On Friday a new case of Grooming Jihad (Love Jihad) was reported from Madhya Pradesh’s Khandwa district where a 21-year-old woman was physically assaulted in Jabalpur, Bhopal, and Burhanpur and was forced to convert to Islam. The accused in the case has been identified as Firdos Khan. The Police registered the case and arrested Khan.
According to the reports, the incident is said to have happened in the Moghat area of Titgaon in the Khandwa district. The accused named Firdos trapped a 21-year-old girl in an affair. He told her that he liked her and that he wanted to marry her. He also asked the girl to change her religion to Islam.
On refusing the proposal of conversion to Islam, the girl was abducted by Firdos who took her to Khandwa Railway station and forced her to accompany him to Jabalpur. On July 1, the duo first reached Khandwa, then Burhanpur and then Jabalpur. The accused also forcefully developed physical relations with the girl during the travel.
On reaching Jabalpur, Firdos kept the girl at his maternal uncle’s place and continued to physically abuse her for around 4 days. The family members of the girl in Titgaon meanwhile lodged a missing complaint on July 1. After the accused brought the girl back to Titgaon, she testified that the accused had physically assaulted her and forced her to convert to Islam.
In the police complaint, she also mentioned that the accused had intoxicated her and had trapped her at his maternal uncle’s place in Jabalpur. The Police reportedly registered an FIR in the case and arrested accused Firdos Maqbool Khan under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal code.
To note, a similar incident of Love Jihad was reported from the state of Jharkhand where a Muslim youth working as a laborer in a factory in Delhi had posed himself as Hindu to lure and marry a Hindu young woman from Azamgarh. The accused identified as Shahzad Ansari abandoned his wife post eight years of marriage after she discovered the truth about her husband’s religious identity.
14 years after the split, two warring factions of the Islamic organisation Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH) have decided to join hands to fight ‘rising communalism’ and mythical ‘discrimination’ against Muslims in India.
As per reports, the Working Committee of the organisation held a 2-day meeting that concluded on Friday (July 22). It was decided that the faction led by Maulana Arshad Madani would be reunited with the faction led by Maulana Mahmood Madani.
Reportedly, the merger would be facilitated after State Presidents, General Secretaries, special invitees and Working Committee members submit their resignation to JUH President Maulana Mahmood Madani.
It must be mentioned that Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind was split in 2008 after the Working Committee raised objections about Maulana Mahmood Madani’s conduct of operations. A new faction of the Islamic outfit was created under the leadership of Maulana Arshad Madani.
Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind blames BJP for rising communalism in India
In a statement, JUH informed, “After long deliberations, it was unanimously approved that the Working Committee of the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind appreciates the recent reconciliation process of the organisation and agrees to take forward the process of reconciliation.”
It further added, “To advance this process, the WC authorised the president of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Maulana Mahmood Arshad Madani to continue the process of reconciliation in accordance with Jamiat’s constitution.”
The Islamic organisation pinned the blame on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its members for fanning religious fanaticism and insulting religious leaders (indirect reference to the Nupur Sharma case).
“Considering this, the meeting specifically requests the government of India to immediately stop the series of anti-communal riots and derogatory behaviour and implement effective legislation in the light of Supreme Court directives to prevent violence. Also, the atmosphere of trust between the majority and the minority should be restored,’’ it concluded.
it must be mentioned that the Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind is the largest Islamic organisation in India and boasts of 1.5 crore followers.
JUH raises Gyanvapi issue, passes resolution against UCC
On May 28 this year, the Islamic outfit Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind organised a mega gathering of 5000 Muslim organisations to discuss the raging issues of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), disputes surrounding the Gyanvapi mosque and Qutub Minar.
During the 2-day event, Maulana Niaz Ahmed Farooqui threatened that the claim over the Gyanvapi mosque could lead to the creation of another Pakistan.
Farooqui, who serves as the media-in-charge of Jamiat-Ulama-e-Hind, warned, “Hatred is being propelled against Muslims in the country. Pakistan was created the last time there was a tirade of this sort against the Muslims. I don’t understand what exactly these people want.”
A resolution was passed against the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), with the claim that the enactment of UCC would prevent the observance of personal laws.
“This ignores the true spirit of the Constitution. No Muslim accepts interference in Islamic law. If any government makes the mistake of implementing UCC, Muslims will not accept this injustice and will be forced to take all measures against it while staying within constitutional limits,” the resolution stated.
