ByRajeev
Khanna
Ahmedabad:
Rattled by growing resistance in Gujarat to the controversial anti democratic
moves of the central government on Citizens Amendment Act (CAA), National
Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR), the ultra
right has given acall for the economic boycott of Muslims, starting with some
districts in the state.
While such
calls have earlier been given locally in different parts of Gujarat over the
last two decades, the venom has now spread to the district of Kutch that
borders neighbouring Pakistan
Saurashtra
and Kutch have been relatively peaceful on
communal issues despite repeated attempts here. The communal model has mainly
been visible in South, Central and Northern Gujarat .
Local
sources confirming the economic boycott, told this reporter that it is the
growing opposition by both Muslims and Dalits to the CAA, NRC and NPR that has
given a big jolt to Hindutva forces. The unity of those opposed to the
Citizenship law, and large scale protests are seen as a danger to the much
publicised ‘Gujarat Model’ where in effect the minorities were pushed to the
margins systematically.
“The calls
for boycott saw their peak last week during the Bandh against CAA, NRC and NPR.
The response to the call was unprecedented across South
Gujarat as even those selling vegetables and eatables on small
carts kept off the roads. The Hindutva elements then resorted to composing
multiple hate messages and circulating them on the social media,” Surat
“These
messages contained lists of prominent Muslim shops, mainly eating joints and
juice bars, with an appeal to boycott them,” the sources added.
The
messages while listing a number of shops carried the messages that since these
shops were closed against CAA, NRC and NPR, it needed to be ensured that they
remain closed forever.
A very
large number of eating joints bearing names like ‘Bharat’, Bhagya Uday,
‘Sheetal’, ‘Asha’, ‘Tulsi’, etc that dot the Mumbai-Ahmedabad-Mount Abu highway
belong to Chelliya Muslims.
The call
for the economic boycott of Muslims takes a new dimension in Kutch .
It needs to be pointed out that hate propaganda has been on for quite some time
in the region, increasing over the last few months.
“Last year
the Hindutva groups organized trident distribution programmes in the villages.
We had approached the Governor of the state with an appeal to check this but
the exercise continued. Apart from this there is a sudden upswing in organizing
of Ram Kathas and other religious programmes at hyper local level in rural Kutch where the religious discourse is subtly laced with
hate propaganda. This has been happening in the villages of far remote Abdasa
and Nakhatrana talukas as well as other parts of the district like Anjar along
with various other parts of North Gujarat . The
sudden up scaling of such programmes can also be attributed to the local body
polls approaching in Kutch district besides it being a part of a larger game
plan,” senior Minority Co-ordination Committee (Gujarat) functionary Mujahid
Nafees said. He explained that it is very difficult to keep track of the hate
programmes being carried out in the district because Kutch
is sparsely populated and widely spread.
Local
sources pointed out that Kutch was spared the
violence of 2002 because the district was still reeling under the impact of the
2001 earthquake.
Over the
last few days, there has been a multifold increase in messages being circulated
on social media applications calling for not to make purchases from Muslim
owned shops and various reasons are being giver for this.
There is a
message that reads while listing Muslim shops of flowers and footwear, “Before
making purchases from these shops please think about the plight of Hindu women
being persecuted in Pakistan
Another one
reads, “Before you purchase flowers from these shops, think about the 12-13
year old Hindu flowers (daughters) being crushed in Pakistan.”
There is
yet another that calls for the people of Anjar to wake up and see how Muslims
close their shops to oppose persecuted Hindus of Pakistan.
There is an
interesting audio message in circulation that is being attributed to a woman
Congress politician Mansiben Sanghvi from the Jain community where she is
politely but firmly lambasting a BJP leader from her own community for
circulating a hate message calling for economic boycott of Muslims.
She can be
heard saying, “Please do not resort to such politics. We have played and grown
up with these people. We belong to a community that does not even allow killing
the tiniest of insects. These people (Muslims) are buried in the land of this
country. That is the level to which they are attached to this country.” The man
can be heard sheepishly agreeing to whatever she is saying. She is heard firmly
conveying that dissent is a democratic right of the people. The man can be
heard agreeing and saying, “They are our brothers.”
She is
further heard asking, “Can we put up boards outside our shops that we would not
sell our products to Muslims?”
Meanwhile
Shamshad Pathan of Alpsankhyak Adhikar Manch said, “We are taking up this issue
in our Mohalla meetings on CAA, NRC and NPR where we are telling the people
that the divisive moves of the government would not spare anyone. Being a
lawyer I can tell you that it would not be easy for any of the Hindus left out
in NRC or NPR to get citizenship under CAA as is being said by the government.
Submitting details on how they came to India
He further
added, “We as citizens have all to unite and realise how the government is
trying to take everybody for a ride.”
(Courtesy:
The Citizen)