Fasihuddin Balkhi: the forgotten historian of Bihar

Born in Patna, Bihar during the British era, Fasihuddin Balkhi made a tremendous contribution to history-writing in Urdu. Despite this feat, he remains largely...

Biodiversity and Islam

By Dr Mohammad Iqtedar Husain Farooq, Biological diversity, or the shorter term ‘biodiversity’, means the variety of life forms like human beings, animals of all sorts and plants of different categories in a region or on the globe. Any harm to biodiversity may increase diseases on Earth or in other words less of biodiversity means more of infections.

A pledge for India’s constitution

By Zohra Javed for TwoCircles.net 26th January. This day in 1950 India chose to become a Republic adopting a secular constitution that had been painstakingly written taking into consideration modifications and alterations, and giving thought to the aspects of equality and justice, making a set of fundamental rights such that every component of the Republic would be taken care of. Our elders thus proudly chose the path of democracy which brought the hope of a better tomorrow for every section of the society and a promise to empower the weakest among the weak.

If Arshad Mohsin thinks he is innocent, will he answer these questions? A rejoinder...

By Abdul Qadir for TwoCircles.net On Monday, TwoCircles.net published an article titled ‘How a malicious report in Times of India had ruined my life and...

Equity Question of Muslim is a Myth India Finds a Report

Syed Ali Mujtaba An audit report on the marginalization of Muslims in minority concentration districts in Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, and UP tears apart the...

Mira Road, Thane: An oasis of hope

Among many challenges and hurdles marking the Indian Muslims in 2013 like a beacon of hope comes across for Indian Muslims in 2013 is the story of Mira Road.

12 Muslim women among top 200 women nominees of #100Women achievers contest of Ministry...

By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCircles.net New Delhi: The Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), in collaboration with Facebook, have announced the...

Hakim Ajmal Khans last resting place: in a forgotten corner of Delhi

By Rana Safvi Hakim Ajmal Khan a philanthropist, freedom fighter, famous hakeem and nationalist is a well known personality. So I was very surprised when I...

Indore riots report

By PUCL Team In the wake of BJP and VHP's call for an all India Bandh, Indore town witnessed widespread violence on July 3rd & 4th 2008. Seven lives were lost. (Six of them were Muslims). Many people were injured and are admitted in the hospitals in serious conditions. It was merely a glimpse of the intention of the communalist forces active in town and in the state of Madhya Pradesh. They want to replicate the Gujarat experiment of massacre and bloodbath in MP too.

Millat College of Darbhanga: Movement launched for minority status

By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net, Patna: Far from AMU and Jamia Millia Islamia, the Muslim community in the North Bihar district of Darbhanga has launched a movement for restoration of minority character of the prestigious Millat College, first college established post-Independence by Muslims in Bihar. Set up in 1957, the college was run by Muslim Anjuman-e-Taleem, founding society of the college, till 1976 when the government took it over and diminished its minority status.

वंदे-मातरम विवाद : कुछ सच जिनको जानना ज़रूरी है

शम्सुल इस्लाम बंकिम चन्द्र चटर्जी द्वारा रचित गीत वंदे-मातरम फिर एक बार चर्चा में है. इस बार हलचल आरएसएस के प्रिय नारे 'हिंदुस्तान में रहना...

Fatima Nafees and Hadiya: How Muslim women fight Islamophobia and the ‘Collective Conscience’

By Nazish Hussain for TwoCircles.net What does it take to withstand the persistent atrocities and oppression by state authorities against you? The ordeal of two...

Revisiting the creation of Israel

By M Reyaz, In the history of creation of Israel, the holocaust under Nazi Germany when about 6 million of Jews, almost two third of over 9 million population in whole of Europe were killed, is often pointed to justify the establishment of a Jewish national home. Of course, there can be no justification of such heinous crime, but it should be pointed here that the persecution of Jews in ‘Christian’ Europe had not really begun with Hitler.

The Good News Project: How the BJP helps Muslims, unknowingly

By Shah Nawaz Afaque Is it just me or is there a lot of negativity in the air? Ideological clashes at the dining table, political...

Indian historians are absolutely dishonest or simply opportunistic: AG Noorani

By M. Noushand for TwoCircles.net A.G. Noorani is a famous author of history books and a lawyer at Supreme Court of India. He recently visited Calicut to receive CH Muhammed Koya Foundation Award for eminent writers. He talked to M Noushad. You are a regular reviewer of history books. How do you assess the academic quality of history writing in India in comparison and contrast with the history projects in foreign countries, especially the west?