After many state-run schools in Jharkhand and Bihar, a private school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand has come under fire from parents and members of various Hindu organisations for arbitrarily declaring Friday as a ‘half day’ to pander to the local Muslims in the area. The school in question is Bright Angel Public School, which is located in Dehradun’s Vikasnagar district. The school’s director and founder is MK Hussain, while Azra Hussain serves as its principal.
According to reports, the school’s regular class timings are from 8 am to 2 pm. On Thursday (July 22), when the children returned home, their diaries had a note that read that the school would henceforth close at 12 noon instead of 2 pm every Friday. Notably, the Jumma Namaz timing on Fridays is typically between 12 noon and 1:30 pm.
Several parents opposed the prejudiced decision taken by the school authorities.
When Hindu organisations learned about this, they too protested against the school’s decision. Rakesh Tomar, an office-bearer of Hindu Jagran Manch alleged, “The school’s manager is from the Muslim community. They are spreading religious fanaticism. Children of all religions study in the school. This step of the school management will have a bad effect on the education system of Uttarakhand.”
Reportedly, Hindu Raksha Sena’s President, Swami Prabodhanand Giri, travelled from Haridwar to Vikasnagar to oppose the school’s arbitrary decision. Strongly objecting to the directive issued by the school authorities, Swami Prabodhanand Giri said, “This is not a school but a factory of jihadis and Pakistani agents. This man should be arrested and sent to jail. We have all seen what happened with Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur, Rajasthan. That might occur here as well.” The seer added that the school management is tarnishing the dignity of Devbhoomi.
He also raised some serious allegations against Block Education Officer Vikasnagar and Deputy District Magistrate Vikasnagar Vinod Kumar. Drawing Uttrakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami’s attention towards the steady Islamification of schools in the state, the seer demanded that the two officers be suspended with immediate effect. He said that the administration and government should take cognisance before an occurrence similar to Udaipur’s Kanhaiya Lal incident transpires in Uttarakhand in the days to come.
Having said this, Swami Prabodhanand Giri demanded that the school be sealed and its ongoing hostels and other activities should be scrutinized.
Swami Prabodhanand Giri also lodged a complaint with the District Magistrate (DM) against the school authorities. The DM, in turn, ordered the SDM to investigate the matter. Speaking to The New Indian, block education officer VP Singh said, “An inquiry has been ordered in the matter. We will submit our report to higher authorities of the department for further action.”
The decree issued by the school also went viral on social media and several people started demanding action against the school management. Owing to the outrage, the school authorities decided to withdraw their decision to declare Fridays as half days.
Founder MK Hussain withdraws orders
When SDM Vikasnagar summoned the manager and principal of the school to his office and asked for a response, both of them immediately expressed their deepest apologies. The school administration decided to revoke its directive immediately, which they said was taken for the convenience of the school staff.
Notably, the locals refer to MK Hussain, the founder and director of Bright Angel Public School, as Major Sahib. MK Hussain is related to the school principal, Azra Hussain. MK Hussain was a former army lieutenant colonel. Later, he also rose to the position of chairman of the Uttarakhand Muslim Educational Law Board. OpIndia attempted to contact MK Hussain to seek his opinion on the matter, but he did not answer our call.
Government schools in Jharkhand and Bihar observe weekly offs on Friday, convert to Urdu medium schools
OpIndia earlier reported how several government schools in Jharkhand and Bihar have recently been in the headlines for their steady Islamification. Several state-run schools have reportedly been making modifications in response to the whims of the local Muslim population.
On July 22, it was reported how 19 state-run schools in the Kishanganj district of Bihar have been taking Friday off instead of Sunday. As per the Education Department, because the region is predominantly Muslim, government schools have been shut on Fridays for a long time. This action is not mandated by any specific order by the government.
Friday is designated as a holiday in many schools due to the considerable proportion of Muslim students. Instead, students and teachers attend classes on Sundays. These schools include the city’s Line Urdu School, Upgraded Middle School Line Karbala, Upgraded Middle School Maheshbathna, Upgraded Middle School Halamala, Primary School Motihara West, and many others.
Prior to this, it was reported how Sharia and Islamic practices were being imposed on the students of a state-run school in Jharkhand’s Garhwa district, with children forbidden from praying with their hands folded. Then reports emerged on how state-run schools in areas like Jamtara and Dumka, which is the hometown of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, were being converted into Urdu schools, and the weekly offs changed from Sunday to Friday (Jumma).
