By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
New Delhi: On the occasion of Arba’een or Chehlum of Imam Husain, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh), Anjuman-e-Haideri called upon people from all faiths to observe the day as “Anti-Terrorism Day”, bringing together scholars, spiritual leaders and diplomats from Iraq, Syria and Iran, to discuss and explain how the activities of the Islamic State can be countered.
The occasion, observed at the Shah-e-Mardan Dargah in New Delhi, saw thousands of people condemn the acts of the purported Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Speaking in front of a packed audience, John Dayal, Secretary General, All India Catholic Council, said it was wrong to associate any religion with terror and that such activities must not be seen as the work of Muslims, since these terrorists were not representative of the religion. Dayal said that while discussing terrorism, one must not also forget the incidents happening in India. The fight against terrorism was not limited to one country but a fight for all, he added.
Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan of Bareilly called upon the sacrifice of Imam Husain 1400 years ago. While condemning the acts of the ISIS, he also added that the world is often hypocritical when it comes to defining terrorism. “The incidents that are happening in Iraq and conducted by the Islamic State are terrorism. But what will you call the incidents in Yemen and Palestine? Unless we use the same definition of terrorism for all such activities, we will not be able to tackle it.” He added that the community must also ensure that youths are not misguided towards the ideas of ISIS.
Acharya Pramod Krishnan extolled the sacrifices made by Imam Husain, saying that he showed what Islam stood for. “Just as the Dadri incident is not the real face of Hinduism, in the same way, the activities of the Islamic State are not the real face of Islam. No one who believes in Islam, and Imam Husain, can commit such acts,” he said, to thunderous applause from the thousands present at, and around, the Dargah.
The loudest cheer from the crowd came when Krishnan said that he too was a ‘Husaini’, someone who believed in Husain. He stressed on the fact that Indian Muslims need not prove their love for India to anyone, since this country belonged to them as much as it did to anyone else who lived here. At various points during his speech, the crowd broke into loud chants and Krishnan too joined them.
Anjuman-e-Haideri also passed a resolution which called upon the “International Community to take ‘all necessary measures’ to prevent and suppress its (ISIS) terrorist acts on its territory under its control in Syria and Iraq.
For the people present at the Dargah, this was not only to commemorate the sacrifice of Imam Husain; it was also a way to show that they too stood against the activities of ISIS. Anwar Ali, who hailed from Bihar, said that instead of trying to kill all terrorists, efforts should be made to render them ineffective. “Bandook nahi hoga, to ladega kaise ye log? Inko Hathiyaar, Gaadi, Phone, Internet kahan se milta hai? Ye sab band kariye, atankwad khud hi ruk jaega.” (If they do not have guns, how will they fight? Where do they get guns, phones, internet and vehicle from? Stop their supply, terrorism will stop automatically).
He said he had come because he wanted to show that people who celebrate the life of Imam Husain would never endorse the activities of ISIS. Like a number of others in the audience, he too said that ISIS might be a handiwork of the US, while condemning the US role in the Middle East.