मुस्लिम समुदाय : संख्या पर घमासान

काशिफ़ उल हुदा, TwoCircles.net बीते कुछ दिनों से समाचार चैनलों की सुर्खियां आंकड़ों के मुकाबिले ज्यादा बातें कर रही हैं. हाल में ही भारत सरकार...

The real story of Muslim under-representation in Bihar

By Soroor Ahmed, TwoCircles.net, There is a perception among some Muslims that except riot-free Bihar they did not get much in the last 25 years...

Vinoba Bhave and his understanding of Islam

By Asghar Ali Engineer,

A friend of mine Daniel Mazgaonkar gave me a Hindi copy of Vinoba Bhave’s book on Islam to see whether the Qur’anic verses and hadith have been correctly quoted. I am reading it particularly those portions wherein Vinoba Bhaveji has quoted Qur’anic verses and ahadith. I have yet to go through the whole text but meanwhile certain portions which I read are worth writing about.

Kawish, an effort to empower through guidance and counseling

A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum : - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes & our Shortcomings ; Stories...

Book review: The Tribute to the Strugglers

Reviewed by Yoginder Sikand The Tuhfat al-Mujahidin or ‘The Tribute to the Strugglers’ is one of the earliest extant historical treatises about the southern Indian state of Kerala. Its author, the sixteenth century's Shaikh Zainuddin Makhdum, hailed from the renowned Makhdum family from the town of Ponnani in Malabar, in northern Kerala. This family traced its descent to migrants from Yemen, who played a leading role in the spread of Islam in southern India.

Is India faced with a 3.1 lakh crore farm-loan waiver? And will it help?

By Alison Saldanha & Prachi Salve  As demands for farm-loan waivers grow across Punjab, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka -- after Uttar...

Why the followers of Hindutva in India support Israel?

The common force uniting Hindutva and Zionism is their shared understanding of the nation and the treatment of minorities. While Zionism sought to violently...

Muslim women in the slums: poorest of the poor

A study of the maternity care and births in Mumbai slums By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net, A large number of Muslims of India live in poverty and they are the majority of the poorest of the poor living in slums. This is according to a study conducted in 2006 in Mumbai. The details of the study were published earlier this month.

As an Indian Muslim I have a dream and this is it

As Islamophobia rages in India and Indian Muslims continue to be blamed for the spread of the coronavirus, Indian journalist Mazhar Farooqui came up with...

Mohammadi Begum – A role model for Meo women

Series on MewatPart 4 By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net, On my last day in Mewat, I fixed an appointment to meet a Meo woman whom I had heard much about—46 year-old Mohammadi Begum. When I did fieldwork in Mewat two decades ago, she was the only Meo female to have earned a Bachelor’s degree. Today, there are some three hundred others like her—which, considering that the Meo female population is estimated at around 600,000, still does not amount to much.

The Shia-Sunni divide: dangerous (re)-readings of Islamic History

By Sharjeel Imam Out of the first four caliphs of Islam, the third i.e Uthman was an Umayyad, a powerful Quraish tribe based in Mecca...

लॉकडाउन में गुरूग्राम की अमेरिकी कंपनी ने निकाले 800 कर्मचारी, क्यों चुप हैं खट्टर-मोदी

यूसुफ़ किरमानी लॉकडाउन में जब आप घरों में क़ैद हैं। ऐसे में गुड़गांव में अमेरिकन कंपनी फेयर पोर्टल (Fareportal) ने अपने 800 कर्मचारियों को कंपनी...

39 global rights orgs’ condemn SLAPP suit filed by Hindu American Foundation against a...

  The global rights organizations condemned the ‘aggressive lawsuit’ as an attempt to curtail free speech and free expression exercised by a reputed media house...

Nawab Sikandar Begum’s Hajj memoir

By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and for over fourteen hundred years a journey of a lifetime for millions of Muslims living in different corners of the world. These hajis returned to their homelands to tell a tale of physical and spiritual journey of extraordinary proportions. Hajj is obligatory for every Muslim man and woman who are able to undertake this journey. A large number of Muslim women from India made this pious trip but one of the first to write an account of her hajj journey was Nawab Sikandar Begum of Bhopal.

Muslims selling puja items near makeshift Ram Temple in Hanuman Garhi

By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net, TwoCircles.net series: Ayodhya 2009

An epoch-making Urdu bibliography

By Dr Omar Khalidi Dr. Anwar Moazzam, former professor of Islamic Studies at Osmania University in Hyderabad, Deccan, India and Ashhar Farhan, an info-technologist and entrepreneur has compiled a massive, epoch-making bibliography of works in social sciences in Urdu. Dr. Moazzam launched the project way back in 1976, under the auspices of Indian Council for Social Science Research and National Council for the Promotion of Urdu Language, both institutions funded by the union government of India in New Delhi.

