Asghar Ali Engineer is a rights activist and heads the two organisations, Institute of Islamic Studies and Centre for Study of Society and Secularism. He has authored or edited 44 books on such  issues  as  Islam and communal and ethnic problems in India and South Asia in general.    For links to his other articles, please go to the top page of this site.

  The year 2000 also witnessed number of communal riots like other  years. Unfortunately there has been no year free of communal  violence despite the BJP s assurances of  riot-free  India. However,  the post-Babri demolition trend of riots on smaller scale continued  this year also. In most of the riots only a few human lives were  lost. The riots during eighties were most devastating, each riot  involving loss of more than 100 lives.

 The account for the year 2000 was opened in  Azamgarh, U.P. on 27th January when trouble broke out in Shibli  College. The mischief began with singing of ôVande Matramö by the  All India Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) students which is a  student front of BJP. Other students refused to sing and the  controversy took dangerous turn when many people were injured and  many shops were looted and burnt. Later on two persons were stabbed  in Mubarakpur in Azamgarh district. In these disturbances more than  180 persons were arrested.The senior superintendent of police,  Azamgarh was transferred. Six companies of para-military forces were  deployed to contain the situation.

 Ahmedabad is a perennial trouble spot and has become  communally a supersensitive area. Even before the BJP government  came to power Ahmedabad was quite sensitive and had witnessed many  major communal clashes. In fact one of the reasons of the fast  growth of BJP in Gujarat has been repeated communal violence. After  the BJP captured power in Gujarat the VHP and the Bajrang Dal have  become very bold and often indulges in vandalism against minorities  and the police remains mute witness. Now it is the VHP which decides  whether minorities should stay in a particular area or not. Often it  does not even allow Muslims to set up shops in majority dominated  areas. Many of us think that we should encourage people to live in  cosmopolitan areas to increase interaction between various religious  communities but the Sangh Parivar bigots are preventing minorities  from settling in Hindu dominated areas.

Thus in Ahmedabad a mob of 40-50 people attacked the  newly constructed five story building in Vishwakunj Society near  National Institute of Design in Paldi area in Ahmedabad on February  5, 2000 causing damage to property worth 20 lakh of rupees. A car  parked nearby was also set on fire. The mob was shouting  Jai Shri  Ram . They also threatened the care-taker of the building with dire  consequences if he revealed their names to the police. The building  was owned by one Wasim Kothiwala. A police officer said that  a  group of Hindus have attacked the building and ransacked it as it is  owned by a Muslim and this area is thickly populated by the Hindus.

The violent attack on Muslim families in Paldi once  again stirred the communal passions in Ahmedabad. The city police  was groping in the dark about this mindless vandalism. The Deputy  Commissioner of Police Shri T.S.Bisht said, ôThese vandals are from  the same locality and they attacked the families as they do not want  these Muslim families in their neighbourhood.

Next, Tonk in Rajasthan witnessed communal frenzy on 20th  February when two groups of students clashed with each other. One  student was killed. Curfew was clamped on town.More than 8 persons  were arrested in this connection. It all began with some quarrel  between students of two communities   Hindus and Muslims. Thereafter  students belonging to one community attacked the students belonging  to another community. One student Nasir was severely beaten up who  succumbed to his injuries later. Communal tension spread between the  two communities as a result of these incidents. Curfew was clamped  in Tonk from 5 A.M. These students also tried to destroy the places  of worship. About 40 persons were arrested in this connection.

Next in row was Nanded, Maharashtra where Hindus and  Muslims clashed over a piece of land on 2nd March, 2000. The trouble  erupted when a shop owner belonging to a minority community tried to  raise a permanent structure. Twelve shops were gutted seemingly by  short-circuiting in one of the shops. It was difficult to say  whether it was short-circuiting or a case of setting fire. The piece  of disputed land was claimed by Dhangar Samaj and they proposed to  build a temple there. A number of communal incidents were caused by  property disputes and it could be said that vested interests used  religion as a cover for their purposes. Because of this, entire  communities got involved in what could be called private property  disputes.