Baba Vijaydas, the Sadhu who self-immolated in protest of the government’s failure to curb illegal mining in Bharatpur, Rajasthan, died in a Delhi hospital. On July 21, his status was reported stable but he died early morning on Saturday. According to Sub Divisional Officer Sanjay Goyal, “Sadhu Vijaydas died at around 2.30 am in the hospital where he was undergoing treatment after his self-immolation attempt. The post-mortem has been scheduled for 9 am.”
Sadhu who attempted self-immolation in Rajasthan’s Bharatpur dies in Delhi hospital
The state administration responded only after Baba Vijaydas’ tragic attempt at self-immolation brought the issue of illegal mining to national notice.
The saints made every effort to persuade the state authorities to forbid mining in the region. However, the saints made the decision to pursue the case after more than 500 days of waiting and several hollow promises. Baba Hariboldas declared around ten days ago that he would self-immolate on July 19 in front of the Chief Minister’s residence if the government did not pay attention to them. They had been approached by the government, demanding additional time.
The saints first chose to wait, but the government took no action until July 19. As part of the protest, Baba Narayandas ascended a mobile tower in Pasopa village. As soon as word got out, other saints in the neighbourhood gathered to join Baba Narayandas. Meanwhile, the Police detained Baba Hariboldas to prevent him from self-immolating.
Authorities attempted but failed to persuade Baba Narayandas. On the tower, he was given glucose and meals. The next day, he remained atop the tower. While everyone was trying to get Baba Narayandas to come down, Baba Vijayadas rushed behind the protesting saints and poured kerosene on himself. While chanting Radhe Radhe, he set himself on fire.
Police and locals rushed to save him. However, by the time they dozed off the fire, the saint had suffered severe burns. He was shifted to the hospital for treatment. Following the incident, district collector Alok Ranjan, IG Gaurav Srivastava, SP Shyam Singh, zonal commissioner Sanwarmal Verma, and many other high-ranking officials reached the spot and tried to calm the situation down.
OpIndia had reported the issue of illegal mining and the protests by Hindu saints which can be read here.
On July 23, Saturday, officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrestedWest Bengal Industries and Commerce Minister Partha Chatterjee. As per reports, Chatterjee is being taken to the ED’s office and will be produced in court later in the day.
The arrest came a day after the Enforcement Directorate began search operations at various premises linked to the recruitment scam in the West Bengal School Service Commission (WB-SSC) and West Bengal Primary Education Board.
#BREAKING TMC Minister Partha Chatterjee has been arrested.
Partha Chatterjee, who is a sitting minister in the Mamata Banerjee government in Bengal, was arrested on Saturday morning from his residence. Reportedly, at the time when the officials went to arrest the minister, 2 doctors were at his place as he said that he was ‘not feeling well’.
Prior to the arrest, Partha Chatterjee had been questioned for around 26 hours in connection with an alleged scam in recruitment of teachers in state-run schools. The alleged scam had taken place when Chatterjee was the education minister of West Bengal.
ED raids TMC minister Partha Chatterjee’s residence
On 22nd July 2022, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a raid on the properties of West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee as part of an investigation in this case. The raids are being conducted at 13 locations belonging to the Minister for his involvement in the SSC scam.
In addition to him, the ED also raided Minister of State for Education Paresh C Adhikary and TMC MLA Manik Bhattacharya. Besides, the agency included many others in the scope of investigation. The names include Arpita Mukherjee, Partha Chatterjee’s close aide; Chandan Mondal, an agent in selling teacher jobs; Kalyanmay Bhattacharya, Partha Bhattacharya’s son-in-law; Dr. SP Sinha, advisor of the West Bengal Central School Service Commission; Kalyanmoy Ganguly, ex-President of the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education; Saumitra Sarkar, ex-President of the West Bengal Central School Service.
ED continues to raid residential premises of Arpita Mukherjee, a close associate of West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday continued the raids on the residential premises of Arpita Mukherjee, a close associate of West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee, in connection with an alleged teacher recruitment scam in the state.
Notably, when ED raided the house of Arpita Mukherjee in connection with the money laundering aspect of those allegedly involved in the SSC scam on Friday, a huge cash of approximately 20 crore rupees was recovered. The money is allegedly the profits of the SSC Scam, according to a statement from the central agency.
From the numerous locations of the people connected to the fraud, the ED has also recovered some suspicious documents, records, information on dubious enterprises, electronic gadgets, foreign currency, and gold.
