Thousands Rally in Kerala to Protest Rising Islamophobia
Kerala Muslim Jama-ath Federation (KMJF) held a mass rally and public conference in Kollam on Saturday. The event, which was organized as part of KMJF’s 40th anniversary, saw thousands of Muslims from southern Kerala coming together to voice their concerns against a number of issues that are currently affecting the Muslim community in India.
The leaders of KMJF during addressing thousands of its cadres, spoke out against proposed National Registration of Citizens (NRC) and Uniform Civil Code, violence against Madrasas and Masjids across India, and Hindutva fascism and Islamophobia.
They emphasized the need for unity among Muslims and other marginalized communities to combat these issues.
The rally saw participants raising slogans against Hindutva and calling for the protection of rights of largest religious minority in India, Matoob Media reported.
Islamophobia is the fear, hatred, or prejudice against Muslims or Islam. It can manifest in various forms, such as discrimination, harassment, violence, or hate speech. Islamophobia in India is a serious and growing problem that affects the lives and rights of the country's 200 million Muslims
Islamophobia in India has been fueled by the rise of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to power since 2014. The BJP and its allies have promoted a vision of India as a Hindu nation, where Muslims are seen as outsiders, invaders, or enemies.
Some of the policies and actions of the BJP government that have been criticized as Islamophobic include the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) of 2019, which grants citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from neighboring countries, but excludes Muslims. Another policy is the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which requires people to prove their citizenship with documents. The NRC was first implemented in Assam, where nearly two million people, mostly Muslims, were left off the list and faced the risk of statelessness.
There have also been rising conspiracy theories such as "love jihad", "economic jihad", or "narcotics jihad", which accuse Muslim men of luring Hindu women into marriage and conversion, Muslim businesses of undermining Hindu economy, or Muslim drug dealers of targeting Hindu youth.
Islamophobia in India has also affected the country's foreign relations with Muslim-majority countries such as Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Turkey, Iran, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia. Some of these countries have expressed concern or condemnation over the treatment of Indian Muslims or Kashmiris by the Indian government.
Source: Agencies