 The other major cause for communal clashes are Hindu and  Muslim festivals. In some or the other place communal trouble erupts  on Holi, Ganesh or Durga procession or Tazia procession in Muharram.  Thus on the occasion of Holi on 19th March more than five lives were  lost in various places in the country. In Farrukhabad district of  U.P. alone 2 persons were killed including one woman when people of  two communities clashed over the question of throwing colour. In  Calcutta three persons died when the police opened fire on the mob  consisting of Hindus and Muslims. Of those died one was killed in  Howrah area in the police firing. According to the police, one group  of people completely drunk was trying to throw colour on unwilling  people of another community. When the police tried to prevent it  from doing so it began pelting stones on the police. Another  incident took place in Hugli district in which one person died and  several were injured. The third incident took place in the suburbs  of Calcutta when twenty four year old youth was killed as he  objected to being smeared with colour.

 On the occasion of Holi in Madhupur village of Behraich  district 12 persons were badly injured when Hindus and Muslims  clashed. The clashes began when some drunkards tried to throw colour  on Muslims and they protested. Fifteen persons were arrested in this  connection.

 After Holi it was turn of Muharram in April 2000. The  Muslims took out Tazia processions on 10th day of Muharram to mourn  the martyrdom of Husain, the grand son of the Holy Prophet. In  Sasaram, Bihar two groups of Muslims clashed over taking out Tazias.  The matter went to such an extent that the police had to fire in the  air to disperse the clashing mobs. In these clashes about two dozen  persons including a police constable were injured. The two groups  attacked each other with lethal and fatal weapons.

 Varanasi, another communally sensitive area, witnessed  eruption of violence on 19th April. Curfew had to be clamped in  Varanasi following communal clashes that left one person dead and  two others, including a policeman, injured. Two more persons were  injured when fresh bout of violence erupted when miscreants hurled  bombs in the curfew bound Telabagh area under Chetganj police  station. Indefinite curfew had to be clamped on 19th April under  Chetganj, Luxa, Dashmasumer Ghat, Chowk and Bhelupura police  stations after clashes.

 On 19th April evening, a young man was attacked by a  group of unidentified people as he was passing through a Muslim  neighbourhood. Following that, members of the two communities  clashed in the area leading to the fatal stabbing of a 22 year old  man, Vinod Kumar Jain, who was merely passing through the  neighbourhood on his two wheeler. This led to violence spilling into  other neighbourhoods. Situation became very tense and intensive  patrolling had to be done and all schools and colleges were closed  for two days and examinations postponed in centres falling under  curfew bound areas. One more person was arrested in connection with  the stabbing incident and number of arrested in various incidents in  Varansi reached 61.

 Madhepura, Ahmedabad witnessed communal violence on 21  May when two persons were suddenly stabbed while buying vegetables.  Hearing this, rival mobs of two hundred each gathered on both sides  and began pelting stones. Arson and looting spread to Dudheshwar  Cross Roads. A grain shop and a scooter were set on fire and two  other shops and a handcart were destroyed. To disperse the mob  police threw 15 tear gas shells. A police sub-inspector was also  hurt near the chin. The police said it was looking for one Hindu  Vishwa Parishad man who had been arrested earlier for his  involvement in similar riots in Madhepura a year back

 Next communal violence erupted in Kopergaon, Ahmednagar  district in Maharashtra. It was on 25th May 2000 the communal  tension on the question of eve teasing near a dargah and a temple  became palpable. Then some persons began to demand that the dargah  be removed from there or the Hindus will install an idol near Idgah.  It was after this that some elements belonging to Shiv Sena-BJP who  began to set fire to Muslim shops. Three bangle shops, two waste  material shops, two spare parts shops, one pan shop, one repair  garage and one truck, all belonging to Muslims were set on fire. The  police, Muslims in Kopergaon alleged, did not help them. It remained  mute spectators. It was after 9 P.M. that SRP reached the spot and  controlled the situation and enforced Article 144. About 7 persons  were arrested but released in the morning.

 On 24th June 2000 police post of Yamunapushta, Delhi  came under attack as the police arrested one Ishaque and Shah Alam,  Bangla Deshis as suspects in a bomb blast. However, people around  the place maintained that Ishaque was working during the day and  teaching children in the madrasa at night. Then rumour spread that  the police had desecrated the Holy Qur an. The Muslims of the area  surrounded the police post and began pelting stones. Even lathi  charge and tear gas shells did not bring the situation under  control. The mob set fire to a motor vehicle of policeparked  nearby and ransacked the police post destroying all the records. The  police then resorted to firing in which one person Ganga Ram was  injured and another person Mujahid 18 was killed. The policemen who  were trapped inside escaped death narrowly as the mob thought they  were dead and left the place. Two constables coming to the post were  also surrounded and beaten up as they were carrying tear gas lobs.

