Fringe Organizations Responsible for Hinduphobia

By Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander, New Age Islam 7 June 2023 Since the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), a right-wing political party has come to power in India, the Hindu fringe elements and groups have become quite empowered to carryout lynchings and mob attacks against Muslims with much ferocity and impunity. However, it is a fact that no major communal riot except, the Delhi riots of 2020 have taken place during a near decade long rule of BJP. Earlier, in the Congress rule, the Communal riots and anti-Muslim programs were a norm, but the Congress managed the aftermath in such a manner, that they never got the tag of being an anti-Muslim regime. It was because they believed in appeasing a section of Muslim Ashrafs and Ulema, who helped them mitigate the crisis and manage the anger of Muslims. These two sections of Ashrafs and Ulema, particularly of Jamiat e Ulema e Hind and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) were enough for them to keep Muslims under clutch and not to worry about them. In the new political dispensation, the Muslims have been turned into an unwanted entity. Being a minority, the BJP has made it clear that they do not want Muslim votes, so they do not need to appease their Ashrafs or Ulema. Although, some Muslims do try to become face in the party, but they are unwanted both among Muslims and BJP. Time and again, BJP has been accused of Islamophobia, driving Muslims to periphery and empowering the fringe groups among Hindus to perpetuate violence against Muslims. The revenge of past Muslim rule (it was rule by few Muslim families) is being taken from the current Muslims, who are the most disempowered and marginalized communities of India. Who are these groups, what is their ideology, how do they operate and execute their programs, is detailed in a new book written by Dhirendra K Jha, a senior political journalist. The book titled Shadow Armies: Fringe Organizations and Foor Soldiers of Hindutva is study of eight Hindu fringe organizations. Four among them belong to Sangh Parivar and four operate independently. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), also known as Sangh is the biggest network of right wing Hindu organizations. Sangh constitutes scores of small organizations that believe in the supremacy of Hinduism and intend to create a Hindu state in India, using the tool of Hindutva. Its other organization Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), like RSS does everything like a political party except for fighting elections. They orchestrate the attacks against Muslims, as it helps in polarization of masses, thus reaping electoral dividends for BJP, as it is the political wing of Sangh. The fringe groups studied in this work, some of them are involved in planning and executing bomb blasts, but once they are caught their organizations disown them. Then they involve a strong battery of lawyers to get them released. Also, these lawyers are wielded against critical journalists, rationalists as they file defamation lawsuits against them. Then we have Gau Raksha Manch (cow protection groups), that targets Muslims who are transporting cows and cattle. Many times, the Muslim cattle traders are lynched by these Hindutva mobs. Hindu Yuva Vahini, like RSS calls itself as a cultural organization, but in reality, it is political in its nature and contours. The current chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, who was a leader of this Hindu Yuva Vahini, had hate speech cases registered against him, but he never faced persecution. Bajrang Dal, another fringe group uses youth for hooliganism, vandalism and terrifying shopkeepers, mall owners forcing them to take their cadres for security, thus providing jobs to their members. This pattern is repeated for Muslim business owners too, and they are forced to hire Dal members as security, while they also act as foot soldiers for carrying out the agenda for their parent organizations. It was Bajrang Dal that kept the Babri masjid issue alive through various skirmishes. These groups also do not let Muslims buy properties in Hindu dominated areas. Further they also target artists, poets, writers who do not fit their definition of Hindu culture and tradition. So, they act as self-appointed vanguard for Hindu religion. One of their favourite activities is carrying out attacks against Valentine Day Celebrations, while stopping young couples to express their love for each other. These groups are quite afraid of love as they have been fed on a staple diet of bigotry and hatred. Love, has the power of decimating the edifice of hate, so they feel threatened by it. Then these groups are involved in carrying out forcible religious conversions and proselytization processes, while continuing with violence against those who eat beef. They have also added the project of Love Jihad to their bogey of activities. There are internal bickering and antagonistic politics within these groups, although to an outsider they appear to be homogenous and monolith. But this is far from reality. When, questioned intriguingly about the reasons for their communal and polarizing speeches, they describe them as awakening calls for the Hindus. They are working in the Deep South state of Kerala, as Hindutva groups have spread their tentacles in this part of India too. Sangh is exploiting the landless low caste peasants, to carry out its agenda of violence. Then there are groups like Abhinav Bharat that believes in using violence as a tool to achieve its ends. Hence, we have Bhonsala Military School where only Hindu students are being trained in the use of arms and ammunition. Now these groups are trying to make inroads among Sikhs too, because they consider them to be a part of Hinduism. However, this politics of amalgamation and assimilation of Sikhs is being resisted by them, leading to skirmishes. The journalist Dhirendra Jha, has meticulously used field interviews, ethnography and personal experience to weave a story about these Hindutva groups. Although, he considers them fringe because majority of Hindus are not their members, but they certainly have been able to make inroads in the mainstream Hindu body, because they do wield a strong clout when it comes to opinion formation of masses. These groups are quite instrumental in making BJP come to power, so to label many of them are fringe is not a correct assessment. However, Jha needs to be appreciated for his efforts to understand these diverse groups of Hindutva fringe, that are responsible for orchestrating Islamophobia and executing Hinduphobia among Muslims, not only in India but in the whole world. They are responsible for damaging the pluralistic and syncretic culture in India, and granting opportunities to outsiders to criticize India as being intolerant, unjust and biased against its Muslim minority. ------ M.H.A. Sikander is Writer-Activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir URL: https://newageislam.com/books-documents/fringe-organizations-hinduphobia/d/129936 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism