Image for representational purpose only. | Photo Credit: AFP
The exercise, viewed as ‘mini-NRC’, aims to distinguish three categories of indigenous Muslims from their migrant Bengal-origin counterparts
The Janagosthiya Samannay Parishad, Assam (JSPA) on Thursday launched a portal for conducting the first-ever census of Assamese Muslims for distinguishing them from their migrant, Bengal-origin or Bengali-speaking counterparts.
The JSPA represents three categories of Assamese Muslims — Goriya who converted from various indigenous groups and tribes, Moriya whose ancestors were brought by the Ahom kings to make weapons and utensils and Deshi who converted specifically from the Koch-Rajbongshi community.
The three-month exercise, seen as a small-scale version of the National Register of Citizens (NRC), has a cut-off period corresponding with the British annexation of Assam in the early 1800s. The JSPA considers the pre-British rule Muslims of Assam as indigenous, which is why the Jolahas — converts from among tea plantation workers who were brought from central India by British planters — have been kept out of the census.
Released in August 2019, the NRC had excluded 19.06 lakh of 3.3 crore applicants for lack of documents establishing them as the citizens of India. The cut-off period for the NRC was March 24, 1971, as prescribed by the Assam Accord of 1985 for detecting and deporting foreigners or “illegal immigrants”.
“We launched the portal jspacensus.com portal today [April 15] to coincide with the Assamese New Year and hope to complete the exercise by the end of 2021,” JSPA’s chief convenor Syed Mominul Aowal said.
The portal has a list of documents that applicants have to upload for registration. They include voter card, Aadhaar card and PAN of each family member (non-mandatory for minors), a certified copy from village head, municipal board, town committee or any other competent authority as well as a certified copy from JSPA-empanelled organisations listing all members of an applicant’s family.
The portal also lists 17 organisations recognised or empanelled with the JSPA and their phone numbers to be contacted for any issues with registering online. These organisations include Desi Janagostiyo Manch, Assam, Axomiya Muslim Kalyan Parishad, Khilonjiya Axomiya Musolman Unnayan Parishad and Hodow Khilonjiya Muslim Oikyo Manch.
The JSPA has also provided a helpline and the phone numbers of all its affiliate organisations for guiding the indigenous Muslims in getting themselves registered.
“This exercise was necessary as some migrant Muslims have undertaken an initiative to bring all Muslims living in Assam under one umbrella. Our religion and names may be the same but the indigenous Muslims have a distinct identity, given by the Ahom and Koch kings,” Mr. Aowal said.
According to the 2011 census, Muslims account for 34.22% of Assam’s population. The JSPA claims Assam today has about 1.4 crore Muslims, of whom 40 lakh are indigenous Muslims.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National / by Special Correspondent / Guwahati – April 15th, 2021
Watch Video: Dr Abidullah Ghazi laid to rest in Chicago
Ambehta (Sahranpur District),(formerly United Provinces) UTTAR PRADESH / INDIA, Chicago, U.S.A. :
Dr Abidullah Ghazi’s wife Dr Tasneem and others at the funeral ceremony held in Chicago on Monday afternoon.
The 85-year-old founder of Iqra International Educational Foundation was ailing since last few years and died on Sunday.
Chicago:
Dr Abidullah Ghazi – Scholar, Poet, Author, Philosopher and Activist, was laid to rest in the afternoon Monday April 12, 2021 in Chicago.
The 85-year-old founder of Iqra International Educational Foundation was ailing since last few years and under medication at a Chicago hospital-cum-rehab. He passed away in the wee hours of Sunday April 12, 2021.
He is survived by his wife, three sons and two daughters.
Immediate family members, including his wife Dr Tasneema Ghazi and children, were present when he was buried at Chicago cemetery on Monday.
The funeral that lasted for more than one and half hours was limited only to the immediate family members due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Dr Abidullah Ghazi was born to Maulana Hamid Al Ansari – freedom fighter and a renowned journalist of his time, on July 6, 1936 in India. His mother had died when he was still in her early age. Under the guardianship of his grandmother, he was admitted in Jamia Millia at the age of 08.
Later he completed M A (Political Science) and BTh from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU). He went on to do M A in Economics from the London School of Economics and later wrote thesis on the revivalist views of Raja Rammohan Roy for his Ph.D. at the Ivy League, Harvard University.
Dr Ghazi also published, ‘Zikr-e-Saman Izaraan’, an anthology of Urdu poems.
After completing his education he first migrated to the United Kingdom and then to the United States where he stayed till his last breath.
Dr. Ghazi, who had also done Ph.D. in comparative religions from Harvard University, was a fixture in America’s Muslim community and a pioneer in providing quality Islamic education to our children.