 Guntur came under curfew on following a bomb explosion  in a mosque on 26th June 2000. According to the police, curfew was  clamped on Monday morning in Kothapet, Lalapet and parts of old city  areas, while rest of the town continued under prohibitory order  under section 144. No reports of violence were received after the  curfew was imposed and no arrests were made in connection with the  incident. An all party procession was taken out in Mangalagiri town  in protest against the explosion in the mosque. Some shops also  downed shutters to register their protest.

 The Andhra Pradesh government announced a reward of  Rs.25 lakhs to anybody providing information about the persons  responsible for the attacks on religious institutions in the state.  Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu who visited the blast site made  this announcement after a meeting with religious leaders. He also  announced that police protection will be provided at all religious  places belonging to minorities. An additional police force including  two companies of the RAF were deployed to maintain peace in the  area.ö

 However, violence did break out in Guntur next day. The  Guntur police arrested 30 persons in connection with the torching of  buses and attack on APSRTC bus station after the bomb blast in the  Markaz Mosque. Some trains were also detained at the Rapatla railway  station. A massive procession of about 800 people was also taken out  at Tenali.ö

I n Malpura area of Tonk district communal violence broke  out on 10th July, 2000 after killing of Kailash Mali who was an  accused in the post Babri Demolition riots of December 1992.  Apparently it was a revenge killing as Kailash Mali was involved in  several cases. However, communal disturbances started after his  killing which claimed six lives in Malpura.. After the death of Mali  a jeep was discovered according to Gulabsingh Shaktawat, Home  Minister of Rajasthan with 4 dead bodies in it. These bodies carried  the signs of attacks with sharp weapons. Curfew was clamped in the  area and two companies of Armed Constabulary were deployed.

 Fresh disturbances broke out in Tonk district on July 12  in which one woman was killed. Indefinite curfew had to be imposed  on Tonk district. According to the police a woman was killed and  three children injured at a village on the Toda Raisingh Road in  Malpura town where communal clashes had claimed 10 lives till  Tuesday. The curfew continued for the third day at Malpura and for  the second day at the district headquarters, Tonk. Three companies  of Rapid Action Force had to be rushed from Delhi for maintaining  law and order.

 In Ahmedabad particularly in the old city area like  Kalupur, Dariapur, Jamalpur communal situation is always extremely  fragile. On ordinary incidents Hindus and Muslims start fighting  with each other. On July 14 2000, for example, situation became very  tense with the rumour of one Muslim youth teasing a Hindu girl. Mobs  of more than 500 gathered on both sides and began pelting stones at  each other. The police arrested 26 persons and detained 200. At  about 8-30 P.M. heavy stone pelting and clashes took place near  Nagina Park and Wadilkam area. Officials of Dariapur police rushed  to the spot with the SRP jawans, even as a mob of 1000 residents  pelted stones on the police officials. The police resorted to tear  gas shelling and firing in the air to disperse the mob. However, no  one was injured in the firing

 However, worse was yet to come on communal front in  whole of Gujarat when the VHP gave a call for Gujarat Bandh after  killing of about 100 pilgrims in Kashmir allegedly by the  extremists. The VHP went on rampage in Gujarat and destroyed  properties worth lakhs besides places of worship and dargahs.Many  secular activists and NGOs from Gujarat prepared a comprehensive  report running over 44 pages titled Saffron On the Rampage-  Gujarat s Muslims pay for Lashkar s Deeds..

 According to the Report, ôIn Ahmedabad, Surat,  Sabarkantha (Lambadiya, Khed Brahma and Modasa villages) and  Pahlanpur and Rajkot, Muslim business establishments   power looms,  granaries, printing presses, shops and godowns   were cold-bloodedly  targeted by indigenous terrorist squads led by elected  representatives belonging to Bhartiya Janata Party, the Vishwa Hindu  Parishad and the Bajrang Dal. In Surat alone, a senior correspondent  of the Financial Express has estimated the total damage by the  selective destruction through full fledged arson of only  Muslim-owned power looms  at Rs.10 crores totally. In Modasa Village  of Sabarkantha district, of the 63 business establishments charred  to nothingness, 51 belonged to Muslims, 12 to Hindus totalling to a  loss of not less than Rs. 1.5 crores.ö

 The report further says, ôIf Gujarat is Hindutva s  laboratory, as the proud proponents of this political ideology have  so often declared, what took place in Gujarat on the day of the  Bandh on August 3, and for a week thereafter, should be viewed as  one more test case of Hindutva in action.ö.

