Need to see attacks on Dalits, Muslims collectively, and understand ideology behind them: Anil Chamadia

January 25, 2016

Need to see attacks on Dalits, Muslims collectively, and understand ideology behind them

New Delhi, Jan 25: “What happened with Rohith Vemula was not just with Rohit. The incident became news because it was suicide and was registered. But similar incidents are happening with thousands of people every day but we do not know about them because they are not registered…What happened with Rohith or Dalits is happening with other weaker sections of the society also…But the problem with us is that we see such incidents separately and that’s why we are unable to understand the ideology behind them,” said veteran journalist and author Anil Chamadia.

 

He was addressing Special Weekly Program at the headquarters of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind here on Saturday (23 Jan). The program was attended by eminent persons including Nusrat Ali, Vice President, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and Mohammad Salim Engineer, Secretary General of the Jamaat.
“Who are behind attacks on Muslims, Sikhs, Dalits and Adivasis? If we see all such attacks collectively, we will find that the attackers are same,” said Chamadia who is also Editor of Mass Media and Jan Media.

 

Speaking in the backdrop of suicide of Dalit PhD scholar Rohith Vemula at Hyderabad University, Chamadia said his eviction from hostel was not an ordinary issue for a person who had come from a very poor background.

“His ouster from hostel was not an ordinary issue for a person like Rohit who had come from a very poor background. His ouster from hostel was as if he was evicted from house, rather from the country because the hostel and the university were like his home, rather his whole world. His ouster from there shattered his whole dream and his whole world.”

 

“Earlier Dalit homes and villages were uprooted, now same thing happened (with Muslims) in Muzaffarnagar. Sikhs were also attacked in Delhi. Is there any difference between these attacks? No, except the date of incidents and that the victims were from different religions. But the attacks were from the people of same thinking,” said Chamadia.

 

“We should also see who are being attacked and where. The victims are those who are now in better position socially and economically with their own hard work. They have got courage to stand up braving all odds. What is the background of the Muslim youths being arrested (in terror cases)? Someone is engineer, some others studying Chartered Accountancy and some are studying medical courses. Are these arrests without any reason? What was the centre of the attacks from Aligarh to Moradabad to Bhagalpur? Who held the economy or major share of it in those areas?”

 

“Similarly, if we look at the recent attacks on Dalits in the last few years, we will find the victims were those whose social and economic condition had improved a bit, whose homes had got gas stove, TV and fridge and they had got pucca houses, and their children had started going to school, college and university.”

 

Chamadia, who is Chairman of Media Studies Group, a media think tank, and has worked in news channels and reputed media houses in the last three decades, stressed at looking these attacks collectively.

 

“You will find the attacks are same but the victims are sometimes Dalits, sometimes Muslim, Sikh or Adivasi. If we do not understand this, we will not understand the main reason behind such incidents at colleges and universities,” he said.

 

“There is a need to understand the ideology behind such incidents and attacks. The problem is we get engaged in reasons and technicalities of these attacks and we are unable to find out the ideology behind them. The result is we don’t have ideology to take on that ideology and consequently, such incidents and attacks continue to happen one after another.”

 

“Attacks are not taking place against a handful of people and this small group is getting stronger and stronger. This small group is dividing the society in factions and thus continuing its own journey,” he said.

 

Chamadia stressed on united protest from all victims of such attacks.
“We do not see victims of all such attacks sitting together and protest. Unless we do that, such attacks will continue to happen. The number of such attacks will grow,” he said.

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