The divide over Shahbag

One Movement, Many Voices
Biswajit Roy

The civil society in Kolkata is divided in its response in the wake of Shahbag movement. This is also true in lesser extent in Dhaka. The Bangladeshi media reports and commentaries as well as online debates among members of Bangladeshi Diaspora and their counterparts at home also revealed the deep social schism over Shahbag.

In Kolkata, Most of the civil society supported the demand for trial of Jamaat-e-Islami leaders who are charged with war crimes for collaborating with Pakistan army and joining in genocides, rapes and destruction of properties. But organizers of some pro-Shahbag meetings and rights groups in Kolkata either opposed death sentence without trial or the capital punishment in principle.

Some others who had organized a huge rally at Bangaon border with Indian and Bangladesh flags demanded pro-active Indian role and more solidarity campaigns across the state. But others including Asoke Mitra cautioned against such enthusiasm as he felt it would become handy for Jamaat-BNP camp to harp on the Indian role behind Shahbag movement in order to support Awami League in the coming polls.

Having joined pro-Shahbag rallies, it was clear to me that we failed to attract and mobilize Muslim public opinion, particularly the Bengali-speaking rural youth. Their near-total absence was felt but did not evoke any serious deliberation. Instead, key organizer of one of the solidarity rally that I had joined admitted the ground reality.

"They (Shahbag leaders) want us to rally Muslims here against Jamaat campaign. But we could not due to our poor penetration in the community. It seems now we have to wear Tupi and Lungi to make good for Muslim absence," he said in half-jest and half-desperation.

Few Muslim youth and seniors joined Paila Baishakh celebrations that also voiced support to Shahbag revealed their confusion and divided loyalties to me since I knew them for long.

"We don't support the Jamaatis and Hefajatis (Hefajate Islam, the Chattagram-based 'non-political' organization of Imams and Ulemmas of Bangladesh which mobilized a mammoth anti-Shahbag rally in Dhaka and made demands reflecting Talibani diktats on women and sculpture). If Jamaat-Hefajat camp comes to power through democratic means, they can implement their policies. But they can't impose their will on Hasina government," the young madrasa teacher said.

At the same time, he was critical about Shahbag and AL. "Is it right to divide the country in the name of war crimes trial and invite violence and counter-violence at the cost of poor people? How can you ban Jamaat and other Islamic parties? Everybody has the right to propagate his views in a democracy," he added. Clearly, he echoed the divided public opinion in Bangladesh.

Another Muslim participant, a city-based professional, questioned the 'pseudo-secular' practices of Left and Trinamul governments and the continued marginalization of Muslims in jobs and opportunities in West Bengal. He reflected the views and resentments prevalent in the community in Bengal.

A left activist who hails from a Muslim family lamented his predicaments after he had organized a meeting in solidarity with Shahbag. 'Religious Muslims are angry that I supported Nastiks while secular Hindus called me compromised since I did not support the demand for death sentence to Jamaat leaders."

I was keen to observe the anti-Shahbag demonstrations in the city. My objectives were twofold: first to know reasons behind latter's opposition and secondly to engage some of the organizers and participants. I came to know some of them since 1992 demolition of Babri Mosque, others after Gujarat 2002 when I had joined anti-communal campaigns in which Hindu and Muslim believers as well as non-believers and lefts took part. My post-9/11 interactions in professional journalistic capacity as well as a student of religio-cultural politics also helped to gain some insights into their personal mindset and organizational motivations.

I missed the 30th March rally at Shahid Minar in Kolkata due to confusion over its deferred date after the city police objected to its original scheduled date four days earlier. It was called by 15 Muslim organizations, not known for large followings. Major religious authorities and leaders did not turn up. Still the rally had an impressive turnout from districts, probably because organizers had support from influential community leaders.

I gathered second-hand information on the anti-Shahbag and anti-AL government vitriolic mainly from Kalam, a Kolkata daily and Dhaka media. Most of Kolkata dailies chose to ignore it either due to what a Bangladeshi blogger rightly described as a 'dangerous disinterest' or simply to steer clear of 'mob violence'. The newspaper I work for declined to carry my post-rally analysis saying it would like to invite trouble with radical Muslims.

So far, I managed to interact with one of the key organizers of the rally which had a huge footfall from districts. A former leader of All Bengal Madrasa Students Union and now head of a Muslim youth organization, he was one of the main speakers at the pro-Jamaat rally. His former friends turned detractors do not belong to the Left and secular milieu either. They told me they did not join the pro-Jamaat rally. But their reaction to Shahbag was a mixed bag as I reported earlier.

A resident of north-24 parganas and son of a middle-rung farmer family, the former madrasa student leader now runs a resident school reportedly for 700 Muslim children at his own village.

He had hit the streets opposing Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government's moves to modernize Madrasa curriculum in the last decade. Now he himself tells me that his school follows West Bengal Secondary Board's 'general syllabus'. Also, he runs a B-ED college and plans to expand it. Savvy with a swanky 'tablet' in hand and a chauffer-driven personal car, the soft-spoken young man is evidently well off now. He says he is 'happy' with his achievements.