 The report continues, ôDespite the fact that many  sections closed down businesses and shops on that day fateful day,  in support of the outrage against the Amarnath yatris, for the  squads of Hindu Rashtra, this was just not enough. Publicly, office  bearers of the VHP and BD, and in many cases helped by selected  representatives of the BJP, bayed for more blood in revenge for the  Amarnath yatris, and got it with the help of the government and the  police: destruction worth crores and all the form of property and  businesses owned by Muslims in the state.

 It is not possible in this report to give all the  details of what happened in various places in Gujarat on the fateful  day of strike (3rd August). However, it is enough to say that it was  display of naked fascism by the Hindutva forces who would never tire  to claimthat Hindus were much more tolerant and the BJP, as  pointed out earlier, would bring  riot-free India  in its manifesto.  A Dargah was also burnt. According to Deepak Trivedi of Asian Age,  ôThe VHP s bandh call officially endorsed by the BJP in Gujarat,  took a violent turn when VHP and Bajrang Dal activists carrying  saffron flags moved around in different parts of the state forcing  people to close shops. Brandishing trishuls and mashaals the  activists shouted anti-Pakistan and anti-Muslim slogans and attacked  people and establishments belonging to minority communities.

 According to Trivedi, in Ahmedabad a dargah was razed to  the ground opposite the Amdapur police chowky in Nafroda area. The  police was a mute witness to the miscreants storming the dargah,  breaking the roof and destroying it completely before setting it on  fire. No arrests had been made in this case. In another case of  vandalism, St.Xaviers School in Meghraj taluka of Sanbarkantha  district was attacked by VHP and Bajrang Dal activists. Father Peter  was injured in the attack. According to Father Cedric Prakash, the  school remained closed in support of the bandh but the miscreants  rushed inside the school promises, where over 380 tribal boys and  girls were lodged in hostels.

 In Surat bandh took violent turn in which several  stabbing cases took place and left a student dead. Violence broke  out in Surat in the afternoon when the VHP activists tried to force  closure of shops. A number of shops were looted and burnt.

 Mathura in U.P. witnessed outbreak of communal violence  on August 15, 2000. The police resorted to firing in which two  persons were killed and 15 others were injured following clashes  between Hindus and Muslims. The dead were identified as Kale (12)  and Mushtaq (22). The violence took place in front of Govindnagar  police station near Krishna Janambhoomi site. The violence was  sparked off by a dispute over a plot of land. When Hindus started  constructing a wall on a plot of land Muslims objected to it saying  that plot was being used as a cemetery under the supervision of the  Wakf Board, a claim rebutted by the majority community. The members  of the two communities threw crude bombs besides acid-filled bottles  at each other. Finally the police had to resort to firing killing  two persons.

 Nanded in Maharashtra again witnessed violence on 13th  September 2000. Four persons were stabbed to death in a fresh  outbreak of communal violence and the authorities clamped a dusk to  dawn curfew. The four villagers who had come to city were stabbed.  About 25 persons were arrested in connection with stabbing incident  in the Itwara area of Nanded. The disturbances started apparently  when some miscreants threw stones on Ganesh procession from one of  the bye-lanes in Itwara area. The news spread like wild fire and  large scale riots broke out. When, according to the police, lathi  charge proved ineffective it resorted to firing injuring four  persons. One of the injured was in critical condition.

 The next town to witness communal violence was  Biharsharif, a town communally sensitive and which had witnessed  communal catastrophe in 1981 in which more than 400 persons had lost  their lives. This time it happened on the question of installing a  Durga idol on a disputed piece of land on October 9, 2000. Violence  broke out and the police opened fire in which one woman Bachia Devi  was killed and three others were injured. The police opened fire at  several places to quell the mobs in which four persons were injured.  Three columns of army and Rapid Action Force and Bihar Military  Police had to be employed to quell the disturbances.

