Indian Muslims make up over 13% of India's population but have faced rising Islamophobia following events like 9/11 and the rise of Modi. Several leaders of Modi's BJP party have made openly anti-Muslim comments without consequence, fueling the view of Muslims as extremists. However, Indian Muslims are not a monolithic group and share cultural similarities with people of other faiths in their own regions. To counter growing divisions, it is important to recognize the diversity of India's Muslim population and their important contributions to India's history and society.

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Post 9/11, there has been an alarming rise in Islamophobia or hatred
towards Muslims. Indian Muslims, in a country where Muslims make up for
more than 13 percent of the population of 1.2 billion people have also
withstood the worst of this undesirable trend. Unfortunately, catch words
like Islam, and Muslims have come to be associated with extremism,
terrorism, cruelty, anti-national and the like. Muslims are seen with
suspicion wherever they go.
The rising case of Islamophobia is unfortunately to some extent related to
the rise of Modi. Islamophobia was first defined as "unfounded hostility
towards Muslims, and therefore fear or dislike of all or most Muslims."
However, until now Modi or his government has not done anything to
brand themselves as communal villains, his party's leanings towards
"Hindutva" are well known. Therefore, the fanatics and fundamentalists
have read the rise of BJP as the rise of Hinduism and this is responsible for
the present state. The problem has been further compounded by a few
leaders' intolerant remarks and the unwillingness of Modi or any of his
cabinet ministers to assure the minority of an unbiased treatment.
BJP Statements:-
Giriraj Singh, (2014 polling time) a leader of the party said those opposed
to Modi would have to leave India and go to Pakistan after the BJP won the
election and formed a government. (A clear-cut anti-Muslim remark)
Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti asked her supporters at a rally to choose between
children of the Hindu God Ram and “bastards.” Modi stated that he did not
approve of the comments, but he did not sack her either.
2002 Gujarat Riots- PM Narendra Modi was one of the main accused in
the gruesome 2002 Gujarat Riots a massacre where 100’s of Muslims lost
their lives. Though his name was recently cleared of the crimes his anti-
Muslim, image still stands strong in many a people’s minds.
Additionally, the RSS — a right-wing paramilitary group politically allied to
the BJP — has been accused of forcibly converting entire Muslim and
Christian villages to Hinduism. The sinister implications of this matter are
obvious. It implies a clear rejection of Muslims and Christians as equal
citizens unless they become Hindus. If this anti-Islam movement picked up
speed after Narendra Modi became Prime Minister, it is because he has
calculatedly projected himself as the icon of Hindutva. He has worn many
caps in the last couple of years, but the episode of his brusque rejection of
the Muslim cap stands out. The harsh truth is that now a divisive figure like

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Modi is the country’s Prime Minister. In his very first speech to the Lok
Sabha, he referred to “1,200 years of slavery”, calculatedly. Indian
nationalists speak of 200 years of slavery under the British. Hindu
nationalists refer to 1,200 years. Like the rest of the RSS, Modi has a
quarrel with history. Which is why the Sangh Parivar will never be at peace
with others—or with itself? If it gets more powerful, it will plunge the
country into turmoil. It must be fought and stopped now.
The signs are ominous —the Gita as the National Book, the uniform civil
code, the Ram temple, praise of Godse, and so on. There is dissociation
and disapproval but no condemnation, not even of reference to Muslims as
“haramzade” (persons of illegitimate birth) by a Minister of State. Sadhvi
was not sacked. It was not a mere swear word. It was an obvious
innuendo.
Many would argue that fear and hostility toward Muslims is far from
unfounded in light of the recurring bloody acts of communal violence that
have punctuated Indian life since Independence What is at play in India is
a profound and decades-long erasure of the Indian Muslim face and voice.
Even today People can be heard casually saying dehumanizing things over
dinner about the Muslims living among them—such as "they multiply like
rabbits." Yet, no indicative research has been found on the purported
higher birth rate among Indian Muslims—how birth rates vary across
Muslims in different Indian states or cities, or income levels.
In general, Indian scholarship and media lack meaningful discourse about
Muslim diversity in India. Indian Muslims hail from half a dozen different
Islamic traditions and dozens of ethnicities. There are at least three major
indigenous Muslim ethic groups in Assam alone. Many Indian Muslims
divide themselves, in a not-so-Islamic fashion, along caste lines. They live
in cities and in villages, in every Indian state, sharing more with their
fellow Malayalis or Andhras than they do with other Muslims in Haryana or
Kashmir.
Yet, in Indian public discourse, they are rendered faceless and monolithic.
One might argue that there is no single Indian Muslim identity and politics
any more than there is a unified Hindu one.
Hindus and Muslims have shared a country for more than 50 years, and
have shared the same cities and towns for hundreds of years. They live
side by side. India's biggest movie stars are Muslim. A former president is
Muslim. On college campuses across the country, it is nearly impossible to
distinguish Hindu and Muslim Indians from each other based on gestural
language alone but still this racism continues.
BJP attempts to clear their image: Modi himself has continued in his
attempts to shed his anti-Muslim image. For example, he was the first
Indian prime minister to invite the leader of Pakistan to his inauguration.
Moreover, more recently, he made a direct appeal to all schools in India for

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two minutes of silence after the Taliban’s massacre of students in
Peshawar, Pakistan last December.
If Modi is unable or unwilling to rein in his party’s instrumental use of
Hindu nationalism, then this will portend trouble for nearly all aspects of
Indian society. Religious minorities, specifically Muslims, will be in danger
of mass violence and persecution. Additionally, India’s standing in the
international community could drop precipitously.
If the new anti-Muslim rhetoric is coming from the party and not the PM
himself, then there is still hope that Modi can rein in the extremists. If it is
coming from Modi himself, though, then the trend will likely worsen, as his
own party will certainly not oppose him in on the issue.
Connect the dots and what emerges is a rejection of Muslims as Muslims
unless they convert themselves to Hinduism—to pave the way for the
establishment of a Hindu State. Muslims must accept moral suicide. How
can we call India a Hindu State India is the country of many religions not
just Hindu’s. Looking back at the history many powerful figures engaged in
the struggle for freedom were Muslims. Some prime examples are
Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad, Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi, Abadi Begum,
and Maulana Shaukat Ali.
After all the sacrifices that Muslims made along with Hindus and Sikhs, How
can we be so Islamophobic? Seeing the current state of mind on Muslims
1 is reminded of the couplets Jab Gulistan ko lahoo ki zaroorat padhi/
Sabse pahle hamari hi gardan kati. Phir bhi kahte hai hamse ye ahle
chaman / Yeh chaman hai hamara, tumhara nahi.
Finally, the question that arises out of all this - Is there an end to this
“Islamophobia”. Yes, Islamic militant groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS do
exist but that does not mean everyone who practices Islam is a Terrorist,
India is supposed to be the country of many religions, including Islam. So
when are we going to stop focusing on the bad and start believing that,
good does exist too?
Presented By:
Moohita Kaur Garg
Roll no. CUN130601017
BJMC 2nd Year