Dr Ghazi was the author and editor of over 150 text and support books on Islamic syllabus designed with his wife Dr Tasneema Ghazi especially for Muslim children living in Western countries or studying in English-medium schools.
He had established Iqra Foundation in Mumbai which is run and taken care of by his younger brother Salman Ghazi and his wife Uzma Nahid.
Dr Abidullah Ghazi was named by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre as being among the 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World. Besides, Dr. Ghazi was also the recipient of numerous awards notably the Citizen’s Award, the Ronald Regan Award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Order of Excellence) from Pakistan, a Certificate of Welcome from the City of Los Angeles many others.
Condolences pour in
Condolences are pouring in from different circles and by prominent people who termed the demise of Dr Abidullah Ghazi a great loss not just for the Muslims in the United States but also for those living in other parts of the world, especially India.
“Dr Ghazi, a prominent alumnus, enriched cerebral legacy of Aligarh Movement. He was among a bunch of highly motivated, adventurous persons who broke barriers and went on to distinguish themselves in their chosen fields,” AMU Vice Chancellor, Prof Tariq Mansoor said.
Extending condolences to the bereaved family of the deceased, the Vice Chancellor said:
“I shared a warm personal rapport with Dr Ghazi. The AMU fraternity will always carry Dr Ghazi’s memory in hearts.”
In his condolence message, renowned literary personality Hashmat Sohail said:
“It’s hard to believe Dr. Ghazi is no longer with us. I spent many years together. He will be remembered forever in the worldwide literary community.”
Ali Khan, President and Founder of Urdu Semaj Chicago, in his condolence message said:
“He was a legend in our community and a very genuine, Urdu lover People from Chicago will especially miss the late Dr. Abid Ghazi This is a total loss for us. He was devoted and inspirational leader for the whole community.”
http://www.iqra.org
source: http://www.ummid.com / Ummid.com / Home> India>Life & Style / by ummid.com news network / April 13th, 2021
Renowned Islamic scholar, mufti and former principal of Jamia Mohammadia Mansoora, Malegaon Dr Fazlur Rahman Madani passed away Friday due to COVID-19. He was 72.
Dr Fazlur Rahman Madani breathed his last at Iqra Hospital in Malegoan at around 2 am. According to his son, the renowned scholar was admitted in a hospital after he was tested COVID positive about a month ago. Although he was discharged last week, his health, however continued to deteriorate.
Born in Balrampur District of Uttar Pradesh, Dr Fazlur Rahman Madani obtained his PhD from the Islamic University of Madinah, with a specialisation in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence).
Dr Fazlur Rahman was survived by his three sons and three daughters. His wife passed away three years ago.
source: http://www.thecognate.com / The Cognate / Home> News / by Shaik Zakeer Hussain / March 26th, 2021
Shaikh Dr Wasiullah Abbas is a renowned Islamic scholar from India. A graduate from the Islamic University of Madinah and Umm Al Qura University in Makkah, he is a teacher of Tafsir, Principles of Tafsir, Hadith and Principles of Hadith in Umm Al Qura University, a position he has held since 1979.
He also delivers lectures on Sahih al-Bukhari and Sunan Abu Dawood in Arabic and general Islamic lectures in Masjid al-Haram in Makkah where Abdullah Ibn Abbas (RA) used to deliver his talks.
Early Life and Education
Dr Wasiullah Abbas was born in 1948 in Basti district, in a small town of Bherabhoj, renowned for producing many Islamic scholars of repute. His father’s name was Muhammad Abbas Khan, his grandfather’s name was Ahmad Khan, and his great grandfather’s name was Khushhaal Khan. Dr Wasiullah’s grandfather Ahmad Khan was the chief of his town.
Dr Wasiullah received primary education from Shaikh Muhammad Saleem, a well-known Islamic teacher who was a student of Madrasah Rahmaniyyah. He later moved to the town of Yusufpur and enrolled in Madarsa Darul Huda and did his further studies in Jamia Rahmaniyyah in Banaras.
In 1966, the Jamia Salafia, one of the largest Islamic universities was established in the city Banaras. One of the scholars, who attended the inauguration of the university was Shaikh Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz. On Shaikh ibn Baz’s direction, four students were selected from both Jamia Salafia and Jamia Rahmaniyyah to study at the Islamic University of Madinah. These four students were Dr Wasiullah Abbas, Shaikh Abdul Hameed Rahmani, Shaikh Abdus-Salam Madani and Shaikh Abdur-Rahman al-Bastawi.
Islamic University of Madinah and Umm Al Qura University
At the Islamic University of Madinah, Dr Wasiullah Abbas obtained a bachelors degree in Dawah and Ilm Usool Ad-Deen (Principles of the Religion), from the department of Tafsir and Hadith.
After successfully completing the bachelors (undergraduate) program at the Islamic University of Madinah, Dr Wasiullah Abbas travelled to Makkah for higher (post-graduate) studies.