 Tension had gripped the town on 8th October when  thousands of kar sevaks had started building a temple on the  disputed site where they had earlier installed an idol of goddess  Durga on October 4th. The idol was removed by the authorities  later.Enraged by the removal of idol and partial demolition of the  construction the frenzied mobs started vandalising private and  public properties leading to imposition of curfew. According to  eyewitness reports, the members of a community came out defying  curfew regulations, blocked streets with burning tyres and wooden  logs. The number of arrests went up to 145 following night-long  raids in connection with the incidents of arson when shops belonging  to the minority community and government officials were attacked.  The marble idol of goddess Durga was removed to the police lines and  the police authorities asked the organisers either to install it at  a private place of their choice or at a place earmarked by the  authorities to defuse tension

 Azamgarh in U.P. has become sensitive not only from the  point of view of Hindu-Muslim conflict but also from the viewpoint  of Shia-Sunni mutual problems.On 6th November violence between  Shias and Sunnis broke out with great fury in Mubarakpur in Azamgarh  district. The police authorities described it as ôwell planned  sectarian clashesö.The death toll mounted to 11 and three out of  those injured were quite critical. Even after few days after the  clashes the situation in Mubarakpur was highly tense. Six companies  of PAC and two companies of RAF had to be deployed to maintain  peace. Many people thought that the sectarian violence in Mubarakpur  was a result of murder of the Shia leader Agha Syed Mahdi in  Srinagar. But this could not be confirmed. Even days after the  clashes the town was simmering with tension

 Communal violence also broke out in number of places  after Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee gave a statement that the  construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya was an expression of  national  sentiments . Some Hindutvawadis took cue from P.M. s statement and  went on rampage in several places like Rae Bareli and Moradabad in  U.P. and Nawsari in Gujarat. Nawasari has been very peaceful town  and even during communal frenzy in nearby Surat in 1992-1993 it had  remained peaceful. It witnessed communal violence almost for the  first time.

 In Nawsari in South Gujrat communal disturbances broke  out on 3rd December in which 14 persons were seriously injured.  Indefinite curfew had to be imposed in the town police station area.  First disturbances broke out in Alipur area where two communities  clashed on the question of cow protection. About 15 shops and  hawkers stalls were set ablaze. The police had to fire 15 rounds in  air to disperse the mob. There was once case of stabbing also.

 In Moradabad the violence broke out on 9th December when a boundary  wall of a place of worship was demolished in Galshahid area at the  instance of some local politicians. The police had to lathicharge in  more than 12 places as the disturbances spread to different areas.  About 20 persons were held but no one sustained serious injury.

 A Muslim, 45-year-old was beheaded inside the mosque in  Trinulveli district in southern Tamil Nadu. Communal tension spread  in neighbouring districts also after the gruesome incident. The two  unidentified assailants who killed the Muslim made good their  escape. However, the police authorities maintained that the  situation was under control and police pickets had been put in all  sensitive areas. According to the police sources two persons scaled  the mosque s wall around 11 p.m.Saturday night and singled out for  attack Abdul Rasheed among the three men preparing gruel for Ramzan  prayers. Six other persons were sleeping inside the mosque. First a  petrol bomb was thrown and thereafter they attacked Rasheed with  knives.

 POST-BABRI SITUATION

 Though as a result of Ramjanambhoomi movement the BJP gained  tremendous political ground and ultimately succeeded in capturing  political power as a major coalition partner, the communal situation  eased in the post-Babri demolition period. The decade of eighties  was the most dangerous communal decade in post-independence period.  It witnessed the most aggressive form of communalism after the  partition of the country. The Sangh Parivar went all out during this  period to expand its political base by misusing religious and  communal issues one after the other.

 However, once it came to power at the Centre at the head of  coalition it began to downplay communal issues. It wanted to  maintain law and order situation under control and also wanted to  give a message to Muslims that they will be safe only if the BJP is  in power. It even promised to Muslims a  riot-free  India in its  election manifesto of 1999 if it comes to power. Some politicians  who made an alliance with the BJP even argued that to ensure  riot-free India one should keep BJP in power and hence these  otherwise secular parties legitimsed their alliance with it.

 However, it would be knave to think that BJP can become  secular  if  it is voted to power. BJP had been provoking communal hatred in  order to get Hindu votes but as a ruling party obviously it cannot  risk provoking communal violence. It will tarnish its political  image. As a ruling party it has to ensure communal peace. But  communal peace or absence of communal violence should not be  mistaken for communal harmony. To spread communal feelings is the  very ideological basis of Sangh Parivar. If communalism and communal  ideology remains alive communal violence can be incited whenever  needed. The BJP itself is not indulging in communal propaganda. The  other members of the Saffron family   RSS, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad  and Bajrang Dal   fill this void. Of late the Christian community  has come under attack for conversions.