In Kerala, attempts to save Arabi Malayalam take final shape

By Shafeeq Hudawi Kozhikode : The history of Islam in Kerala goes back more than a thousand years, with the first mosque in the...

शेख़ गुलाब : गुमनामी में गायब अंग्रेजों से लोहा लेनेवाला शख्स

अफ़रोज़ आलम साहिल, TwoCircles.net आज़ादी के इतने सालों बाद शेख़ गुलाब को याद करना बेहद ख़ास है. मुझे यह समझ नहीं आ रहा है कि...

Should Supreme Court favour Sikh beard but disapprove Jewish, Christian and Muslim beards ?

Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood, President, ZakatIndia.org The Supreme Court of India recently offered to a suspended Muslim Maharashtra police constable the revocation of his suspension...

A marriage of, for and with self-respect: Remembering Periyar 140 years after his birth...

By Daisy Katta, TwoCircles.net The news of the caste killing of Pranay in Telangana has sent shockwaves throughout India. This is not an isolated incident...

TV serials and the rise of Hindutva

ShahNawaz Khan TwoCircles.net I would argue Ramanand Sagar, and not the BJP, started laying the bricks of a Hindu Rashtra, although, perhaps inadvertently. The Ramayan...

Obituary: Mufti Abdul Latif Qasmi, Shahar Qazi of Bhopal

By Manzar Imam, Mufti Abdul Latif Qasmi, city qazi of Bhopal died of cardiac arrest on 4 April 2010. Mufti Sahab complained of chest pain around 4am following which he was rushed to Chirayu Hospital where he was declared brought dead. He was 63 and is survived by wife, three sons and six daughters. For some time he had been suffering from diabetes.

Government’s bureaucratic recruitment from business houses clashes with India’s constitutional mandate

By Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood for TwoCircles.net The central government’s Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) has advertised the lateral recruitment from the private sector...

Tehzib-ul Ikhlaque: Ameliorating the Social Conditions of Indian Muslims

By Areeba Shabbir, TwoCircles.net An exhaustive audit of Sir Syed Ahmad’s scholarly services laid the foundation of responsible journalism in India. He was the first...

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan rips through traditional views about women in Islam

By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net, Director of the New Delhi-based Centre for Peace and Spirituality, editor of the monthly Al-Risala journal and author of almost two hundred books, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is one of India’s best known Islamic scholars. In this interview with Yoginder Sikand, he talks about issues related to Islam and women. You have written extensively on the issue of Islam and women. Contrary to many traditional ulema, you argue the case for gender equality in Islam. How does your approach differ from that of most traditionalist scholars?

COVID-19 and mounting woes of Indian farmers

By Mohammed Junaid  Ompal Singh, a 50-year-old farmer from Muzaffarnagar, sugarcane belt of Uttar Pradesh, ended his life on 4 June 2020 allegedly over the...

Tablighi Jamaat and Mewat madrasas

Series on MewatPart 3 By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net, Because the Tablighi Jamaat, today the world's largest Islamic movement, had its roots in Mewat, many Meos identify themselves with it--even if, for many, this may be only nominal. The founder of the Tablighi Jamaat, Maulana Muhammad Ilyas, is credited with having founded a number of maktabs and madrasas in Mewat in the 1920s. Today, there are several hundred such Islamic schools across the region.

Substantive evidence against police of aiding and abetting the real terrorists: Advocate Pracha

By M Reyaz, TwoCircles.net, New Delhi: Advocate Mehmood Pracha, who is defending German bakery bomb blast case convict Mirza Himayat Beg for his innocence, has been receiving threat calls from international telephone numbers. Although he was not a full time criminal lawyer Advocate Pracha attracted admiration in successfully securing bail for Syed Muhammad Ahmad Kazmi in the Israeli Embassy attack case and since then he has become one of the sort after lawyers not only individuals family members of youth arrested on dubious terror charges, but also by organisations like Jamiat e Ulema Hind. Many see him as heir to legacy of Advocate Shahid Azmi, who was martyred for defending the innocent youth arrested on terror charges. Besides Himayat Baig, Advocate Pracha has been trying to secure bail for another high profile terror accused Mansoor Peerbhoy and has been frontally attacking current Mumbai Police Commissioner Rakesh Maria for his conduct as ATS Chief.

Chai @AMU – it is more than drinking tea

By Nayeem Showkat Khan, “Tod diya ray.” You may surely be used to this line if you have attended or visited Aligarh Muslim University (AMU). Every hour, at least one chai (tea) glass is ‘broken to death’ at some dhaba located somewhere in the vicinity of varsity and dhabawalas keep on repeating the same line.

