‘Islam is for the remaining 80% Indians as well, but they are unaware of it ’

Friday, 11^th December 2015

Hyderabad

The 4-day All-India Members’ Convention of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind entitled, ‘Islamic Movement in the Changing Scenario’ began today with the President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Maulana Jalaluddin Umari delivering the inaugural address wherein he said: “We have gathered here to acquire new zeal, to acquaint ourselves with the activities of Jamaat from all over India, to get inspired to offer ourselves for the cause of Allah.”

“We have to strive to establish Islam in all aspects of life. It belongs to everyone and is meant for all situations and is the solution to all problems of life – all individual and collective issues of society, irrespective of race, community or religion. We are proud and happy that Jamaat-e-Islami Hind is following the Prophetic way and mission in letter and spirit, which demands to inculcate in ourselves the zeal and strength of the prophets” he pointed out.

He emphasized upon the need to be steadfast in times of distress. He observed that when Islam is presented as a complete way of life, it has met with numerous oppositions like accusations of adopting politics, extremism and violence. On the contrary, in Egypt and Syria, the peaceful and popular Islamic movements were suppressed with all military might. He averred that Islam does not permit violence and compulsion; instead JIH is of the firm opinion that the only way to propagate Islam is by grooming public opinion in its favour through peaceful and educational means.

He lamented that 80% people do not know that Islam is their religion as well. Maulana expressed confidence that a huge majority of Indians do not harbour a negative opinion about Islam and we need to capitalize upon their goodwill. JIH would have to work with all like minded institutions as it does not consider any organization its enemy or rival. The basic ideology of JIH appeals to the entire ummah. We empathize with the concerns of our fellow countrymen and strive to solve them because we consider social service an intrinsic element of our religion. All the work JIH does is done with a view to introduce Islamic values. He also made it clear that JIH does not directly participate in elections but supports those parties which it believes would uphold the democratic values of our country. Surya namaskar, Yoga, beef consumption et al are means to promote fascism. We need to counter the growing fascism in our country and promote secularism which is a fundamental part of our Constitution. Speaking on the recent rise in intolerance across the country, he said that “We cannot take away the freedom of expression from our people. The constitutional rights of minorities are not at the mercy of the majority population.”

The conference, attended by close to 10000 members- both men and women- pouring in from all parts of India, was preceded by the Juma sermon which was delivered by Maulana Ejaz Aslam sahab wherein he expounded upon the concluding ayaat of Surah alHajj and expressed the desire that every Muslim should be an embodiment of the life of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.

The inaugural session began with a heart rendering recitation and translation of a passage from the Holy Qur’an. The organizer of the Conference, Mr. Mujtaba Farooq sought to make it clear that this conference is not being conducted for the mere sake of conducting one, but to meet the requirements of recognizing the current situations of Muslims on the national and international front and to receive guidelines as to how we can work in its midst.

JIH General Secretary, Engineer Muhammad Salim expressed satisfaction at the rise in our members from a mere 240 in 1948 to almost 10000 today. He introduced the various activities of the Jamaat carried out all over India in various departments like propagation of Islam, social service and community issues, interfaith dialogues to promote religious amity and developmental work in backward communities like dalits and adivasis. He recognized and encouraged the use of Social media and electronic media in the field of Dawah by young professionals. He also touched upon the work done by the Jamaat in reforming the Muslim community through various successful campaigns and by roping in religious scholars. JIH has established 136 educational institutions in the country in the past 4 years; while 26 innocents were successfully liberated from jails. We would also try to establish Interest-free banking.

The next session would start post sunset and is aimed at grooming the individual talents of the organization’s cadre in the cause of Islam by means of multiple parallel expert workshops.