supporter of al-Qaeda and going by humanitarian grounds, equally opposed to their very existence. However that does not hides the mystery and controversy behind the 9/11 attacks. A report was released by the American Media which claimed some ‘75’ high profile professors and scientists believed and kept the potential to prove that 9/11 was an inside job. By ‘Inside Job’ I mean planned and executed by the U.S. Govt. for the motive of blaming the OSAMA run al-Qaeda and declaring an official war against them. Why would George Bush Jr. wish that ~ to attack Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and the Palestine region, limitlessly rich in ‘oil’. The documentary series, “LOOSE CHANGE” (A mind blowing research work) produced by Dylan Avery gives enough proofs to convince any individual under the sun, that 9/11 was an insider job (It is freely available on YouTube). In the above scenario a political hunt for resources leads a world power to play a terror theatre on a global dais. Sacrificing a mere portion of their massive public assets and a few thousand lives would just open the doors for immense future possibilities (in form of oil) and settle some over population issues for the top shots in Bureaucracy, Politics and Military.

However the incident puts the distorted image of Muslims in billions of minds, besides the mystery behind whether OSAMA ever claimed the responsibility of attacks. Moreover the US Government exploited the very situation to harass the vulnerable Muslims in USA for “intentional charges of probable terrorism”. May it be on airports or common public area, the US security forces played to their full and enjoyed every vulnerable Muslim as their bait. Such incident have been clearly expressed in movies like “New York” and “My Name is Khan” and watching them one might wonder who propagates real terror.

After Misinterpretation and Political the third bifurcation under a faulty world scenario is the social context; which drives me towards the less developed nations where politicians feasts on the common mass under the pretext of democracy. The most vulnerable audience to politicians is the minority. While in an atmosphere where even the common man is fed up of ill governmental tactics such as inflation, taxes, ineffective governance and security issues the minorities find themselves easily cheated and exploited. Especially if I talk about Muslims in a nation like India then despite our holistic ideas of religious indifference accompanied with an educated youth, we realize the fact that the financially backward Muslims still find themselves difficult to adjust with the rest of the society. Reason is the “unstable state of that depressed mind which is already under the pressure of being a member of an alienated clan in a religion sensitive society”. Call it the difference in culture but the fact is that such demotivated people become easy baits for any religious ventures aimed at justice. And most of the time, such ventures arrive in the form of recruitment in a special army, to become a Mujahedeen, a struggling Muslim, a JIHAADI, on the path of Allah. Sad is the fact that social pressure steams the mind in such manner that a fine Muslim ~ Tabrez or Akhtar gets brain washed and join the force to become a Muslim Mujahedeen a.k.a. a deemed MUSLIM TERRORIST.

Do the above mentioned paragraphs untangle the controversial relationship of ISLAM and TERRORISM?
Yes it does up to some limit. To summarize the relationship of ISLAM AND TERRORISM has one corner stone called as “The Faulty World Scenario”, clearly explained above, in form of three bifurcations:
  1. Misinterpretations
  2. Political issues
  3. Social issues

I preserve my own views as a conscious citizen and could contemplate the above mentioned points to untangle the complex relationship of ISLAM and TERRORISM. However I believe one can pounder into history and bring out several points to explain this controversial label of “IaT”. One can justify this on the basis of the entire establishing concept of Taliban (the Afghan war and Russia). One might even go back in history to mark the dominance of Islam in India and its further filtering to current form. There are innumerable explanations to the issue, out of which I chose the above explained to be those who fit best in the current world scenario.

The following link may come useful:
References::



This is a sincere effort by the author to write on a very sensitive issue. All the views are individual. The author request apologies for any unintentional hurting remark.

Yognik Baghel







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