Urdu poet Hanif Akhgar Malihabadi is no more

By Afzal Usmani, “Jo hai Taazgi meri zaat mein, wahi zikr-o-fikr chaman mein hai Ke wajood mera kaheen bhi ho, meri rooh mere watan mein hai “
(Hanif Akhgar Malihabadi)

This hilly region in Kashmir is prospective front for gateway to Central Asia

By Rahmat Bhat, TwoCircles.net Like a jewel in the crown of a king, sits the beautiful valley of Karnah at Shamsbari range in north-west Kashmir....

Seeds of extremism is in communal riots: Sayeed Khan

Sayeed Khan is the founder president of MY India (Muslim Youth of India). He is leading a campaign against extremism after getting disillusioned with Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Charu Bahri of TwoCircles.net spoke to him about SIMI, extremism, and future plans for MY India. Background

Old-timers, others miss electoral din in UP’s Agra

By Brij Khandelwal  Agra, (IANS) : As campaigning for the first phase of the seven-phased Uttar Pradesh assembly elections gains momentum, many old-timers and other...

What really happened in Dimapur?

Anger against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants spills over to take rape accused person’s life By A Ghyasuddin, TwoCircles.net, A lot has been said by many but the fact remains that there was a serious breach of law and order by Nagaland government and the outcome was killing of an under trial rape accused in a most horrifying way for a modern world.

Muslim representation in Civil Services – An Analysis

By M Naushad Ansari, Among 875 selected candidates, this year, 21 are Muslims. Last year, out of 791 selected candidates, 31 were Muslims. Hence, from around 4% in 2009 the Muslims’ selection in the Civil Services Examination, popularly known as IAS exams, has come down to around 2.5%. Only remarkable achievement this year is that the topper is a Muslim, Shah Faesal, coming from Kashmir.

Rehman Sahib – A Short Tribute

By Naved Masood   What was apprehended for the last couple of days came to pass last evening; Mehmood ur Rehman Sahib (1942- 2017) completed...

Does it matter who wins election in Araria?

By Ashish Ranjan and Kalyani B This is where the road ends tarmac of India shining gives way to gravel and red dirt of...

Businessman with dubious credentials as Chancellor of public funded University: Modi govt beats the...

By M Reyaz, Over the years, several private universities – Amity University to IIPM and Lovely Professional University – that have mushroomed in country often have the owners, varying from educationist, philanthropist to hard core businessmen or even realtors, appointing themselves as Chancellors while they hire professionals, often semi-professionals, as Vice Chancellors.

Politics and psychology: a study of political campaign in Indian democracy

By Yash Nawaz What is politics and psychology? How are both related to each other? I have tried to figure out these questions to understand political...

A visit to the ruins of magnificent Muslim past in Malda and Murshidabad

By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net TCN Series: Visit to Malda and Murshidabad : Part 3 The cities of Malda and Murshidabad alternatively were the capital of the undivided Bengal (that included Bihar and Orissa also) for about 700 years – from the conquest of Bakhtiar Khilji in 1201 of Bengal till 1881 when Nawab Syed Mansur Ali Khan (known as Feradun Jah), son of Nawab Mubarak Ali Khan (known as Humayun Jah), retired as the last Nawab of the state.

Protection of Women against Domestic Violence Act 2005 in Gujarat

A study exposes crude insensitivity of the state towards implementing the law By Nikhat, So far as spousal violence in Gujarat is concerned, the figure is very disturbing; around 28% ever married women have experienced sexual or physical violence and 34% of such women have sustained serious injuries. The extent of reportability of cases of spousal violence is even more frustrating, only 30% (i.e. 1 in every 3) of such women has sought help to end the violence and 58% of such women have neither sought help nor told anyone about the spousal violence [1].

बिहार में बदहाल शिक्षा व्यवस्था : बच्चे पढ़ाई से अधिक खिचड़ी के लिए कटोरे...

अमृतांज इंदीवर व्यक्ति समाज का एक अभिन्न अंग है. जैसा व्यक्ति होगा, वैसा समाज व राष्ट्र होगा. भावी समाज के कर्णधारों के व्यक्तित्व का निर्माण...

Gender equality and human rights: “Let different flowers bloom in the garden of God”

By Shobha Shukla "...All must be encouraged in an understanding of the fact that all human beings are born good, but they may be endowed...

History Repeating Itself? Post-2014 India’s eerie resemblance with India of 1938-46

By Mohammed Sajjad for TwoCircles.net History rarely repeats itself. Nevertheless, if we are to understand what is happening in the Indian polity today, it is...

