Ibaadatkhana Event Launch in the San Francisco Bay Area on December 8th
By Ras H. Siddiqui
Over the years this writer has tried to cover (in articles or reports) many diverse individuals, topics and events which have a connection to South Asia (mainly Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. The relationship between Indian and Pakistanis who have been at loggerheads over Kashmir has been the focus of many writings along the way too. And let us not forget the Kashmiris themselves who are still suffering from the impact of the hurried (some would call incomplete) partition of British India in the year 1947. And when things look especially grim between India and Pakistan there are always a small number of diehard optimists amongst us including within the Diaspora who refuse to give up in their quest for lasting peace. One such effort which one hopes will attract attention is a movement called Ibaadatkhana (house of worship) which has opened its doors to people of numerous religious backgrounds which the Indian subcontinent has no shortage of.
Such groups have come and gone before in Northern California. There was the Pakistan-India Friendship Society, Friends of South Asia (FOSA) and even one called InTanDesh (India-Pakistan-Bangladesh). Maybe some are still around but not very active lately. Others including one called “Aman Ki Asha” are quite active on the social media. Left wing political leanings have also played a role. Indian activist Arundhati Roy has a large fan following in Pakistan and she is also very popular in Kashmir. But when a middle roader comes into the picture the views get mixed. Retired Indian jurist Markandey Katju is another such emerging figure. He is the driving force behind the Ibaadatkhana group. He was very much present at a meeting of minds in Santa Clara, California on November 17, 2019 where Indians, Pakistanis and Kashmiris gathered to try and address and assess the current situation that has developed with the removal of Article 370 removing Kashmiri autonomy in India. The meeting was also a planning session for a December 8th event that is being planned and executed in the area.
Retired Justice Markandey Katju “is a strong advocate of secularism and justice and ferociously opposes the rising marginalization of religious communities in the Indian sub-continent.” A former judge at the Supreme Court of India, his videos and writings have resonated within many minority communities in India and have gained some traction in Pakistan as well. Katju Sahib is no Leftist. Some of his ideas used to be mainstream, before the current BJP dispensation appeared on the political landscape in India as a major political force with its rallying cry of rejuvenating the Hindu roots of the majority population of the country. Katju and many others today are worried about the old secular India losing ground to the Hindutva forces who are calling the shots in India today. He also appears to be quite concerned about the impact of this ideology on minorities (especially Muslims) there.
Justice Katju is certainly an interesting figure. A Lucknow born Hindi/Urdu speaker from a family of (Hindu) Kashmiri Pandits, his penchant for controversy continues. He is a proponent of India-Pakistan-Bangladesh reunification and believes that the solution to the Kashmir issue lies in a secular reunified subcontinent. Even though such thinking may find little traction in the Bangladesh, Kashmir and Pakistan of today, it is in India that he is currently facing the greatest resistance. Although most Indian Muslims may find agreement with many of his ideas, his stand against Hindutva is not helping him in his own country these days. But Indians as a whole need not be too worried. From what I gathered at this meeting, Justice Katju is not for an independent Kashmir, nor is he for handing over any territory to Pakistan. But he is certainly for dialogue and the peaceful coexistence of all religions and ethnicities in the sub-continent. It may seem like a tall order these days but the alternative could be a devastating war between India and Pakistan over Kashmir which needs to be avoided since it could produce not one but two losers this time.
But going back to the meeting of minds, Katju Sahib said that our aim should be to bring South Asian countries out of their underdeveloped stage to the ranks of the developed countries. On that there should be no compromise. Fifty percent of the children of India are malnourished. The worst thing in life is poverty. To wage a struggle to uplift the Indian subcontinent you have to be united, he said. If you are divided into religions, castes and language you will never achieve your target. What is India? India is broadly a country of immigrants. It is like North America except in India people have been coming in for thousands of years mainly from the northwest. And not many people left India. Our subcontinent has a comfortable environment which attracted many cultures and religions, leading to the tremendous diversity present in our region unlike China. Around 92% of the people in India today are descendants of these immigrants, he said.
Because of the tremendous diversity in India it is very easy to make two groups fight with each other, said Katju. He said that he regards the RSS and BJP as small fry since behind them are very powerful forces whose game is that India should not become another China. He alluded to the low cost of labor as an indicator. Indian labor is even cheaper than Chinese labor. Technology has also caught on in India. All the ingredients are there to make progress. The problem is the political leadership. BJP is controlled by the RSS whose mindset is anti-minority and particularly anti-Muslim. People who have been fed with hatred for Muslims for many decades cannot change overnight, he added. On Modi he cautioned the India Diaspora not to be too supportive. You are great at your jobs here but showing support for Modi indicates some cow dung in your heads, added Katju. Everything is not fine in India today, he said. The economy there is tanking.
On Ibaadatkhana and the event planned Katju said that you will be creating history. Here there is freedom to speak. We are going to reverse the trend set by the BJP of polarizing people and spreading hatred. Ibaadatkhana was the great house of worship built by the Emperor Akbar whom I have called the real father of the Indian nation. He was 200 years ahead of his time. He invited representatives of all faiths (especially Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs) to come and discuss their faiths. The problems started after the 1857 mutiny after which the British decided to “divide and rule” to control India. This poison was injected year after year, decade after decade. Coming to the present Justice Katju said that BJP/Hindutva ideology needs to be countered and that the targeting of Muslims goes against the very nature of India as a country of great diversity.
(The Ibaadatkhana event launch Unity Dinner with Justice Markandey Katju - Guest Speakers: Hon. Javed Ellahie | Dr. Jasbir Kang | Prof. Langenbachis is set for December 8th at Chandni Restaurant in Newark, California. Please visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ibaadatkhana-unity-dinner-an-interfaith-dialogue-tickets-82752289325 for ticket details.
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