Agra: Muslims call Amarnath terror attack a 'satanic act'

In the backdrop of the terrorist attack on innocent pilgrims in Amarnath, widespread discussion has started resurfacing whether Islam is inherently violent or it preaches peaceful co-existence in its core. Many believe that although religio-ethnically Islam emanated from a tribal background and had adopted many of its rituals from the older religions like Judaism and Christianity, the religion is methodologically based on peace and harmony and as such, the Amarnath attack should be termed as a satanic attack.

Talking to India Today, Sami Aghai, president of Bhartiya Muslim Vikas Parishad said that a seeker of Islamic ideology should know that the study of Islam is not like the study of a branch of science, rather it should always be studied within two parameters, Islam as a religion and Muslim as a religious community.

"These two factors should be looked upon simultaneously while keeping in view, the history, and prophetic teachings. Indeed Islam as a principle is the name of ideology that originated through the Quran containing revelations from Allah to his 'Rasool' Muhammad and although Muslims by heart and mind follow the Quranic guidelines, the social aspects vis-a-vis scriptures including contemporary needs, should be taken into account," he said.

TRUE PICTURE OF ISLAM

"The violence is merely a phenomenon in the social sense, affecting Muslims being basically from a tribal conflicting atmosphere, thus confrontations were more or less, of historic importance and had nothing to do with Islamic teachings or ideology. A differentiation must be studied between the two aspects, otherwise the true picture of Islam cannot be drawn," he further added.

Shiv Kumar Sharma, a member of Hindustani Biradari said that though certain verses in Uran command for war, this injunction was not meant to be taken as a general principle. It appears in Quran only as a justification for engaging in self-defense.

"These verses are applicable only when there is an external threat. In the absence of such a threat, these verses would be inapplicable. Thus, the acts by some errant followers of Islam as well as by proscribed outfits with radical ideology should be condemned, rather than holding Islam, as a religion, responsible for violence and terrorism," he said.

Syed Irfan Salim, district president of Sarvdaleey Muslim Action Committee said that Indian people belonging to different faith/religion have lived in harmony for more than a thousand years and and persons spreading the message of communal harmony, national integration, and peaceful coexistence outnumber those spreading hatred and divisiveness in the society.

"Muslims who had migrated to Pakistan during the partition are yet to get dignity/prominence in that country unlike those who remain in India, enjoying complete liberty. This raises the need of strengthening the communal harmony in this country through spreading and propagating effective counter-narratives against divisive campaigns," he said.

Salim further added, "true Islam has always stood for harmony and coexistence and the evil propaganda that is spreading against Islam is being spread by people having vested interests in destabilizing this country. In fact, every true Muslim is against the meaningless violence being spread by terrorists, in Kashmir and elsewhere in the world."

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