Here, he completed his Masters and PhD (doctorate) programs in Makkah, with a specialization in Hadith. He completed his PhD (doctorate) program in the year 1981, which was the year in which Umm Al Qura University was established in Makkah. Prior to this, the structured study in Makkah – “adDirasaat al-Ulyaa” (the higher studies programs), the Faculty of Shari’ah, and the Faculty of Tarbiyyah – were under the administration of King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.
Teaching
During his time as a PhD student, he was appointed as a teacher at the Mahad at Masjid al-Haram. He continued teaching with this position for many years, after completing his PhD. Later, he was selected as a professor in Umm Al Qura University in Makkah, where he continues to hold a teaching position in the department of “al-Kitaab (the Qur’an) and the Sunnah” in the Faculty of Da’wah and Usool-ud-Deen, lecturing on numerous subjects related to the science of Hadith.
The Shaikh also holds a teaching chair in Masjid al-Haram, with authorization attained from the “General Director of the Affairs of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah. His chair is located in the “Mataf” (the area of Tawaaf around the Kabah), between the doors of Bab al-Malik Fahad (King Fahad Gate) and Bab al-Umrah, where he continues to teach five days a week between the Maghrib and Isha prayers.
Books
Among the books Dr Wasiullah Abbas authored are as follows: “ad-Du’afaa’ wal-Matrookoon wal-Majhooloon fee Sunan an-Nasa’i” (The Weak, Abandoned, and Unknown [Narrators of the Ahadith] in Sunan an-Nasa’i). This was Shaikh’s Masters thesis.
Tahqeeq (Verification) of the book “Fadaa’il as-Sahaabah” (Virtues of the Companions [of the Prophet Muhammad (SAWS)] of al-Imaam Aboo Abdullaah Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal ash-Shaybaanee (RH) [d.241H]. This was Shaikh’s PhD (doctorate) thesis.
Tahqeeq of the book “al-‘Ilal wa Ma’rifatur-Rijaal” ([The Science of] Defects [in the Asaaneed of the Ahaadeeth] and [the Science] of Narrators [of the Ahaadeeth]) as narrated by al-Imaam Aboo Abdur-Rahmaan Abdullaah ibn al-Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (RH).
Tahqeeq of the book “Bahrid-Dam feeman Takallama feehi al-Imaam Ahmad bi-Madh aw Dham” (The one [i.e. Narrators of Ahaadeeth] al-Imaam Ahmad [ibn Hanbal (RH)] Spoke about with Commendation or Disparagement) of al-Imaam Jamaalud-Deen Yoosuf ibn Hasan ibn Ahmad ibn Hasan ibn Abdul-Haadee as-Saalihee, well-known as Ibnul-Mibrad al-Hanbalee (RH).
Tahqeeq of the book “al-‘Ilal wa Ma’rifatur-Rijaal” ([The Science of] Defects [in the Asaaneed of the Ahaadeeth] and [the Science] of Narrators [of the Ahaadeeth]) as narrated by al-Imaam Aboo al-Fadal Saalih ibn al-Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (RH).
Tahqeeq of the twelfth volume of the book “Ittihaaf al-Mahrah bil-Fawaa’id al-Mubtakarah min Atraaf al-Ashrah” of al-Imaam al-Haafidh Shihaab-ud-Deen Aboo al-Fadal Ahmad ibn Alee ibn Hajar al-Kunaanee al-Asqalaaanee (RH) [d. 852H], upon request from “Markaz Khidmatis-Sunnah was-Seerah an-Nabawiyyah”31 of Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
Tahqeeq of the fifth volume of the book “Lisaan al-Meezaan”32 of al-Imaam al-Haafidh Shihaab-ud-Deen Aboo al-Fadal Ahmad ibn Alee ibn Hajar al-Kunaanee al-Asqalaaanee (RH) [d. 852H], upon request from “Markaz Khidmatis-Sunnah was-Seerah anNabawiyyah” of Madinah, Saudi Arabia.
“al-Masjid al-Haraam: Taareekhuhu wa Ahkaamuh” (The Grand Mosque in Makkah: Its History and Its Rulings).
“Ilal al-Hadeeth wa Dawruhu fee Hifdhis-Sunnah” ([The Science of] Defects [in the Asaaneed of the Ahaadeeth] and its Role in Protecting the Sunnah).
“Tahqeeq al-Kalaam fee Wujoobil-Qiraa’ah Khalf al-Imaam” (Verification of the Speech Regarding the Obligation of Reciting [Sooratul-Faatihah] Behind the Imaam [in the Salah]) of ash-Shaykh al-Allaamah al-Muhaddith Abdur-Rahmaan al-Mubaarakpooree (RH) [d.1353H]. This book has been translated from Urdu into Arabic by the Shaykh and he has added his annotations upon it.
