Inauguration of Muslim Personal Law Board

To safeguard the Islamic Shariat (personal law) and problems confronting the Indian Muslim, the Muslim Personal Law Board (MPLB) was formed. It will be considered to be the exclusive representative of the rights of Muslims. The board did salutary work in safeguarding the rights of Muslims and is continuing to do so. This struggle of the board continues. A conference of the MPLB has just taken place in Hyderabad, with discussions of various issues confronting the community.

It has taken the important decision to file five appeals in the Supreme Court in connection with the Babri Mosque demolition. As far as the Allahabad High Court judgment is concerned, it will be suffice to state that to give any judgment on the basis of faith has set a bad precedent. If this trend continues, it will be a terrible blow to the secular character of the country.
Cases Against Muslims
Another important decision taken is that the board will fight all cases against Muslims. This decision should be lauded. The 1937 Shariat Application Act gives this freedom to Indian Muslims, to reach decisions about personal matters such as marriage, divorce, khula, family inheritance to reach judgment on the basis of personal law (Shariat). Although in a few cases such as the Shah Bano matter, the court clashed with the Shariat in its judgment.
MPLB head Maulana Rabea Nadvi has said most appropriately, that all courts from the lowest to the highest are bound to take all decisions in the light of the Shariat. He said that Shariat is a religious law, which will brook no change and will not be tolerated. When the laws made by the God Almighty cannot be changed by his Prophet, then what is the question of any lesser mortal interfering in it and bringing about any change?
Babri Masjid Demolition Case
Regarding the ownership and Babri Masjid demolition, the Maulana said the fight should continue. He said, "Despite being a minority we are bound to follow the laws of India and the rights given to us by the Constitution and we have full right to build places of worship and use them as such under religious freedom." Despite having all the documents regarding the Babri Masjid in their favor, the Allahabad High Court, in its wisdom, decided the case on the basis of faith and gave only one-third of the disputed land to Muslims. Then it is imperative for Muslims to contest the judgment in a court of law.
Uniform Civil Code in India
Now regarding the Dar-ul Qaza, it is obvious that all factional parties of the country want to destroy the Muslim identity. This means that if a Muslim wants to be a Muslim in name only, they are welcome to do so. But they have to have no connection with their religion and their law. These communal parties want to establish a Uniform Civil Code in India. Muslims, instead of turning to courts of law for their right, turn instead to the people of the country, then the issue will remain undecided, and this is the point that sticks in the throats of their enemies and makes their nights hell.
The board has also decided to challenge the legality of legitimizing homosexuality in India. The bad times the community is going through, one can only conclude that it is behaving with great patience. But along with it if an ordinary Muslim understands his responsibility as a Muslim, it will be a great step forward. In search of livelihood, Muslims, like others in the country is drifting like a stick, rudderless, losing its principals. The main reason for this is surrendering the rules of the religion. It is incumbent on the leaders that they guide the community regarding its rules and make sure that they are followed. Islam has not come into this world that it just floats with the tide. But it exists, so that it can show the world the correct path. It will be a tragedy if the youth ignore it.
Need of Hour
What is necessary is that the Muslim community revives its lost values. If this comes about then it will wake up to the moral values of a family and this will be the turning point when a Muslim will realize worldly success along with moral success. History is witness to the fact that a people who have lost their identity have been wiped out from the pages of history.

Hindutva and BJP

Despite its defeat in the 15th Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not intend to give up its Hindutva agenda. This was made clear at the BJP's national executive committee meeting, held recently in Uttar Pradesh, where it was categorically declared that there was no question of the party deviating from its avowed Hindutva goal.

Anti-Muslim Approach
However, a section of the BJP believes that the party's defeat is largely because of its distance with the Muslim community. This section believes that the party was defeated because of the staunch Hindutva face of the Gujarat Chief Minister and senior party leader, Narendra Modi, and the provocative speech made by party member Varun Gandhi. The section also feels that the party cannot progress by ignoring the Muslim community.

However, the group affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) holds that the BJP should not deviate from the Hindutva agenda. Having become flabbergasted with the internal dissension in the BJP, the RSS admonished the party and advised it that if it has any difficulty with the Hindutva, it is free to give it up. This encouraged the Sangh Parivar lobby. Consequently, the BJP recalled the Hindutva issue at its executive committee meeting.

Hindutva Agenda
The fact is that the BJP has been criticized on its Hindutva stand within the party circle. When the BJP was in power at the federal level, it had to bow repeatedly to secularists in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and had to shelve the Hindutva issue. The party's traditional voters, therefore, accused it of having forgotten the Hindutva agenda, Uniform Civil Code, Ram Temple, and Article 370. However, by the time the parliamentary elections were held, the party returned to the Hindutva and brought Modi, a star campaigner of the Hindutva and a staunch enemy of the Muslims.

Also by encouraging Varun Gandhi at his "venomous" speech, the party strived to give the impression that it continues to hold on to the Hindutva. However, the Congress party's electoral success and the increasing interest of the Muslims in the party, forced the BJP to admit that ignoring Muslims is not in its favour.

Hindutva vs Secularism
In short, ever since the results of the parliamentary elections were declared, the BJP find itself bind to the ideological struggle between the Hindutva and secularism. The party has never analyzed and examines the causes of its election defeat sincerely nor could it gather enough courage to accept its responsibility for the defeat.

The executive committee meeting in Uttar Pradesh can be termed significant in as much as that a senior party leader Arun Jaitley has admitted that the party has been weakened at the organizational level. At the same time, the BJP unit in Uttar Pradesh, taking the responsibility of the defeat, expressed its determination to continue to hold fast to the Hindutva.

One wonders whether by the time the elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly are held, the BJP would be able to compartmentalize the voters that may charismatically give their verdict in favor of it. Possibly, the BJP may resort to old tactics in the name of the Hindutva. Even if it happens, the party would have to bear the brunt of it.