Muslims Face Serious Risk of Genocide in India

Khurshid Alam

Rajab 28, 1443 2022-03-01

Main Stories

by Khurshid Alam (Main Stories, Crescent International Vol. 51, No. 1, Rajab, 1443)

As Hindutva fascists rampage throughout India without hindrance, the risk of genocide of Muslims has escalated alarmingly. All the markers are there: leaders of the Hindutva terrorist brigade have openly called for exterminating Muslims. Cow vigilantes have attacked and murdered Muslims accusing them of eating beef even while the $4 billion beef industry is owned predominantly by Hindus.

Muslims are discriminated against in education and, therefore, jobs. Their properties and businesses are targeted and destroyed. Last December, a public meeting held by Hindu fascists in what was called a ‘Religious Parliament’, openly called for the genocide of Muslims. Members of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) were in attendance. No action has been taken against these Hindus openly calling for the murder of Muslims.

The latest manifestation of Hindutva hatred is the ban on Muslim girl students wearing hijab to school or college. Some commentators in India have pointed to the hypocrisy of the hijab ban. Sikhs can wear a turban while serving in the army or police but Muslim girls cannot wear the hijab to school. True, the ban has sparked protests across India but these are unlikely to force Hindu fascists to back off. They are working to a larger agenda.

Two other factors have contributed to the heightened sense of fear among Muslims in India. The courts no longer provide justice; they side with the Hindu majority pandering to their demands. Further, the Narendra Modi regime and its goons are active supporters of the Hindu terrorists. Modi himself has emerged from the bowels of the fascist outfit, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

On February 7, 2022, the website of the Deoband Madrassa, the Darul Uloom, was taken down amid allegations that it was violating the rights of children. The ban order was issued by a local magistrate. There are fears that Uttar Pradesh state where the madrassa is located, might order the shut-down of the oldest Islamic madrassa in India.

This was followed, less than two weeks later by a court in Ahmadabad (Gujarat state) sentencing 38 Muslims to death for the 2008 bomb blasts that killed 57 people and dozens of others were injured. Lawyers for the accused said after the February 18 verdict that they would appeal against the sentences to a higher court. Given anti-Muslim hatred in India, there is little chance of getting justice from the courts.

What is to be done as the 200 million Muslims face an existential threat in India? There have been protests in India especially over the hijab ban but such actions have made little difference to the Hindu fanatics that are working to a set agenda. They have made no secret of the fact that they want to turn it into an exclusivist Hindu state in which there is no room for Muslims, Christians or other religious minorities.

Already, Muslims live in so much fear that they have adopted Hindu names and Muslim women go out wearing Hindu symbols to hide their identity. Let us dispense with the nonsensical notion that India is a democracy. It is not, regardless of how many elections it holds. Elections had brought Adolf Hitler to power in Germany. The Hindu fascists have taken the Hitlerite ideology and are implementing it in India against Muslims.

Nor would the western world pay any attention to the plight of Muslims, in India or elsewhere. Western regimes are in the forefront of terrorizing Muslims in their own societies so why would they care about Muslims in India even if they constitute 200 million people? The west is only interested in trade with India and wants to use it as a bulwark against China, their new rival on the global stage.

This leaves the Muslim world. True, there are 57 Muslim nation states but will they do anything to protect the 200 million Muslims? Some of them are actively courting India for business opportunities. These include Saudi Arabia, the UAE and a host of others. There are also an estimated 10 to 12 million Hindus working in these countries. If the Arabian regimes were to issue a warning that they would expel all Indian workers if Muslims in India are harmed, there is little doubt that Delhi would take notice. The big question is: will they do so? Having abandoned the Palestinians to the Zionist wolves, what chances are there for these regimes taking a stand in defence of India’s 200 million Muslims?

That leaves governments like Pakistan, Turkey and Islamic Iran. While Pakistan has little or no trade (because of the ongoing Kashmir dispute), it alone would not be able to make much difference. Turkey has issued some statements. If the Erdogan-led government is serious, it must take practical steps to confront the Hindu fascists.

Unfortunately, even Islamic Iran is doing brisk business with India. True, it faces serious economic challenges because of the illegal western sanctions but will it take a stand against the genocide of Muslims? How far will it go? The Muslim population of India is about 2.5 times the total population of Iran. Are 200 million innocent lives in India worth saving?

Collectively, the Muslim world can stop India’s genocidal policies against Muslims and force it to desist. What is required is will power. Can the Muslim world take a stand, or even some countries in the Muslim world, or will they allow the extermination of 200 million Muslims and later shed crocodile tears over their fate?