The action was taken months after the Calcutta High Court ordered the CBI to look into the recruiting scandal involving Group “C” and “D” employees, Assistant Teachers of classes 9th to 12th, and primary teachers. The ED is probing matters involving the unlawful recruitment of non-teaching personnel, teaching staff, and primary school teachers under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
The Election Commission on Saturday asked Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde-led faction and former CM Uddhav Thackeray-led faction to submit documentary evidence to prove that they have the majority members in the Shiv Sena. Both groups have been instructed to testify by 1 p.m. on August 8
According to the reports, the Election Commission will conduct a hearing on the allegations and disagreements between the Shiv Sena factions after both the leaders submit the documentary evidence. The continuous feud over the ‘true Shiv Sena’ has reached the Election Commission, with both the Shinde and Thackeray factions writing to the poll body to stake their claims to the party.
Election Commission sends to Uddhav Thackeray camp the letter written to them (EC) by Eknath Shinde faction and Thackeray camp’s letter to the Shinde faction. Both factions are to file their replies by 8th August.
Anil Desai of Uddhav Thackeray’s camp had written to ECI several times, alleging that some people in the party had engaged in anti-party actions. He had also protested against Shinde for forming another political party with the titles ‘Shiv Sena’ or ‘Bala Saheb.’ Anil Desai in the letter meanwhile has requested that Eknath Shinde, Gulabrao Patil, Tanji Sawant, and Uday Samant be removed from their positions in the party.
The Eknath Shinde camp also has petitioned under Section 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order, 1968, to identify the faction led by Eknath Shinde as Shiv Sena and to assign the party symbol “Bow and Arrow” to the unit. Shinde has also informed the Election Commission that he has the support of 40 out of 55 MLAs, different MLCs, and 12 out of 18 MPs.
According to the reports, when two factions claim the same emblem, the EC looks at how much support each faction has inside the party’s organization and its legislative branch. The process then carries on to identify key office bearers and decision-making bodies inside the political party, as well as how many of its members or office-holders support which factions.
“Given the above-mentioned facts and circumstances, it is evident that there is a split in the Shiv Sena- one group of which is being led by Eknathrao Sambhaji Shinde and the other group is being led by Uddhav Thackeray, both the groups claim to be the real Shiv Sena with their leader being the alleged President of Shiv Sena party,” the EC was quoted.
The Commission reportedly forwarded to the Uddhav Thackeray camp the letter written to them (EC) by the Eknath Shinde faction, as well as the Thackeray camp’s statement to the Shinde faction. The Election Commission has instructed both organizations to submit written responses and any supporting materials by 1:00 p.m. on August 8.
During searches in the Baramulla area of north Kashmir in connection with a terror funding case, the State Investigation Agency (SIA) discovered that funding from the smuggling of drugs is being used to sponsor fake journalists in Jammu & Kashmir. During the investigations, it was discovered that drug money is being utilised to support some fake journalists in Kashmir Valley who glorify terror and demonise security agencies.
The SIA detectives were able to uncover enough information during searches in Nambla, Uri, and Baramulla town to expose this evil alliance between the drug cartel and fake journalists. Evidence found during the investigation showed that money made from the trafficking of heroin and other drugs out of Pakistan was used to fund both terrorism and journalists who supported Jihadi agendas.
The SIA raid took place in conjunction with a terror funding investigation that was initiated at Police Station Gandhi Nagar and has now been transferred to SIA Jammu. According to the police, evidence revealed that fake journalists were paid to represent and project security forces and the Union Territory (UT) administration in a negative light, and to launch false narratives glorifying terrorism in order to attract young people to the culture of violence.
Documents collected by SIA agents show how drugs smuggled across the border were used to generate funding to fuel the flames of terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir. It’s important to note that the police have already found Rs. 6.9 lakhs during the initial investigation. In the upcoming days, there will probably be more operations to decapitate and eliminate terror groups operating in the area.
Additionally, during the raids, some individuals who were found to be associated with the financing of narcotic terrorism were detained in accordance with applicable legal provisions, and a probe is currently ongoing to determine the involvement of additional individuals in the nexus who are already under investigation.
Hours after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) recovered cash of more than ₹20 crores and 20 mobile phones from the residence of Arpita Mukherjee, a video of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee heaping praises on the actress has gone viral on social media.
The contentious video dates back to September 28, 2019, and was shot at Naktala Udayan Sangha, the Durga Puja committee of TMC leader Partha Chatterjee. Reportedly, Arpita Mukherjee was the face of the promotional campaign for the event.
