By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
“I have no problem here in Deoband that is the house of Deen. We are happy here,” says Mohd Saleem, a Darul Uloom Deoband graduate who sells caps and perfumes near the main gate of Asia’s largest seminary. But what he could not say though clear is that Deoband is a typical Indian town with Muslims backward both educationally and economically.
True, Deoband, a town of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh, is known worldwide for Darul Uloom – and there are hundreds of madrasas in and around Deoband. Still, in terms of modern education it is backward, particularly its Muslim residents are so. And partly because of it and partly because of no industry around, the community is poor and backward economically as well.
Ask about major problems of local Muslims, Haseeb Siddiqui, chairman, Deoband Nagarpalika Parishad and Director, Muslim Fund Trust would say: Like in other parts of the country, Muslims here too are facing economic backwardness as well as educational backwardness.
“These are the two issues on which how much we do will be little. So far the community has done much in the field of politics. There is a need to work on these two issues. If we had people who could start movement on these two issues, like Syed Hamid did by taking out an educational awareness caravan, it would have been great for the community,” says Siddiqui.
But he says the situation is improving now. “However, of late there has come educational awareness and quality youth and talented youth are coming out from the community and helping it to improve its economic condition. Yes, economic backwardness has created a lot of problems,” says he who is also a graduate from Darul Uloom.
He himself has done his bit on this front. Under his guidance Madani ITI was opened years back and so far 2000 students have passed and are now employed in national and multinational companies. The institute is certified by the government.
Time to time some disturbing reports come from Deoband: some fringe Hindutva elements demand closure of Darul Uloom and try to vitiate communal harmony.
However, local Muslims are not much perturbed about it. They are not worried at all. Rather they say there is complete communal harmony here, no tension between Hindus and Muslims.
“There is no problem here. No tension between communities,” says Mohd Asif, another street vendor in Darul vicinity. On Hindutva groups demand, he says: “No one can ban or close Darul Uloom. And there is no tension here. Curfew was imposed soon after Babri Masjid demolition in 1992 but no violence occurred.”