The rise of India’s Balcony Class

By Shimul, TwoCircles.net The last few days have been hard. When it becomes a choice between holding on and giving up, unlike the vast majority...

For the Love of Urdu: Running free Urdu classes

"Even when Qamar Hayat retired in 2003 as a teacher from the Nagpur Municipal Urdu School, the Urdu class continues to be free of...

Why Jharkhand’s Pathalgadi movement is worrying the state government

Shukoh Albadar, TwoCircles.net Merely 40 km away from the Jharkhand’s state capital Ranchi, Khunti, a newly-carved out district is in the limelight across the national...

Investigating Mehdi Foundation’s beliefs and claims

By Yoginder Sikand A fortnight ago, the walls of my locality in New Delhi were plastered over with posters depicting a bearded man bearing a ponderous turban, below which were etched slogans fiercely denouncing Pakistan. 'Pakistan Promotes Islamic Terrorism', 'Islamic Terrorists Rule Pakistan', 'Declare Pakistan a Terrorist State' and so on the posters proclaimed. They were issued by The Mehdi Foundation International (MFI), a little-known outfit with a rather bombastic name.

Kulsum Sayani: A ‘Rahber’ of Hindustani

By Danish Khan, We all have heard of Ameen Sayani, the golden voice of radio, recognised and loved by lakhs of listeners. Sayani's voice has touched the lives of many which makes people nostalgic of the good old days of the radio. History buffs might know that his grandfather Rahimtulla Sayani was elected the president of Congress in 1896 and was a well known lawyer in Bombay.

Interview with Maulana Tahir Madani of Ulama Council

Interview by Kashif-ul-Huda, transcribed by Manzar Bilal, TwoCircles.net,

नीतीश ने राजद या कांग्रेस से कोई ‘गद्दारी’ नहीं की…

नासिरूद्दीन इसमें दो राय हो ही नहीं सकती कि नीतीश कुमार ने अपने लिए जो फैसला किया, वह बिहार के विधानसभा चुनाव के जनादेश के...

New stage of Muslim disempowerment

Dr Mohammad Manzoor Alam One of the less examined and analysed aspects of the recent Lok Sabha elections is the stark fact that the old...

Crime and Punishment in Gujarat: Case of Fatehsinh Chauhan

By TwoCircles.net special correspondent Ahmedabad: Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Fatehsinh Chauhan, representing Rajgarh constituency in the state assembly, could not escape the long arms of law. He had ultimately to surrender to the police on Monday.

Different forms of untouchability among Muslims: Dalit Muslim Muhim

By Khalid Anis Ansari, Mohammad Noor Hasan Azad, one of the founding members of the All India Pasmanda Muslim Mahaz, discusses the contemporary lower caste movement among Indian Muslims

A Burqa can be empowering too, but I don’t expect Ram Guha to understand...

By Hatif Imam for TwoCircles.net My great uncle attained the coveted post of a Tehsildar before independence. He was a poet and a pious Muslim,...

Dr B S Abdur Rahman: The man who died young

Educationist and founder of B S Abdur Rahman University passed away on January 7 at Chennai at the age of 88. A tribute: By Dr Jasim Mohammad, Death of Dr B S Abdur Rahman has not only shocked who knew his mission and lifelong works but also those who have benefited by his devotion and those who took inspirations from him. His untimely death has brought a vacuum in Indian educational scenario and it is almost impossible to be filled up in near future.

दलितों की लड़ाई के अहम योद्धा मंगनाराम मेघवाल

अफ़रोज़ आलम साहिल, TwoCircles.net नोखा (राजस्थान)- इस शहर का एक गुमनाम लड़का जब यह बोलता है कि ‘मुझ जैसे गरीब के पास खोने के लिए...

Hindus are in real danger of losing their faith to lunatics and fanatics

By Mushtaque Rahamat hai raam ke vajud pe hindostan ko naaz ahl-e-nazar samajhte hain is ko imam-e-hind (Allama Iqbal)  This year again like previous years the...

Inculcating morality among Generation Next, Pharos Educational Foundation

A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum : - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes & our Shortcomings ; Stories...

बिहार के गरीब स्कूल की रंगीन कहानी

TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter बोधगया(सुजाता) - आज कोई व्यक्ति नहीं, कोई शख्सियत नहीं न कोई संस्थान जिसे हम मिसाल की तरह पेश करना चाहते हैं. ऐसे...

An innovative approach to Hindu-Muslim dialogue

55 year-old Syed Abdullah Tariq runs an Islamic group based in Rampur, a town in western Uttar Pradesh, that focuses on dialogue with Hindus. An engineer by training, he was one of the chief disciples of the late Maulana Shams Naved Usmani, a noted Islamic scholar who had also a deep knowledge of the Hindu scriptures.