He denies any political ambition except his interest in 'serving the minority community'. But he admits his dabbling in electoral politics as a Samajwadi party nominee in 2009 parliamentary polls. Later he became close to Trinamul secretary general and state industry minister Partha Chattarjee after the assembly polls in Bengal in 2011.

He claimed to have declined the offer to be an office-bearer in TMC minority cell and promise of a 'much larger political role'. His former comrades, now critical of him said he grew cold feet with TMC after his political ambition was not fulfilled.

Whatever may be the reason, he said he had distanced himself from the ruling party since he felt that 'independence from political parties' would suit his 'mental make-up more'. " I have realized that educated Muslim youth hanker for rubbing shoulders with powerful politicians and the latter co-opt them to channelize the grievances of the minority in the ballot box in favor of them ," he said. Nevertheless, he assured the minister his help for minority welfare projects of the government.

He insisted that their 30 March rally had nothing to do with politics but aimed at protesting the insult to Islam and the prophet as well as conspiracy against Islamic scholars and violation of human rights in Bangladesh', exactly what Jamaat leaders there are complaining about. "We asked for restoration of democracy and peace in Bangladesh," he said.

When I said Shahbag leaders like Imran H Sarkar have repeatedly denied any anti-religion, anti-Islam agenda of their movement and many ulemas also joined them, he said he did come across the denials but referred to reports he heard about "nastik" bloggers. Since Kolkata media reports on Shahbag were deliberately low-key while controversies were suppressed, the Jamaat propaganda from the other side stoked the anger against the 'nastiks'.

He said mainly Bengali Muslims from two 24-pargansas had participated in pro-Jamaat rally while Urdu-speaking brethren were not urged to join en masse since 'they become uncontrollable'. Only two speakers were Urdu-speaking.

The participant Bengali youth including students from madrasas, he revealed, neither know about the liberation war in Bangladesh in 1971 and role of Rajakars nor they have any 'interest' regarding in that history. He himself is one of those who hardly heard of Muktiyudha.

"I was a toddler in 1971. Never came across the word 'Rajakar' in my childhood but heard about the refugees from the other side. Some of them also landed in our village which not far from the border. I remember one Birish kaka, a Hindu refugee who had worked as a wage-laborer at our family field along with some other men and women. Those refugees settled in our village were very poor and their abject poverty touched me. But whatever may be the reason I did not feel any interest in Bangladesh. We have no relative there," the young man said.

In contrast to his general disinterest in Bangladesh, his personal concern and respect for Delaware Hossein Saidi is quite telling. For him, the Jamaat leader who has been sentenced to death by the War Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka for his role in genocides and rapes was deliberately framed for the crimes committed by a Rajakar leader of almost identical name.

He even showed me clippings of video recording of Saidi's speech probably at the janaja of his son in Dhaka where the Jamaat leader denied charges against him but proclaimed his preparedness to die for 'Allah and the country'.

Clearly, the Islamist youth leader parroted the Bangladeshi Jamaat's narrative on Saidi knowingly or unknowingly. He never met Saidi in person. Still he has developed a personal adulation for the 'religious scholar' from a distance. He did not refer to Golam Azam, Matiur Rahman Nijami or the other Bangladeshi Jamaat leaders on the dock.

"I have listened to his commentaries on Quran in CDs over the years. He enthralled me and I found him unparallel among the contemporary Bengali Quranic scholars. A conspiracy has been hatched to hang such an internationally acclaimed person. We don't believe in baseless allegations against him. How a deeply religious person like Saidi could join such crimes?"

But at the same time, he said, he and his fellow-travelers would have accepted the judicial verdict against Saidi only if he was tried in an 'impartial court with transparency in the judicial process'.

Resonating the Jamaat complaint about the AL government-sponsored tribunal's lack of credibility, he said they had gave deputation to Bangladesh deputy high commission earlier demanding inclusion of an 'Indian judge' in the trial of Saidi. "We have deep faith in the Indian judicial system for its impartiality. Inclusion of an Indian judge would have made the trial transparent,' the Saidi admirer said.

He apparently contradicted the Jamaat's Islamic politics as he claimed to have no objection to secularization of Bangladesh polity. But the rider he proposed would sound queer both to Jamaatis as well as many nationalists and Lefts there. "If Bangladesh becomes secular in the Indian ways, we have no objections. We have faith in Indian constitution," he said.

As secular democratic sensibilities of Kolkata and Dhaka found the pro-Jamaat rally 'shocking', this religious Muslim youth felt no less perturbed over the 'responses and reactions of some Left people and human rights organizations' over the death sentence to Saidi.

"We have marched with them against the Zionist killings in Palestine and Lebanon, American invasion in Afghanistan and Iraq. Together we opposed hanging of Dhananjoy Chatterjee (a security guard hanged for rape and murder of a schoolgirl in 2004). How can those who had opposed Afzal Guru's hanging support demands for Saidi's hanging?" he said reminding the convergence of Islamists and Left and Human rights movement on anti-imperialist and anti-state terror platforms, particularly since 9/11.

