Islamic Terrorism in India at one point of time was just confined to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The terror spreading elements were from the other side of the border and some who were locals either helped under pressure or were lured to work for the terror groups.
But slowly terror started spreading to different parts of the country. This happened because many radical/fundamentalist Islamic organizations and Islamic educational institutes not just imparted education but also started taking a political flavour.
They talked about the atrocities on Muslims not only in India but also in other parts of the world. Young impressionable men were told to fight for the rights of the Muslims, to avenge what they were told was ‘religion under siege’. Thus terror started taking a new shape as pan Islamic issues emerged.
Local sympathizers and support for the terrorists came about. The number of such people is still little as compared to the entire Muslim population but their actions are what the Indian Muslims paying for.
The question I ask is how do we stop this changing profile of terrorism? Because if it is not curbed now, it could prove to be harmful and deadly in the long run. National policies have to be put in place to deal with this relatively newer shape of terrorism.
Before I start the rhetoric that the middle and lower middle class Muslims needs to be integrated into the main stream, we need to focus on the issue of educating them. One sided education (brainwashing in simpler terms) cannot allow a person to make an informed choice or decision. Education is also a stepping stone into the ‘integration process’.
Long term plans have to be drawn at both Central and State level such that the Indian Muslims feel part of this country without the burden of them proving their loyalty and changing their mindset that they are been ‘victimized’. But how do we bring about these changes? And whether they will be effective and if not then what else can be done.
As Islamophobia is seeping into the Indian psyche and creating a divide between communities, polarization of society and statements and actions of religion based political parties are making sure the gap widens.
Making the chasm smaller will leave us less vulnerable to terror attacks and hopefully this changed profile will be substituted with peace and safety again.
Also read this
Update: Can the commentators please discuss the issue at hand instead of trashing one religion or the other. Please don't force me to delete comments which go completely off track
Originally posted on Monday, August 07, 2006 2:03 PM
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