Muslim decline and responsibilities of Ulema

By Maulana Waris Mazhari (Translated from Urdu by Yoginder Sikand)

Manufacturing Muslim ‘Criminals’: The Hindutva formula

By Shamsul Islam for TwoCircles.net The most prominent ideologue of RSS, MS Golwalkar, declared Muslims and Christians as 'internal threat' number ONE and TWO respectively....

The cost of being an assertive Muslim in India

By Nabeel Ahmad, TwoCircles.net With the rising hyper-nationalism and Islamophobia, Indian Muslims are constantly bombarded regarding their identity. Forget about full-grown beard and skull cap,...

Mohammed Ali Shihab: An inspiring journey from orphanage to UPSC

By Shafeeq Hudawi, TwoCircles.net, “What is your strength, Ali?” asked the discerning panel during the interview round of the UPSC exams in 2011. The answer...

Karbala: The true symbol of non-violent resistance

By Rupa Abdi, TwoCircles.net Black was the colour of pathos, and I was submerged in it. Women dressed in black sarees and salwar kameez were beating their chests to the chant of ‘Ya Hussain’. The chorus rose to a fevered pitch followed by a sudden silence. In that momentary silence was crystallized generations of mourning. The place – a Shia Muslim neighbourhood in Lucknow; the time – the tenth of Moharrum. If grief has different shades, on can see it during Moharrum.

Book Review: The Mothers of Manipur: Twelve Women Who Made History

By Aparna Sharma for TwoCircles.net Name of the book: The Mothers of Manipur: Twelve Women Who Made History Author: Teresa Rehman, Publisher: Zubaan Books, 154 pages Number of...

Deoband’s Anti-Terrorism Convention: Some Reflections

By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net

The mammoth 'Anti-Terrorism Convention' organised at Deoband late last month, which brought together ulema from all over the country, has received wide media coverage. While smaller conventions of this sort have been organized by other ulema bodies in recent years, this one, unlike others, caught the attention of the media particularly because it was organized by the Dar ul-Ulum Deoband, probably the largest traditional madrasa in the world, which large sections of the media have been unfairly berating as the 'hub' of 'terrorism'.

Syud Hossain: India’s voice for freedom abroad

By Danish Khan for TwoCircles.net Syud Hossain was born on June 23, 1888 in Calcutta (according to his passport application to the British Government) in an illustrious and aristocratic family. His father Syud Mohammed was a well-known scholar and the Registrar General of Bengal. His maternal grandfather was Nawab Abdul Latif Khan Bahadur who did pioneering work in the field of education in Bengal.

A new environmental world order awaits post Covid-19 (Corona) era

By Anwar Khursheed and Zoony Zainab, TwoCircles.net The human race takes it upon itself to perform the dual role of both the destroyer and the...

A 400 year old Masjid and colony demolished in Delhi by Delhi Development Authority

Resistance against the demolition of Ghousiya Masjid and colony in Delhi By Mohamed Tanveer Iqbal

Ahmad Mustafa Siddiqui Rahi – A tribute on his birthday 14th August

By Ahmed Sohail Siddiqui Who would have predicted that the date of birth of the eldest son of Maulana Abdul Waheed Siddiqui would be the date...

A year after abrogation of Article 370, Kashmir is tragedy in making

By Firdous Khan The first anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 is around the corner in Jammu and Kashmir. It was on August 5...

Civil Services: More Muslims should come out to compete, says IRS Faraz Qureshi

A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum : - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes & our Shortcomings ; Stories...

Is Urdu facing imminent death in Bihar?, experts rue govt apathy, lack of interest...

Sami Ahmad, TwoCircles.net  Patna: Urdu is the second official language of Bihar. However, the plight of the language is such that it’s out of the...

PM Modi has not spent even a single rupee from MPLADS funds on adopted...

By Siddhant Mohan, TwoCircles.net Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India and Lok Sabha MP from Varanasi, has not spent a single rupee from his...

J&K Gujjar women most neglected in the country: survey

By Manzar Bilal, TwoCircles.net, The empowerment of a woman leads to empowerment of entire family. But unfortunately women have always been neglected lot in every field of life. They have been generally kept out of development in the country. A survey reveals Gujjar women in Jammu and Kashmir are among the most backward and discriminated women in the country.

AMU ranked top-notch university for research in ‘US News Best Global Universities Rankings’

TCN News Aligarh: The seventh annual US News Best Global Universities Rankings has given Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) premium position in the Indian and global...