He went to the APDR office, explained their case there and invited the APDR leaders to join their rally. He lamented that APDR leaders and likes did not join them. But he sounded flexible as he said they would change their perceptions if they were 'mistaken' about Bangladesh reality. Maybe it was a tactical gesture to well-meaning 'nastiks' like me who, as he said, stood by the minority community here in trying times.

He also confided to me about his reservation about the 'Urdu-speaking Muslim leaders' who he felt 'did not understand the sober psyche of their Bengali-speaking brethren and the parameters of peaceful and democratic protests'. He advised me, as I suggested an interaction on Shahbag, to avoid the 'Urdu-speakers' who 'cater to all emotions and no logic'.

Nevertheless, he says he has the plans to organize pro-Saidi rally next month in bordering areas of north-24 parganas.

According to him, 'Trinamul neither supported nor opposed' the rally while left front chairman Biman Bose spoke 'in favour of Shahbag'. "The police had requested us to defer the rally till the panchayat polls were over. But we refused to oblige," he said. It was another matter that some Imams close to Trinamul addressed the rally and pro-government Kalam daily carried big report next day focusing on the complaints about 'insult to Islam'.

I am reserving my judgment over the innocence of this Madrasa student turned Islamist leader given his present trajectory. If I am to believe him and his likes, it struck me first that these youth have not learnt the history of Liberation War in Bangladesh and Jamaat's role in recruiting and manning Rajakar bahini, Al Badr and Al-shams militias and in the war crimes they had committed.

While BNP-Jamaat camp wanted to erase the memory of Muktiyudha and atrocities by Pakistanis and their collaborators, Awami League claiming all the legacy of 'Ekattorer Chetana' only lose it by realpolitk acts of omission and commissions over the forty years.

In the meantime, Saidi and his ilk in their religious avatars have become more popular among Muslim population through religious congregations in bordering areas of Indo-Bangla border.

Hindutva forces are also active there among Hindu refugees from Bangladesh. Our trigger-happy BSF's killing of Bangladeshi 'infiltrators and smugglers' at the drop of the hat only increased the Jamaati clout at the Bangladeshi side where it has concentrated strategically. The topsy-turvy Delhi-Dhaka relations over safe havens to Indian insurgents and water-sharing etc. also depleted the post-liberation popular goodwill across the border over the years.

Does it underline the failures of pro-Liberation forces across the border that despite our mutual exchanges of platitudes and occasional misgivings, we failed to reach out to post-liberation generations at both sides beyond our middle class and urban milieu? If we accept our shortcomings, does it become an imperative for us to engage the Islamic youth before they become hard-nut bigots and vulnerable to Jihadi ideology?

The task is Herculean and there are fathomless gorges at both the sides of secularist-fundamentalist divider. The efforts for engagements may create confusions over the dividing line between the enemies and friends of pluralist and composite culture and politics and make room for opportunist alliances or self-delusive moves.

The anti-imperialist convergence of the Lefts and Islamists, despite anti-Soviet CIA-Saudi-ISI nexus with Mujahidins including Laden before 9/11 and the global growth of Wahabism and Talibalism in the wake of that disaster, is as real as the history of bloody contests among communists, Arab nationalists turned state-socialists and Islamic radicals. The anti-west and anti-autocracy unity of Islamists and democrats are tenuous, short-term and illusive while angularities are more fundamental as post-Tahrir Square Egpyt has revealed.

With resurgence and redemption of Left ideals is nowhere on the horizon, the fathomless corruption of the liberators and their parties, unprecedented exhibition of greed and vulgar riches and mockery of democracies have turned many believers to religious fundamentalists. The spread of Maududism in our sub-continent is part of this complex global scenario.

So what are the alternatives for us? The self-righteous secularist shows which have no connect to or impact on the overwhelming sections of the masses? Express worries over the 'rising of bad moon' or 'Islamofascism' and end with venting our anger against the vote-bank politics of mainstream parties? Or, embark upon a treacherous path of engagement with the Islamists who are not hardcore Jamaati criminals and their incorrigible apologists, confirmed converts to Talibanism and Jihadi terror or rank opportunists?

During post-92 and post-Godhra frenzies, I became aware about the absolute irrelevance of secular Left rhetoric against the murderous Saffron brigade. I felt as long as our opposition to Ram janambhoomi movement will be based on the archeological exhibits and historical facts, we will never be able to touch the chord of Hindu masses simply because Lord Ram was not a historical person but a mythological god.

I turned to the Vakti tradition and other sources of subaltern religious tolerance and assimilations and found them more authentic armor to fight the apostles of Hindu hatred. Clearly, Gandhi and Lohia, though they could not stop the pre-Partition riots, were more tuned to the mass psyche in their fight against communal passions.

Frontier
Vol. 45, No. 47, June 2-8, 2013

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