Antulay's remarks push Muslims into a corner

WAR ON TERROR: Face the Nation debated whether AR Antulay has weakened the position of the liberal Muslim?

          

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One of the immediate after effects of Mumbai terror attacks was an unprecedented political unity between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, that unity has tragically been shattered by the utterances of the Union Minority Affairs Minister AR Antulay, who has suggested that there was an internal conspiracy behind the death of Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare. On Monday, Parliament was repeatedly disrupted with the BJP demanding Antulay’s ouster. But the Minority Affairs Minister remains defiant.

But that question that’s causing a lot of concern is whether Antulay has weakened the position of the liberal Muslim? That was the issue raised on Face the Nation.

On the panel to discuss the topic were Rajya Sabha MP and The Pioneer Editor-in Chief Chandan Mitra; Theatre director and Padma Shri Awardee Aamir Raza Hussain; and President, All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat Syed Shahbuddin. The debate was moderated by Senior Editor Sagarika Ghose.

Syed Shahbuddin, who had reportedly rung up Antulay after he remarked that there was something fishy in the way Karkare was killed, explained there was a surge of hope when Karkare unveiled the face of Hindutva terrorism while investigating Malegaon bomb blast.

“So far in all terror investigations, the police had totally ignored all other alternative leads, having made up their mind that it is the Muslims. Now the truth was out and that lifted so much weight from the mind and the heart of the Muslim community. Therefore, when he was killed there was shock and sorrow all across the Muslim community,” Shahbuddin said.

“Before Karkare was killed, there was a barrage of vilification against him. There were many threats against him. He was called deshdrohi and virtually condemned to death. He got many threatening phone calls. He got one only two days before he was killed. So the point is Muslims look upon this little episode as distinct from the rest of the Mumbai drama. No Muslim says Pakistan did not attack India. No Muslim says that the terrorist did not come from Pakistan,” Shahbuddin added.

But Muslim liberals have already come out and condemned Antulay. Following the Mumbai terror attack Muslims have come out to join the mainstream and condemn terrorism and say terrorists do not represent Islam. So is Antulay putting the clock back?

Aamir tried to put it into perspective. “During a terror attack in Mumbai, the first line of offence would be expected to be the ATS. Who would be sent to fight terror on the streets of Mumbai — captain of the cricket team or the chief of the ATS? It is very unfortunate what happened to Karkare but you can not view this as a conspiracy,” he said.