||
Special Correspondent: India’s largest Muslim religious
organizations, scholars and political leaders will gather in New Delhi next
week to formulate a joint response to a growing pattern of anti-Muslim
persecution, including mob lynchings, home demolitions, attacks on Islamic
institutions and discriminatory government actions. Organizers say the July 24
gathering marks an effort to move beyond reacting to individual incidents and
instead develop a coordinated national response. Discussions are expected to
focus on legal, political and social strategies to address issues affecting
Muslims and strengthen cooperation among religious and civil society
organizations.The meeting is expected to examine
a broad range of concerns, including violence by Hindu vigilante groups, the
demolition of Muslim homes and businesses, disputes involving mosques, madrasas
and Sufi shrines, police action against Muslim youths, and increasing
discrimination against Muslims in different spheres of public life.
Participants are also expected to adopt a joint resolution outlining future
advocacy and legal initiatives.Syed Sarwar Chishti, the
spiritual head and custodian of the Ajmer Sharif Sufi shrine, said the meeting had
been called in response to years of injustice against Muslims in India. He said
attacks on mosques, madrasas, Sufi shrines and Muslim educational institutions,
along with bulldozer demolitions of Muslim homes and allegations of mob
lynchings and police encounters involving Muslim youths, have generated deep
anger and anxiety within the community.Chishti said Muslim leaders
believe the time has come to move beyond responding to individual incidents and
instead adopt a common national approach. He said the meeting would discuss
concrete steps to defend the community’s constitutional rights while promoting
national unity and social harmony.The gathering is expected to
bring together representatives from some of India’s most influential Muslim
organizations, including Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind,
Jamaat-e-Ahle Hadith and the All India Muslim Personal Law Board.Opposition leaders, including
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid and
Member of Parliament Mohibullah Nadvi, are also expected to attend.Organizers said the meeting is
expected to conclude with a joint roadmap outlining legal, social and public
advocacy initiatives, reflecting what they hope will become a unified national
response to issues affecting India’s more than 200 million Muslims.
The gathering comes amid
sustained criticism from U.N. human rights experts and international rights
organizations, which have documented increasing anti-Muslim hate speech,
vigilante violence and punitive demolitions in India in recent years, concerns
that the Indian government has repeatedly rejected.