“Khuluq al-Muslim fee Daw’il-Kitaab was-Sunnah” (Manners of the Muslim in Light of the Qur’an and the Sunnah).
“al-Musaafahah bil-Yadil-Yumnaa” (Greeting with the Right Hand [Upon Saying Salaam]) of ash-Shaykh al-Allaamah al-Muhaddith Abdur-Rahmaan al-Mubarakpuri (RH) [d.1353H]. This book has been translated from Urdu into Arabic by the Shaikh and he has added his annotations upon it.
“Fiqh Ahlil-Hadeeth: Khasaa’isuhu wa Mumayyizaatuhu” (Jurisprudence of the People of the Hadith: Its Unique and Exclusive Aspects).
“at-Ta’reef bi-Kutub Taraajimir-Ruwaat” (The Introduction to the Books [which Contain] Biographies of the Narrators [of Ahadith]).
Family
Dr Wasiullah Abbas is married and has five sons and five daughters.
References
Biography of Allamah Dr Wasiullah Abbas by Umm-Ul-Qura Publications.
Dr Wasiullah Abbas On Social Media
source: http://www.thecognate.com / The Cognate / Home> Biography / by Shaik Zakeer Hussain / March 31st, 2021
“I am really excited. A scam of this magnitude has to be taken to masses,” the author said
Furquan Moharkan’s financial thriller ‘The Banker Who Crushed His Diamonds: The YES Bank Story‘, is all set to be adapted for screen. Published by Penguin Random House India earlier this year, the story uncovers the deep rot set in YES Bank’s glittering success story.
The crisp page-turner will now be adapted for screen, and according to a press release, the publishing house has already closed a deal with Almighty Motion Picture for the rights.
The book charts the trajectory of the bank, from its inception to its dramatic rise and meteoric downfall. It also entails the story of the people behind one of the biggest banking failures in Indian history.
About the recent developments, Moharkan said in a statement: “I am really excited. A scam of this magnitude has to be taken to masses, and what better than a book getting made into an AV form. We have also seen growing interest in financial thrillers in the country, which I hope would lead to success of The Banker... This will also help a lot in making the masses financially more literate.”
Almighty Motion Picture launched in 2020 with a web series on MX Player. Headquartered in Mumbai, it is headed by actor turned entrepreneur Prabhleen Kaur Sandhu.
“We have always craved for good content and when I came to know about The Banker Who Crushed his Diamonds by Furquan Moharkan, it did not take me another thought to go for the rights to be adapted on screen,” she said.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Books and Literature / by Lifestyle Desk , New Delhi / April 12th, 2021
The 17th century mosque in Keezhakarai is the finest example of Dravidian-Muslim architecture.
Yaadhum , a documentary film, tracing the history and identity of the Tamil Muslim community, has won the Bronze Remi award at the 48th WorldFest -Houston – the third longest running International Film Festival in North America.
“The film is a Tamil Muslim’s journey in search of his roots and identity,” says Kombai S. Anwar, the film-maker who won the award under the Cultural/Ethnic category. There were participants from 33 countries and more than 550 international film-makers attended the festival. The film was also screened at The Hindu Literary Festival.
Distorted history
Mr. Anwar said his objective was to set right the distorted history of Muslims constructed by Western historians.
“Contrary to the popular perception that Islam made advances through violent conquests, in Tamil Nadu the religion arrived with trade. The sculpture found in the Tirukurungudi temple explains the maritime trade with the Arabs,” he said.
Inspiration
Two incidents — late writer Sujatha’s argument that thousands of Vaishnavites were killed during the Muslim invasion and Anwar’s role in helping the local community preserve the Kallupalli (the mosque made of granites) — became the inspiration for the film.
“Muslims in Tamil Nadu adapted themselves to the local cultures and combined the elements of Dravidian architectures while constructing mosques,” he said.
Dravidianarchitecture
Even though there are a lot of mosques built following the Dravidian architecture, the 17thcentury mosque in Keezhakarai constructed by Seethakathi, known as Vallal Seethakathi, remains the finest example of Dravidian-Muslim architecture.
The film covers excavations, inscriptions, old mosques built in the architectural traditions of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, literature and interviews with well-known historians.
It attempts to correct the distorted historical account of how the community came to the State
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Tamil Nadu / by B. Kolappan / Chennai – May 15th, 2015
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami giving away the Anna Medal for Gallantry P. Mullai, a teacher in Pulivalam Government High School in Sholinghur in Ranipet district | Photo Credit: Raghunathan SR
TN Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami gave away the medals at the Republic Day celebrations on Tuesday
A school teacher who risked her life to save her students from an explosion, a veterinary surgeon who rescued an elephant that plunged into a 60-feet deep well, a loco pilot who noticed boulders on railway tracks and saved his passengers and a cab driver who acted swiftly to save the life of an injured policeman were awarded the prestigious Anna Medal for Gallantry during the Republic Day celebrations on Tuesday.
Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami handed over the medals to the recipients, in the presence of Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Madras High Court Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and other dignitaries. The Anna Medal for Gallantry (given to government servants and general public categories) carries a cheque of ₹1 lakh, a medal worth ₹9,000 and a certificate.
On January 29, 2020, P. Mullai, a teacher in Pulivalam Government High School in Sholinghur in Ranipet district, smelled the strong odour of LPG in the neighbourhood. Disregarding her personal safety, she guided her students to safety. “But her selflessness ended in misfortune as the LPG exploded in the neighbourhood, collapsing the house wall adjacent to the school, leaving her injured,” read her citation. She saved her 26 students but had to be admitted to hospital in a highly critical stage. She has recovered eventually.
Forest Veterinary Assistant Surgeon A. Prakash was involved in the rescue of an elephant that fell into a 60-feet deep well on November 19, 2020 and was actively involved in the rescue that lasted over 18 hours. When the rescued elephant charged at the gathering of the people unexpectedly, Mr. Prakash followed the animal and gave it an anaesthetic drug with his bare hands, after realising there was no time left for loading the tranquilliser gun.
Loco Pilot J. Suresh of Vaigai Express noticed his train was approaching boulders on the tracks due to a landslide on November 18, 2020. Despite inclement weather and poor visibility, he stopped the train immediately and thereby saved the lives of over 1,500 passengers on board the train.
R. Pugazendiran of The Nilgiris district saved the life of an injured policeman after a tree fell on the latter on August 5, 2020. Mr. Pugazendiran “reached the spot quickly with his vehicle and rushed the injured police constable to the nearest hospital. The police constable was saved.”
Inspector of Police T. Magudeeswari of the Prohibition Enforcement Wing in St. Thomas Mount, Sub-Inspector of Police N. Selvaraju of the Central Investigation Unit in Salem, Head Constable S. Shunmuganathan of Srivilliputhur Taluk Police Station in Virudhunagar district and Head Constable S. Rajasekaran of Kilkodungalur Police Station in Tiruvannamalai district received the Gandhi Adigal Police Medal. The Gandhi Adigal Police Medal is awarded to personnel of the Tamil Nadu Police, who have undertaken outstanding work in curtailing illicit liquor. The Award carries a sum of ₹40,000.
The police stations in Salem Town, Tiruvannamalai Town and Kotturpuram in Chennai received the top three ranking stations across the State. Mr. K.A. Abdul Jabbar from Coimbatore district received the Kottai Ameer Communal Harmony Award for 2021.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Tamil Nadu / by Special Correspondent / Chennai – January 26th, 2021
A Hindu woman (in yellow sari) prays at the pond in Ghutiari Sharif compound with Muslim women / pix: Gautam Bose
A BJP rally kept raising high-pitched “Jai Shri Ram” cries as it marched along the Baruipur-Canning Road in South 24-Parganas on Friday afternoon.
Slogans in support of the incumbent regime in Delhi were belted thick and fast and scorn was heaped on “infiltrators and termites”. It was around 12.30pm and the road was not busy. But some cars were stalled by the rally.
One of them was headed to a shrine dedicated to a Muslim saint, 35km from the heart of Calcutta and two stops before Canning, the gateway to the Sunderbans. All the occupants of the car were Hindus.
Debi Majumder (left) and Umme Habiba Laskar at the Ghutiari Sharif shrine on March 26. Majumder is a Lake Market resident . Laskar is an ayah employed by a neighbour of Majumder. The picture was taken minutes after the two dipped their palms into the pond together / pic: Gautam Bose
“I am going to Ghutiari Sharif for the first time. I have heard that if you pray sincerely, Ghazi baba answers your prayers,” said Suparna Dutta, 22, part of the group from Garia.
A suburb in South 24-Parganas, Ghutiari Sharif is known for the mazaar (resting place) of Pir Ghazi Mubarak Ali, a revered 17th century figure.
It is also a testament to the secular character of the popular devotional culture of Bengal at a time religious polarisation is the dominant narrative everywhere from political rallies to election manifestos.
Salim Dewan, 65, who owns a store selling incense sticks, flowers, chadars and other objects offered to the Pir’s resting place / pix: Gautam Bose
Legends and folklore in Bengal are often a part of everyday life, transcending barriers of religion and caste. When this reporter visited the shrine on Friday, scores of women with sindoor-smeared foreheads were seen dipping their palms into a pond in the shrine compound, praying silently to have their wishes (manat) fulfilled.
