Abusing Vande Matram

The forgotten controversies over Vande Matram has been renewed by Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind (JUH). Unnecessarily it passed a resolution asking Muslims not to sing the national song. This kind of ant-nationalist politics must end immediately.

The Times of India writes on 6th November 2009

The patriotic credentials of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind (JUH) have never been in doubt. Hence the current controversy over a resolution regarding Vande
Mataram, adopted at the annual JUH meet in Deoband early this week, is misplaced. The resolution insisted that patriotism didn't require singing Vande Mataram in schools and supported a fatwa along those lines. The reservation among some Muslim groups towards Vande Mataram has a long history and the Supreme Court has indicated that the singing of national song must not be made compulsory for all. The national song is just another prop to celebrate the nation state and undue importance must not be given to it. Singing Vande Mataram must neither be made a test case of patriotism nor should people be obstinate about not singing it.

However, the other resolutions taken up at the JUH meet call for a closer look. The meet has taken an extremely critical - and in our opinion regressive - view of a host of public policies that have been legislated or are in the making. The JUH has opposed the move to decriminalise homosexuality and the Women's Bill that seeks to increase the presence of women in Parliament. Similarly, community members have been told to keep off government-run anti-AIDS programmes and to avoid cinema and television.

The decree against terrorism first pronounced by Darul Uloom, Deoband, last year was an attempt to clarify that political violence in the name of religion was unacceptable whatever be the reason. The JUH too has been active in decrying political violence and has projected avenues offered by parliamentary democracy as the legitimate platforms to espouse political demands. Such a modern political viewpoint is in sharp contrast to the organisation's conservative social agenda. The contradiction is not sustainable and is sure to unravel at some point. The experience of the Taliban is instructive on this count. Sections of Taliban trace their ideology to the Deoband school. The social conservatism of the Deoband teachings - attitudes to women, entertainment etc - is reflected in the political vision of the Taliban. The Taliban idea of a state is merely the political expression of its conservative social vision.

Hence it is important that organisations like the JUH take a critical view of their social agendas. Societies are not frozen in time. They are constantly evolving. Organisations that seek to represent communities must engage constructively with change and adapt accordingly. A regressive social agenda will prevent people from making full use of the opportunities offered by a democratic state. Whenever they fail to make sense of changing times, the politics of victimhood looks attractive.