“Odishai kaaj koro. Valo more koro. oh, korte? (Arpita has worked in Orissa. Keep up the good work. You have worked in Odisha in the past?),” Mamta Banerjee was heard as saying.
“Odiya bolte paro valo more? Odisha te kaaj more Banglar meya…Agar baar o eschelo akhane… Bobby der okhane o jai (Can you speak Odiya? She is Bengal’s daughter who works in Odisha..She had come earlier too. She also visits Bobby [Firhad Hakim]),” the West Bengal CM remarked.
The archived version of the video can be accessed here. The name of Arpita Mukherjee has cropped up in a scam pertaining to the recruitment of candidates for the West Bengal Primary Education Board and West Bengal School Service Commission.
TMC distances itself from the actress
After the video went viral on social media, TMC distanced itself from the actions of Arpita Mukherjee.
In its defence, party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, “Trinamool Congress has no links with the money recovered by the ED. It is the responsibility of those individuals, whose names have surfaced in the scam, to answer questions posed to them.”
ইডি যে টাকা উদ্ধার করেছে, তার সঙ্গে তৃণমূলের কোনও সম্পর্ক নেই। এই তদন্তে যাদের নাম আসছে, এসংক্রান্ত প্রশ্নের জবাব দেওয়ার দায়িত্ব তাঁদের বা তাঁদের আইনজীবীদের। কেন দলের নাম জড়িয়ে প্রচার চলছে, দল নজর রাখছে। যথাসময়ে বক্তব্য জানাবে।
“Why is the name of TMC unnecessarily dragged into the controversy? We are keeping an eye out,” he further added.
BJP to protest against SSC scam in West Bengal
In a tweet on Saturday (July 23), BJP IT Cell Head Amit Malviya informed that the party will protest against the SSC scam, allegedly engineered by the Trinamool Congress.
Today, BJYM will launch protest across all districts of WB demanding justice for lakhs of young men and women, whose career SSC scam ruined. Jobs were sold for cash, some of which ED recovered from an associate of Mamata Banerjee’s close confidant Partha Chatterjee.@IndranilKhan
While tagging BJP leader Indranil Khan, he stated, “Today, BJYM will launch protest across all districts of WB demanding justice for lakhs of young men and women, whose career SSC scam ruined. Jobs were sold for cash, some of which ED recovered from an associate of Mamata Banerjee’s close confidant Partha Chatterjee.”
In the recently concluded Presidential elections, Congress has suffered a political setback after several of its leaders cross-voted for the NDA President candidate. Notably, 7 state-level Congress Party legislators cross-voted in favour of Draupadi Murmu, defying their parties’ stated support for Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha. However, while Congress crumbles, its state leadership seems to be clueless. Reportedly, the Gujarat Congress unit has no idea about its MLAs who cross-voted in favour of the BJP-led NDA’s candidate Draupadi Murmu in the presidential election 2022.
On July 21, Murmu, a tribal leader and former Jharkhand governor, won the election to become India’s 16th President, defeating opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha by a huge margin.
According to a report by TOI, the state Congress chief Jagdish Thakor said that the party is yet to establish the identity of the MLAs who cross-voted in favour of the Presidential candidate pitted by the BJP-led NDA in the 16th presidential election. Moreover, the state unit is also not contemplating taking any action against the MLAs who cross-voted, informed Thakor.
“No action is being taken as of now. It is clear that the MLAs who cross-voted, will shift allegiance to the BJP sooner or later, he said, adding that conducting an inquiry into the same would amount to doubting the loyalty of all MLAs.”
Surprisingly, while the state Congress chief denied conducting any sort of probe to determine the names of the MLAs who cross-voted, Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi has said otherwise.
“The party is shocked by the details which emerged during the counting of votes yesterday. Our leadership here has already launched an inquiry to find out the truth,” exclaimed the state Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi when asked about the issue.
Notably, Draupadi Murmu, who won the presidential election, got 121 votes from Gujarat, 10 more than the BJP’s strength of 111 in the state Assembly. One of the ten additional votes she received came from a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA, while two more came from the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) MLA. Which meant that she received the support of at least seven Congress MLAs.
Yesterday, Murmu scored a resounding victory, garnering 64% of the total 4,701 valid votes cast, leaving Sinha in the dust. Murmu received 6,76,803 of the 10,56,980 total (4,701 valid votes were cast), and Sinha received 3,80,177.
