The continued incarceration of Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, who was arrested in September last year, has put the Muslim community into a state of internal anxiety and reflection.
A renowned Islamic scholar and propagator from Phulat, Uttar Pradesh, Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui was arrested by the state’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) accusing him of being part of a religious conversion racket. His arrest led to widespread condemnation from within the Muslim community, and rightly so.
His incarceration prompted Muslims to wonder what would happen to the rest of the community if someone of the stature of Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui was not safe in the country, and could be arrested on trumped-up charges.
How long will it take for this oppression to end? How will this persecution come to an end? When will this orgy of hate stop?
The answer to these questions is that we, as a community continue the work of Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, for which he was imprisoned. We must be determined to carry forward the cause of truth and universal brotherhood, that Maulana worked for all his life.
And it is inevitable that those who seek to change the course of history and fight injustice will face difficulties and adversity, including arrest and persecution. These circumstances are like a wall of sand in front of them. Trials and tribulations are an intrinsic part of this blessed journey, and their steadfastness shows no sign of even the slightest tremor.
It is a sign if you bear the rigours of the truth
So my life has passed in trials till nowAllama Iqbal
Palpable Silence
The downfall of every community starts from the time when the people of that community stop appreciating their true leaders – Indeed, one of the reasons for our humiliation and disgrace as a community.
We stopped acknowledging and respecting the ulama who raised their voice, we stopped appreciating the brave journalists and sincere youth who raised their voices for the sake of the nation, and we forgot our origin and put our goals behind us and started living our lives in worse ways. As a community we never looked back and read our history, what were the motivations, emotions, and goals of our ancestors and why did they live and what kind of life did they live – we are not concerned about this at all – we are only concerned about the future – sadly.
It is a matter of regret that we have only limited our concerns and care for ourselves and our dear ones and we did not even want to inquire about the well-being of those who worry about us and those who work hard for us and those who bear hardships. It has to be said that Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, the preacher of Islam, devoted almost all part of his life to the service of Islam. He invited people to Islam and while doing so presented himself on behalf of the community, but alas, it has been more than a year today that he is behind bars and we are living a peaceful life.
We did raise our voices, by raising slogans and protesting and then a new issue came and we forgot this one and then sat on our hands – the truth is that many of us don’t care about their arrest – because we think we have little relation with them. But let’s just ask ourselves, what was their fault that they ended up in jail? Have we ever tried to hear? No, not at all – I tell you what the fault of Maulana was – This was the fault of Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui that he effectively called people to Islam.
By giving a truthful picture of Islam and publicly advocating and fostering friendly relations between Muslims and non-Muslims he was battling against islamophobia and hate in society in his own way.
He devoted his time to the dawah of Islam, and that was his crime. Most of our political leaders are spending their days in luxury, employees are busy with their work, scholars are performing their services, and imams are performing their duties. Political and social workers are busy with their own businesses. Who will come forward and raise their voice for Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui?
It’s a moral obligation of each and every justice-seeking person in the country to speak up for Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui.
If you think these are emotional statements, please take note. In the charge sheet filed against Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, he has been accused of inciting the “greed of heaven and the fear of hell”. This shows how awfully unaware of Muslim teachings Uttar Pradesh police is. Because if this is a crime, then every Muslim is guilty of it as belief in heaven and hell is one of the basic tenets of Islam. Which Muslim does not believe in the concept of Aakhirah, Jannah and Jahannum? Whoever does not accept this is not a Muslim. Do the Uttar Pradesh police want to arrest all 200 million Muslims?
Making a Muslim’s existence a crime in itself, his mere existence a conspiracy of some sort has become a norm in India.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of The Cognate, and The Cognate does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
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