 The BJP for the time being is going soft on Muslims. It is even  following Mrs.Gandhi s policies of early eighties in reverse.  Mrs.Indira Gandhi who traditionally depended on minority votes tried  to switch over to the Hindu votes to compensate for its loss of  popularity among the Muslims. The BJP who is witnessing loss of  popularity among the Hindus is now appealing to Muslims to come  closer to it and repose confidence in it. The wooing of Muslims by  the BJP thus can be compared with the wooing of Hindus by  Mrs.Gandhi. These are political games which the politicians play to  come to power. People of this or that community are used as  vote-banks and object of rather than subject of politics.

 Democracy should be an effective tool for empowerment of people but  it is rather used for empowering politicians at the cost of the  people. The Congress always used Muslims as vote-bank. The Congress  in its long rule hardly did anything to solve acute problems of  Muslims. Muslims in India are very poor and backward. Their main  problems are economic and educational. But the ruling parties did  nothing substantial in these fields. Only promises were made. The  literacy rate among Muslims tends to be around 35% and among Muslim  women it is even more depressing   not more than 18 per cent. Their  share in political power and in government jobs is also very dismal.  Though the Muslim population is more than 12 per cent (according to  1991 census) and may touch 15% level in 2001 census, number of M.P.s  (members of parliament) is usually around 5 per cent. In state  assemblies also it is no different

 Even at the lowest level of government jobs   class three and class  four jobs their share does not go beyond 6 to 7% and at the level of  higher administrative positions like the IAS it is no more than 3-4  per cent. It is true it is difficult to find qualified Muslims for  various jobs and the Muslim leaders also have done near to nothing  to disseminate education among the Muslim masses. But Union and  State Governments have also done nothing to redeem the situation.  They make all promises at the time of elections but except repeating  these promises during next elections hardly anything happens. The  Muslim grievances are quite justified. They hardly have any share in  power as the largest minority in India. The share, if any, is  woefully inadequate.

 CONCLUSION

 Thousands of Muslims not only participated in freedom struggle in  India and made great sacrifices but also vigorously opposed creation  of Pakistan. They dreamt of secular India hoping for creation of  just society where they will be not only able to follow their  religion but also share power on equitable basis. However, things  did not go that way. Though Jawaherlal Nehru was committed to  justice to minorities in independent India other Congress leaders  were not. The majority in the Congress did not share Nehru s  commitment. Also, creation of Pakistan marred to an extent, the  future of Muslims in India. It created powerful prejudices in the  minds of Hindus and Indian Muslims were seen as more loyal to  Pakistan than to India and they generalised few such instances to  reinforce the conclusion which they already had drawn.

 The Muslims also did not draw up proper strategy for their own  advancement in secular India. Their leaders, as pointed out before,  cared more for religion and identity-related problems than the  education and economic progress-related ones. These leaders always  looked to the past then to future. They negotiated deals with  political parties   mainly the Congress   to preserve their past  heritage than to build future for the Muslim masses. Now it is  dawning on Muslims that apart from preserving their Islamic identity  they also have to carve out their niche in democratic secular India.  Though still the emphasis is on building madrasas but more and more  secular educational institutions are also coming up. More and more  Muslims are realising that girl education is also very important for  their progress. A new middle class is also slowly coming into  existence which is increasingly championing the cause of modern  education. Pressures are also building up from below for certain  necessary changes in the status of women, particularly certain  necessary changes in the shari`ah law as it operates in India.

 Though still there is mass poverty among the Muslims, particularly  among the lower caste Muslims, they have turned the corner and many  of them are striving for upward mobility. However, they have far to  go and many powerful obstacles to overcome. It is certainly  convoluted way to forge ahead. Even the BJP has discovered that  anti-Muslim tirade cannot yield more results and is negotiating a  new political space which is likely to have some place for Muslims  though it is not easy for it to do this. It s ideological mentor RSS  may not allow it to do this. Much will depend on the response of its  Hindu voters to this new orientation of the moderate section of the  BJP leadership. It will be tested in coming elections particularly  in U.P.

 Whether the BJP forges ahead with its new Muslim policy or not the  Muslims have to sink or swim in the Indian political ocean and from  all available signs it appears Muslim masses have decided to swim  even if the ocean is choppy. If right now the future of Muslims is  not bright it is not dismal either. Given little more wisdom and  pragmatic approach Muslims can succeed in shaping their future in  democratic India even if its secularism is undulating.

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Institute of Islamic Studies,  9B, Himalaya Apts., Ist Floor,  6th Road, Santacruz (E), Mumbai:-400 055.