India’s first tribal president-elect managed votes from all states and UTs, including Kerala where she polled one vote even though the BJP has no MLA in the state.
In AAP-ruled Punjab too, Murmu bagged eight votes even though the BJP has two MLAs. In Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Nagaland, Murmu secured 100% votes. Meanwhile, in states like Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, MP, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, Murmu attracted significant cross-votes, paving her way to becoming India’s first tribal President.
Academician Dr Rinita Mazumdar has said that her paper on genocide of Hindus was denied platform on a panel discussion on bias in western academia on genocide discourse. In a copy of email correspondence Dr Mazumdar shared with OpIndia, it can be seen that the platform of academics ‘Equity Unbound’ for its ‘festival’ MYFest22 had first agreed to her panel discussion and allotted 25 minutes for the same. It was scheduled on 19th July 2022.
However, Dr Mazumdar got an email on the day of panel discussion from one Sukaina Walji, one of the organising members denying permission for the same. In an email to Dr Mazumdar, Walji apologised for making Dr Mazumdar feel once again that her voice was not being heard but at the same time said that the topic of discussion Hindu genocide does not ‘fit’ the themes of MYFest and also ‘additionally’ runs the risk of ‘retraumatising’ the participants ‘rather than focusing on how to ‘decolonise our curricula’.
MYFest, as per its website, claims to being a ‘recharge and renewal experience’ exploring ‘critical pedagogy and socially just education’ amongst others.
Dr Mazumdar had pointed out how The Holocaust, the genocide of Jews in Nazi Germany has been the only genocide that talked about as genocide based on religious lines. However, there are instances, especially in current as well as undivided India when it was colonised by British as well as before that under Mughal rule that Hindus in the country were persecuted only because of their faith.
Dr Mazumdar said how her colleague dismissed her arguments on Hindu genocide even when she gave example of Noakhali genocide of Bengali Hindus in 1946, under British India, likely because it is still a taboo in western academia to not accept the reality of Islamic terror. In 1946, Hindus were attacked by Muslim mobs in undivided Bengal. The riots that went on for almost a week had resulted in death of almost 5000 Hindus. Other than that, hundreds of Hindu women were raped and thousands of Hindu men and women were forcibly converted to Islam by people from Muslim community. Hindus were also forced to pay Jiziyah tax to the Muslim League. However, such atrocities continue to be denied.
Speaking on the hardships she has faced in the academia, Dr Mazumdar recalled an instance when she talked about Hindu genocide as part of Albuquerque Peace and Justice Centre in New Mexico. One of the persons from audience then came up to her and attacked her verbally and called her a liar and accused her of fabricating the Kashmiri Hindu genocide. Kashmir in India has had a bloody history marred with violence and forced religious conversion with the 1990s exodus of Kashmiri Hindus being the latest after the genocidal calls were given from mosques.
Adding more on her experiences of her voice on Hindu genocide being stifled, she talked about how her one more presentation on Kashmiri Hindus at Feminist Research Center at University of New Mexico required extra security as the topic of discussion was not well accepted by some people and protests were planned.
This denying the platform for discussion on Hindu genocide at MYFest22 by EquityUnbound is just one more instance when the topic of persecution of Hindus has been denied a voice in western academia. MYFest is organised by several US universities and participated by people across the world. Dr Mazumdar had submitted proposal on Hindu genocide with special emphasis on Noakhali massacre and killings during the partition of British India. The focus of the talk was how some genocides receive historical and social recognition while others don’t.
Dr Mazumdar said that she had sent her powerpoint presentation on the topic and after accepting the entire panel, the discussion was cancelled at last moment. When she asked for reason, she was told it does not fit hte agenda and also it would ‘hurt some people’.
Speaking to OpIndia regarding the same, Dr Mazumdar said, “I am a feminist and this is not “liberalism” it’s fascism. In feminism we say why we do not agree with death penalty of the rapist or violator is because some sexual attention is made public other victims are silent. This is because the narrative/discourse is controlled by those in power. Same with genocide narratives, some control power others do not, it works via taboos, laws, customs. They call themselves “liberal” but are so uninformed that they do not know how Marx critiqued “secularism”.”
Dr Mazumdar said that she will continue to fight for justice and recognition of Hindu genocide as she is slowly realising that worse than genocide is the silence around it and how the politics of genocide narrative is entirely vitiated with power. Resistance and counter narratives have to be built on histories and lived experiences of people, she said.