The shrine embodied the deep-rooted syncretism in Bengal’s culture, something that social scientists said would pose a formidable challenge to any political party seeking to polarise voters.
That syncretism was perhaps best represented by an image of two women — Debi Majumder and Umme Habiba Laskar — dipping their palms together in the pond.
Majumder, a first-timer at Ghutiari Sharif, had come from her home in Lake Market. She came to know of the place from Laskar, an ayah who looks after one of Majumder’s neighbours. Laskar is a resident of Champahati, another suburb not far from Ghutiari Sharif, and has been there several times.
They had boarded a train from Ballygunge to reach the Ghutiari Sharif station on Friday. The shrine is a less than five-minute walk from the station. Around 1.30pm on Friday, the two dipped their palms into the pond together.
“I prayed at the mazaar and then made my wish at the pond. I have skipped breakfast, in keeping with the ritual,” said Majumder. Many visitors fast till they pray at the mazaar.
Suparna Naskar, who lives in Baruipur, had accompanied a Muslim friend who had come with her newborn. “She had wished for a child. Today, we have come to thank Ghazi baba for granting the wish,” said Naskar.
The shrine is a five-minute walk from the Ghutiari Sharif railway station in the Sealdah-Canning suburban section. The narrow road is dotted with shops. The resting place of the pir is at the centre of the compound. The top of the shrine has a mosaic dome with four towers.
Legend has it that the area, then part of the Sunderbans, was hit by a severe drought four centuries ago. Pir Ghazi Mubarak Ali is said to have brought rainfall to the area. He is also said to have cured a Hindu king, Madan Roy, from a severe bout of illness, after which Roy gifted him swathes of land. The mazaar stands on that land.
“Baba’s spirit still endures, taking care of this place. He did not discriminate between people. We have maintained that tradition. Around one-third of my customers are Hindus,” said Salim Dewan, 65, who owns a store selling incense sticks, flowers, chadars and other objects offered to the pir’s resting place. Dewan is a common title given to the future generations of the pir, some of whom are also part of the managing committee of the shrine.
“Many such mazaars and dargahs in Bengal are entrenched in a syncretic culture. The devotees come from all faiths, light incense sticks and offer sinni (a sweet concoction of milk, flour, bananas, raisins and other fruits, usually made during pujas in Bengali homes) and other homely food to the presiding saint,” said Epsita Halder, who teaches comparative literature at Jadavpur University and has researched on the scriptural understanding and popular devotionalism of vernacular Islam in Bengal.
“In medieval Bengal, many Islamic preachers became popular among the common people because they spoke in a simple language that everyone could connect with. They were not heavy on scriptural understanding of a religion but talked about devotion as a way of life,” Halder said.
Ghutiari Sharif falls under Canning West Assembly seat, won by Trinamul’s Shyamal Mondal in 2016. This time, the ruling party has fielded Paresh Ram Das. His main contender is Arnab Roy of the BJP.
Roy switched sides from the TMC to the saffron camp recently and his candidature has triggered protests from local BJP workers, like at so many other places of the state.
The influence of the shrine goes far beyond one constituency.
Ghutiari Sharif hosts two major fairs in a year. One is in the first week of August, commemorating the death anniversary of the pir. The other is in June, which coincides with the famous Ambubachi Mela at the Kamakhya temple in Assam. According to the local legend, King Madan Roy, a regular at the Kamakhya temple during the fair, started a similar fair near his home after being impressed by the pir.
Special trains are run during the fairs and lakhs of people, Hindus and Muslims, throng the shrine, apart from tens of thousands every week.
Those at the helm of the shrine said they kept off politics.
“We have always practised an inclusive culture and will continue doing so, irrespective of which party comes to power,” said Siraj Dewan, caretaker of the managing committee of the shrine.
Political commentator Maidul Islam said the politics of polarisation has yielded dividends in the urban middle class but suburban and rural Bengal was a different ballgame.
“The urban middle class is divided into the conservative and the liberal sections. The conservatives have already sided with the saffron brigade. There is a deep churning in a large section of the liberals. Many of them are still undecided among the Left and Trinamul. But the syncretic culture of rural and suburban Bengal is so deep-rooted that it will not be erased in the course of one election,” he said.
The resting place of Pir Ghazi Mubarak Ali. / pix: Gautam Bose
Ghutiari Sharif is not far for the Sunderbans, the land of another syncretic legend, Bon Bibi, the protector of humans and the forest, worshipped by Hindus and Muslims alike.