‘Liberal’, ‘Ambedkerite’ Islamophobia and communal violence: A counter narrative

By Dr Mohammad Kamran Ahsan As hate becomes the fulcrum, and the new normal of Indian polity, various view-points have emerged analysing this institutionalised hatred...

हिन्दू कोड बिल पर चुप्पी साधकर भाजपा कर रही ट्रिपल तलाक की राजनीति

अभय कुमार पिछले महीने पूर्वी उत्तर प्रदेश के सोनभद्र में भाजपा की एक बड़ी रैली से ख़िताब करते हुए पार्टी अध्यक्ष अमित शाह ने सपा,...

From the complaining eyes of Azamgarh

By Sadiq Zafar for TwoCircles.net, Azamgarh has been the land of oriental learning since the colonial times and a center of religious excellence in...

Making 10,000 Dalit Adivasi leaders for dignity and development in Odisha

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter, Bhubaneswar: National Confederation Dalit Adivasi Organisations (NACDAOR) has decided to train Dalits and Adivasis in the state of Odisha to...

Madrasa teaching reforms essential : Tariq Rasheed Firangi Mahali

39-year old Maulana Tariq Rasheed Firangi Mahali is a ninth generation direct descendant of Mulla Nizamuddin Firangi Mahali, who framed what is known after him as the dars-e nizami, the basic syllabus that continues to be followed by the vast majority of Islamic madrasas in South Asia even today. He is one of the few remaining members of the renowned Firangi Mahali family of Lucknow who carry on with their family's centuries'-old tradition of Islamic scholarship.

Glorifying encounter killings in Hindi movies

By Almas Ahmad “Tum log society ka kachra hai ... main society ka jamadar” (You people are the trash of the society…and I am the cleaner of...

यूपी में मजलिस : खेल बिगाड़ रही है या अपना खेल बना रही है...

आसमोहम्मद कैफ़। Twocircles.net इरफ़ान मंसूरी मुजफ्फरनगर में रहते हैं। 52 साल के है और वो पेशे से दर्जी है। राजनीति में रुचि रखते हैं। पहले...

Opinion: Kashmir Files weaponizes grief for propaganda

The gut-wrenching story of Kashmiri Pandits should not be weaponized for stoking anti-Muslim violence. Alishan Jafri | TwoCircles.net  After a friend shared Chetan Bhagat's recent op-ed in the Times...

Ayodhya imbroglio 1949-2019: Need to restitute and indemnify Muslim sociopolitical losses

Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood Of late, some people have been approaching the Muslim community leaders persuading them to welcome the Supreme Court decision if it...

A Love Story of Chand Mohmmad and Fiza

By Syed Ali Mujtaba, The story of Chand Mohmmad and Fiza that had hit the headlines recently undoubtedly has lent a romantic color to the otherwise dull Indian political scene. This however has also opened up a debate on complex human relationship that transcends into the domain of conversion and polygamy. Whereas Muslim clerics have called the idea of converting to Islam to get married second time, "a deplorable act" the Hindutva brigade is maintaining a stoke silence in this case.

Amjadi Begum: “A brave woman”

By Rizwan Lateef Khan, One name, Amjadi Begum, associated with the Indian Freedom Struggle needs no introduction. Principled, patriotic, self-respecting, honest, dignified, truthful, courageous, determined and committed to the cause are all the attributes which direct us to that great personality whom we all know as Amjadi Begum.

The role of women in the Kashmir uprising

By Bilal A. Malik for Twocircles.net Since 1947, women participation has been an inalienable element of Kashmir’s resistance movement. The courageous women of Kashmir stood...

Communal riots 2011

By Asghar Ali Engineer,

Strange rituals make Eid in Maldives unique

By Anas Nilambur Ramadan gets a warm reception in Maldives with numerous extraordinary rituals. In this Muslim country long before the holy month people stat preparation of welcoming ‘Rodha Mahu’, Dhivehi name for the month of fast. Men and women go to nearby uninhabited islands to collect milky white gravels, with which their courtyards are being decorated. Repainting walls is not a common practice here; however the pristine beach like appearance of house premises substitutes all other shortcomings.

Urdu-medium enrollment: What the numbers tell us?

A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum : - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes & our Shortcomings ; Stories...

Anam Munaf Vadgama, a role model for girls

TCN Special Series on Women of Inspiration By Rehan Ansari, TwoCircles.net,

Khalid, Imam and the conventional Muslim prisoner

To show complete solidarity, they need a conventional Muslim who's left-leaning, has been painted as an atheist and has not made Islamic references in...

