On Wednesday, leaders of several Muslim organizations showered praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking several steps for the welfare of the largest minority community in India. The Muslim leaders said that the Indian government led by PM Modi abolished Triple Talaq and is the only one who has thought of taking steps the empower Muslim women.
The leaders were speaking at the ‘All India Minority Conclave – Role of Minorities in Amrit Kaal’ event organized by the NID Foundation. The president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Organization of India, Tariq Ahmad, discussed the necessity of abolishing triple talaq and pointed out that Islam does not support the practice either.
#WATCH | Leaders of various Muslim organisations praise PM Narendra Modi’s government for taking several steps for the welfare of minorities, at the “All India Minority Conclave – Role of Minorities in Amrit Kaal” event organized by the NID Foundation
— ANI (@ANI) February 22, 2023
(Source: NID Foundation) pic.twitter.com/5BS1W4YP6A
“Islam also does not accept the practice of triple talaq. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community does not entertain this from the beginning. So this step of PM Modi’s government is a good step. This is a good step towards women’s empowerment. A very good step has been taken to give status to the women who used to be deprived. We respect this initiative,” he said.
Further, Dr. Faiyaz Ahmad Fyzie, author, columnist, and Pasmanda social activist stated that PM Modi was the first secular Prime Minster India has ever got. “He talked about justice in the Muslim society, the Pasmanda issue, about our suffering, he talked about our upliftment considering us as citizens of the country and not as Muslims. So I understand that till now he is the first Prime Minister who has talked about our sorrow and pain,” said Fyzie.
“India is a democratic country in which there is a rule of democracy and the constitution was being violated for the last many years, women were being harassed, especially Muslim women. The decision taken by Modi ji in the interest of Muslim women was definitely not only welcome but also commendable and was a good step taken from the point of view of providing justice,” added Sufi Md. Kausar Siddiqui, National President, Sufi Khanqah Association.
The video of the praises showered on PM Modi by the Muslim leaders at the NID Foundation event went viral over the internet. The video, however, was not welcomed by Islamists who slammed the Muslim leaders and scholars for praising PM Modi. Some netizens even used abusive language for the Islamic scholars, calling them ‘gaddar’ (traitors) while others indicated that they were given money to speak well about PM Modi.
One of the Muslim netizens mentioned that the Islamic scholars who lauded PM Modi were ‘munafiqeen’ (a religious hypocrite) and indicated that the scholars only pretended to follow Islam but were acting against it. Netizens also used abusive words for the scholars calling them ‘haram**or’.
Meanwhile, one of the netizens also stated that the scholars praising Modi had lost their minds and called them ‘Yazid Ki Aulad’. It is important to note here that Yazid I was the second caliph of the Umayyad Caliphate and he is said to have ordered the killing of Imam Hussain, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad. Yazid claimed that he was the successor of the Prophet which led to his appointment as the first hereditary successor to the caliphate in Islamic history.
Several Islamists revolted against the hereditary appointment, including Imam Hussain who left for Kufa in Iraq to lead a revolt against Yazid. Reportedly, Hussain is said to have been killed by supporters of Yazid and Ibn Ziyad. Later, the leader of a caliphate based in Mecca, Ibn al-Zubayr, proposed to change the caliph. He was supported by several Muslims from Medina. It is said that Yazid then happened to send an army to suppress Medina residents.
Shia Muslims believe that Yazid is the main perpetrator of the tragedy of Karbala. They also believe that he was an illegitimate ruler given records of his attack on Medina. The Battle of Karbala has divided the Muslims into two sections of beliefs even today. Sunni Muslims claim that Hussain was killed by Kufans (housing Shias) and that Yazid wanted no bloodshed. It is Ibn Ziyad and Kufans (Shias) who led the attack killing Hussain.
Coming back to the present time, several Islamic leaders praised PM Modi for abolishing triple talaq and ensuring empowerment of the Muslim women. On May 18, 2017, the Supreme Court declared Triple Talaq unconstitutional. The Modi administration maintained that the elimination of Triple Talaq would improve Muslim women’s socioeconomic, constitutional, and basic rights.