“All across the Sunderbans, rituals to Bon Bibi are performed by Hindus as well as Muslims. I think it is a wonderful kind of syncretism that you see there. In popular culture, in Bengal, it is incredibly mixed. These traditions, they are impossible to pick apart and say this is Hindu and this is Muslim. I think that’s what makes the popular culture of Bengal so vibrant and so interesting,” author Amitav Ghosh, who had introduced Bon Bibi to the world, said of the legend while speaking on the occasion of a literary meet in Calcutta in February.
source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> West Bengal> Calcutta / by Debraj Mitra, Calcutta / March 31st, 2021
Mohammad Mirza is a travel writer and a social media executive from Hyderabad. He is currently based in the Middle East. His Instagram page “Mosques of India” is stocked with images of abandoned mosques with striking architecture that has remained elusive to the imaginations of present-day craftsmen.
Ten years ago, walking through the bustling street of Shaikpet in Hyderabad, thirty-year-old Mohammad Mirza was distraught to see the sight of a tumbledown Shaikpet mosque. Once, the Shaikpet mosque would echo with prayers, stirring the hearts of many. Seeing the plight of the mosque, Mirza started on a journey to research and write about the abandoned “Mosques of India.”
His aim is for the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Muslim Waqf Boards to recognize these mosques as state-protected monuments.
Picture Courtesy: Muslim Mirror
“I started writing about the abandoned mosques of India in lockdown. I am a history junkie and I read vastly on architecture,” Mirza told TwoCircles.net.
“I didn’t want to post the images of the mosques alone. I wanted to create awareness about their poor and dilapidated condition. I also try to extensively research and write about the historical significance and the cultural heritages of these mosques,” he said.
His page features an assortment of solitary mosques, which include the Palaiya Jumma Palli, one of the oldest mosques in India located at Keelakari in Tamil Nadu, which has a semblance of Dravidian Islamic Architecture and was constructed around 628 – 630 AD, the Akbari mosque in the sleepy town of Kalanaur, Punjab. The Akbari mosque is speculated to be the coronation place of Akbar the Great. Each mosque featured on the page has a unique ‘unknown’ history but are in ruins at present.
Picture Courtesy: Gurmeet Singh
“The Arabic calligraphy and inscriptions are still intact in some mosques, but most of the mosques are in a very bad condition. The minarets and domes are broken. The walls of the mosques have plants and trees growing out of their fissures, and sometimes they are just cloaked in algae,” says Mirza.
Mirza archives the heritage of these mosques by doing ‘short series’ items on these old and abandoned mosques. “The short series helps people to focus on a particular place filled with heritage,” he says.
In his first series, he wrote about eight different “Abandoned Mosques of Haryana” (as he calls it). It featured mosques from the villages of Gondar, Fatehabad, Kahni, Turkiawas, Meham, Dujana, Urlana Kalan and Jalmana.
“Sadly today these mosques are encroached and used as residences and cowsheds. Mosques used to be a house of prayer for Muslims. There are no Muslims in these small villages to worship in these mosques as they have migrated during the partition,” he says.
In one of his series, Mirza writes that Haryana is blessed with so many historical monuments, and “there is perhaps no other state in India where historic monuments are left to vagaries of nature like they are in Haryana.” He is talking about a forsaken mosque of Fatehabad, Haryana.
Mirza says that these mosques are the symbol of India’s pluralism and they must be preserved. “Not only mosques, I see many historical monuments in ruins too. Conserving the architectural heritage of a place depends upon the state’s recognition of its value,” he said.
Mirza says that “we must rebuild all these mosques so that our future generation can see all of this great history of their predecessors.”
“Hopefully, Muslims can visit and transfer these mosques hopefully,” says one of the followers on his page.
Mirza’s work is in line with Adopt a Heritage (2018) scheme, which was jointly established by the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India. The project faced repercussion for its public-private partnership to sustain the monuments of cultural heritage and for selecting the sites based on tourist footfall. Activists had then sought to take into consideration the need to preserve and manage such cultural heritage before the adoption policy.
“These mosques are not just cultural heritage, they have religious significance too. The respective estates must give recognition to them and bring them under their protection,” says Mirza and adds, “I always wanted to be an armchair historian.”
source: http://www.twocircles.net / TwoCircles.net / Home> Lead Story / by Shalini S, TwoCirlces.net / March 31st, 2021
Site of land conflict, the constituency on the outskirts of Kolkata will prove key to the future of the Opposition alliance.
Two of the three hawkers selling hard-boiled sweets and iced water tubes at the Indian Secular Front (ISF) rally at the Bhojerhat football ground in Bhangar on the last day of campaigning had decided on their choice for MLA — the Samyukta Morcha candidate, Naushad Siddique.
But their colleague remained undecided. A beneficiary of the Trinamool Congress’s welfare schemes for his daughters, he said, “I got ₹50,000 for my daughter under Kanyashree [a scheme of financial aid for girls who have studied till Class XII] and Rupashree [for a girl child’s marriage] but we were denied Amphan relief.”
Naushad Siddique at Bhangar on the last day of campaigning on April 8, 2021.
