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Life is full of paradoxes, and not
all of them are intriguing. Some of them give a pleasant cozy
feeling too. Recently (25 March, 2012) people saw the Pakistan’
Deputy Attorney General, Muhammad Khurshid Khan, Polishing the
shoes of devotees in Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Delhi. This work is part
of Seva (service) in Gurudwaras. This particular tradition is part
of Sikh Gurudwaras. Kurdhidwas doing this to atone the sins of
Taliban’s that have tormented the Sikhs in many ways. He also was
doing it to heal the wounds of minorities who have suffered the
violence. Taliban’s had abducted three Sikhs, had demanded
ransom and one of the Sikhs was killed. Khurshid felt the Taliban’s
have done something inhuman, which is against Islam. Pained by this
he started this mission of bring peace and amity amongst religious
communities.
One is sure there maybe enough conservative, fanatic elements who
will criticize this humane and touching gesture on the part of
Khurshid. One knows that Taliban’s with their particular version of
Islam, which got a boost in the indoctrination of Madrassasas set
up in Pakistan by US to counter the Russian occupation
of Afghanistan, is the extreme intolerant variety of Islam,
something is against the basic tenets of that religion. Same
Taliban’s had destroyed the Bamiyan Buddha statues, they had also
imposed Jazia on Sikhs and had also come up to implement with the
color code for dress for people according to their religion. South
Asia has been in the grip of sectarian violence where minorities
in each of these countries has been the major victim of politics in
the name of religion, a politics which takes cover under the
identity of religion and spreads hatred against the ‘others’ the
one’s belonging to other religions.
This politics also accentuates the divides amongst the followers of
same religion as it also breaks them in to further narrow sects.
Surely, while Christians and Hindusnave been a major victim of
violence in Pakistan the smaller sects of Islam, Ahmadiays,
Kadiyanis have also faced the wrath of dominant sections of
society. In India during the rise of the communal violence during
last three decades while Muslims and Christians, the religious
minorities, have faced the major brunt of sectarian violence; at
the same times dalits and Adivisis have also been a substantial
victim of the violence.
The politics in the name of religion operates on the foundation of
identity of religion and undermines the moral values of that
religion. It constructs a history where the Kings of a particular
religion become the ‘icons’ of that religious community, while the
kings belonging to other religion become the villains of the
piece. The interactive culture of the communities is undermined in
these narratives and the religious communities are made to stand
against each other as the opposite parties. The reality is that the
amity of people had been more along economic lines, the landlords
on one side the laboring masses on the other. While the ‘clergy’
stood at the service of the affluent ruling class, the saints
expressed the sigh of the oppressed sections of society.
The Landlords–Kings allied and fought with each other for the sake
of power and wealth while the laboring masses interacted with each
other, rubbing shoulders while visiting the sufi dargahs, or paying
respect to saints of the genre of Kabir, cutting across religions.
The colonialists were more interested in plundering the South Asia,
which as a continent came under British rule in the main. The
British promoted the declining sections of landlords and Kings,
recognizing them as ‘representative’ of their religious
community. This laid the foundation of Communal politics, Muslim
League on one side and Hindu Mahsabha and RSS on the other. These
communal streams picked up the version of History, centered on the
religion of the kings and tried to preserve their vested interests
in the language of religion. This interpretation looks down on the
syncretic traditions of people who found as much solace with
the likes of Bule Shah or Nizamuddin Auliya as with Ramdev Baba Pir
or Satya Pir aswith Dadu, Raidas or Tukaram.
The highest point of success of British policy of ‘divide and rule’
was the partition of the country or rather carving out of Pakistan
in the name of religion, while the remaining part upheld the values
of freedom movement to come up as a secular democratic nation.
Overall, the major culture and traditions of South
Asia, India-Pakistan-Bangladesh are mixed one’s the syncretism of
their religious tradition being its high point. During last three
decades the sectarianism has surged due to many a local factors
which have been further boosted by the rise of Global Emperor, US,
who devised the religious language, demonized Islam to quench its
hunger for oil. The result has been the wounds of partition,
the wounds of communal strife of the past which were slightly
cooling down have been exacerbated and the communal forces have
become stronger in all the South Asian Countries. These communal
forces have at one level similar value, opposition to democracy and
abolition of human rights of weaker sections of society. At surface
they present it as a battle against the ‘other religious community’.
In this dismal scenario, it is people like Khurshid who are braving
it out and despite the sure opposition from fundamentalist forces
are keeping the torch of amity alive. While Talibans, Zia Ul Haque
and RSS type formations have been on rampage, the forces like those
presented by Khurshid are also silently singing the songs of peace.
The efforts in this direction have been slowly but
surely percolating and trying to appeal to the humane aspects of
community living. These elements know that while at one level the
victim groups have to get their rights by their struggle against
injustices, they also know that the progress of society is possible
only by overcoming the sectarian divides which try to trample our
democratic values. Democratic ethos are the base on which
the struggle for human rights and better society is possible in the
short and long run. All the efforts which bring communities
together for interaction, celebration are building the bridges
which not only will overcome the sectarianism but with lay the
foundations on which peace with justice will be possible. Three
Cheers for the likes of Muhammad Khurshid Khan!
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