In Memory of Babri

By Waseem R.S “Krishna, what is the case with your grave?” I asked suddenly and he replied, excited. “We won in the High Court, Bhavanechi” “What do...

Glorifying self: Modi’s gimmick of washing feet of sanitary workers

By Ram Puniyani Gimmicks are a part of Modi's style of politics. Rather they form the core of his strategies. His act of washing the feet...

Schoolgirl writes to Chief Minister, gets road constructed to the village

By IndScribe, Maimoona Khan, 14, who studies in ninth standard, lives in a small village in Narsinghpur district of Madhya Pradesh.

Not Just BJP, it is the Indian State which is Islamophobic

By Iqbal Salahkar Exactly six years back, in the first week of April 2014, the polling for Lok Sabha elections began. BJP-led-National Democratic Alliance, registering...

A day of Ramadan in Mominpura, Nagpur

Photos by Nivedita Khandekar Nagpur: Mominpura in Nagpur is the place to be during Ramadan. People from across the city and at times,...

The controversy over Padmavati, and Bollywood’s soft war against Muslims

By Misbahuddin Mirza for Twocircles.net Padmavati, a Bollywood movie being produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, is the latest in a plethora of movies showing inter-religious...

Justice? Fair trial? What foolish world do you live in, Sir? The victim was...

By Mazhar Farooqui In the end, justice will prevail. Nobody is above the law. Have faith in the judiciary. All these oft-repeated phrases sound good but...

Should caste matter?

By Nikhat Fatima, TwoCircles.net Caste system in India, according to a large number of historians and intellectuals began with the advent of the Aryans and...

‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ and Contemporary Nationalism in India

Dr. Ram Puniyani Like most of the political phenomenon, even the practice of Nationalism is not a static one. It changes with the changing political...

A masjid for women in Shillong

By Anju Azad for TwoCircles.net,

Abba Jan Maulana Muhammad Muslim: Personal Reflections

Maulana Muhammad Muslim Saheb is one of the founders of Majlis-e-Mushawarat. He was a member of the Jamaat Islami's shura council for more than...

विपक्षी दलों के लिए आख़िरी चुनाव ही होगा 2019

दिवाकर तमाम मत-भिन्नताओं के बावजूद नीतीश कुमार के इस बयान से असहमति की गुंजाइश कम दिखती है कि 2019 में नरेन्द्र मोदी से मुक़ाबला करने...

Why BJP supporters and non-BJP supporters can’t remain friends anymore?

By Arif Hussain Recently an old friend, an urbane corporate worker, mused on Facebook that what is it about this election that’s making it difficult...

News channels in India are in adolescent phase: Arfa Khanum

By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net Television journalism is one of the most glamorous jobs of new India. Arfa Khanum Sherwani as principal correspondent and news anchor for NDTV India holds one of those glamorous jobs. Her home in New Delhi is an example of simplicity. She used to be in front of her camera, but this time she was the subject of the interview. I asked her about television journalism in India which is barely a decade old.

Why polygamy should not be encouraged?

Need to repeat and reassert that polygamy is only an option not a compulsion in Islam. By Dr Kouser Fathima First and foremost. Let it be...

The mind map of a Muslim Indian

An Introduction to the Political Ideas of Syed Shahabuddin By Dr. Hilal Ahmed Introduction

Reservations and Muslims in Telugu States

By Shaik Amer Arafath for TwoCircles.net, When our Constitution was framed, the framers made a special provision with intention to provide equal opportunity in the...

Media and Gender

By Faheem Muhammed M.P  Mass media is one of the most potent institutions which determines how an individual perceives gender and gender discourse. Through its...

Obituary: Protagonist of modernity was Mahmood Hashmi

By Manzar Imam, Noted Urdu critic and litterateur Mahmood Hashmi died in a city hospital in New Delhi recently. He was 70. He is survived by two wives, four sons and a daughter besides grandchildren. The septuagenarian poet Hashmi developed sudden epilepsy in April 2007 and was in intensive medication since then. Born in Delhi on 29 November 1939, Hashmi received early education in Mumbai, passed High School examinations from Delhi’s Anglo-Arabic School and went to Punjab University for further studies.

‘Haiya alal falaah – come towards Success’

Which success does it mean, the success in the world or hereafter? Why haven’t we realized yet that Allah (SWT) has chosen ‘success’ to...

What explains Muslim under-representation in UPSC?

A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum & Council of Indian Muslims—UK (CIM): - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes...

How can you trust medical colleges that don’t even have a website?

By Mumtaz Naiyer for TwoCircles.net Recently, the University Grants Commission (UGC) published a list of fake universities in India. The state of Uttar Pradesh topped...
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