Naushad Siddique, ISF chairman, is the brother of the peer of Furfura Sharif, Abbas Siddique.
A pitch for power
As the crowd at the rally swelled to hear Abbas Siddique, a few others explained, “It is not that Didi [Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee] has not worked, but those under her are all corrupt.”
Almost an hour before the Siddique brothers took the stage, CPI(M) State committee member Tushar Ghosh arrived with slogans like “Inquilab Zindabad” and “Bhaijaan Zindabad” renting the air.
The crowd was largely young. In fact, some people seemed too young to cast their vote but they held aloft sticks with the white, blue and green ISF flag and the red CPI(M) flags tied together.
At the Bhojerhat meeting, Abbas Siddique delivered a fiery speech. “She [Ms. Banerjee] is calling me a shaitan (devil). Am I in politics to become an MP or a Minister?” he said rhetorically. Minutes later he asked the crowd who brought the BJP to West Bengal, showing an old photograph of Ms. Banerjee with former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at a meeting.
It was Naushad Siddique who was instrumental in sealing the ISF’s alliance with the Left and Congress for this Assembly election.
To a question on the Trinamool’s allegation that the ISF will end up helping the BJP, Naushad Siddique said, “The Trinamool leadership can say whatever it wants, but you can see the response to the ISF here. We are against both the Trinamool and the BJP.” If elected, he said, the ISF, which has fielded candidates in 28 seats, will seek a bigger role for the party.
It is from Bhangar that Abbas Siddiqui began his political foray, making a pitch for power through his popular religious jalsas (gatherings) that continued right through the lockdown. “Bhangar is the crucible from where the ISF experiment began,” said a villager at Padmapukur.
Inner party issues
Bhangar has a predominantly Muslim population and the ISF’s spirited entry has put the Trinamool, which is battling inner party squabbles, on the backfoot. In 2016, Abdur Razzak Mollah (former Land Reforms Minister in the Left Front regime) won the seat by a margin of 18,000-odd votes on a Trinamool ticket. However, the Trinamool dropped the 75-year-old veteran this time, opting for Rezaul Karim, also a former CPI(M) member who had contested the Lok Sabha election from Birbhum in 2019. Dr. Karim was preferred over Trinamool strongman Arabul Islam, which has sparked a party feud.
Just a few days earlier, while campaigning for Dr. Karim, Mr. Islam made his discontent public. “We will ensure the victory of our candidate, even if he is from Pakistan. The previous elected representative did not visit the constituency for five years after getting elected,” he said.
The BJP’s Soumi Hati has campaigned only in the Hindu pockets for the April 10 vote, and the ISF has stayed away from them, further polarising the electorate, villagers pointed out. On whether a split in the Muslim vote would help the BJP, villagers at Kamarhait and Machi Bhanga said, “Not in this constituency. But a divide in the Muslim vote here will go against the Trinamool.”
Land movement
Bhangar, a rural and poor belt on the fringes of Kolkata’s rich suburbs of Rajarhat and New Town, was in the news over a land movement that began in 2013 when the State government acquired 13 acres from villagers for a power grid project.
From 2014, the stir against the land acquisition led to tension in the area. Things came to a head on January 17, 2017 when villagers blocked roads with uprooted trees and clashed with the police. Two protesters were shot dead, but the police denied opening fire, putting the blame on “outsiders”. The State government reached an agreement with the villagers in August 2018, said Alik Chakraborty of the CPI(ML) Red Star, one of the leaders of the movement.
The CPI(ML) Red Star has fielded Mirza Hasan, a face of the land movement. He admitted that the ISF has a hold over the villagers, who tend to listen to the peerzada (religious leader).
“Bhangar is a case study of communal politics now,” said Mr. Chakraborty. “The deep polarisation that is happening here will find an echo in other constituencies,” he added.
The CPI (ML) leadership was, until a few months ago, hopeful of support from the CPI(M) but the latter forged an alliance with the ISF. In the densely populated South Parganas district, according to the 2011 Census, there is a 35.57% minority population which will influence several of the 31 seats including Bhangar, Canning, Magrahat, Sonarpur and Metiabruz. In 2016, the Trinamool had won 29 seats and the Left Front, two.
The Trinamool, which came to power in 2011 in the State riding on the land movements of Nandigram and Singur, found itself on the wrong side of the people in Bhangar. When villagers protested against heavy-handed tactics on the ground, the government moved to make amends, promising not to acquire any land by force.
The villagers hailed the “people’s victory” but three years on, Bhangar is being asked to choose between the Furfura cleric, who holds considerable influence over the region, and the Trinamool, which claimed it had nurtured the constituency with its welfare schemes.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Elections> West Bengal / by Shiv Sahay Singh and Sudipta Datta / Bhangore (South 24 Paragnas) / April 09th, 2021
