Pahlaj Nihalani Hits Back At Central Board Of Film Certification (CBFC)

 Happens to be Maulana Abul Kalam Azad’s birth anniversary, forgotten this year as it has been in the past. The Maulana is an inconvenient name to remember at a time when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel towers above every national leader.

When former Vice President Hamid Ansari released the Hindi, Urdu and Malayalam translations of my book “Being the Other: The Muslim in India”, he quoted from a speech Patel had made on August 11, 1947, four days before Partition. Some TV channels went ballistic. The quote is actually quite well known: “To be United, India would have to be divided.” Patel was tracing how the consensus to “divide” India came about. No, but Ansari should not upturn conventional wisdom that “Jinnah was the culprit”. If it were the evil Jinnah who created Pakistan, it follows that the CWC, the Iron man included, were busting their guts to keep a United India and Jinnah outfoxed them.

Mountbatten’s June 3, 1947, plan sought a division of India largely along religious lines. The Congress Working Committee (CWC) swallowed the plan hook, line and sinker. Of the two Muslim leaders present at the CWC, Frontier Gandhi Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan wailed: “You have thrown us to the wolves.” Maulana Azad smoked a box of cigarettes and said nothing. Supposing the two, vehemently opposed to Partition, had walked out of the meeting in protest, what interpretation would future historians have placed on the remaining CWC composition?

Jawaharlal Nehru valued Azad for his intellect. Some of Nehru’s admiration for Azad comes across even in his intimate letters from Ahmednagar jail to his daughter Indira. “Maulana is an extraordinarily interesting person. The more I know him, and I have known him now for over 21 years, the more I find in him. He has an astonishing memory and his information on a variety of subjects is encyclopedic. He is soaked in the lore of the middle ages… he has Plato and Aristotle on his fingertips and is perfectly at home at Cordoba of Arab Spain… It seems such a pity that with such vast learning and a very unusually keen mind and a powerful style, he should have written so little.”

At one point Nehru reveals he is keen to learn Sanskrit from Acharya Narendra Dev and Persian from Azad. Nehru then gives vent to his afterthought: “But Azad is too erudite.”

The paradox is that despite such admiration for Azad, Nehru still found time to let him down repeatedly. It was a delicate package, that Azad, as Congress President, had negotiated with the Cabinet Mission and Viceroy Lord Wavell to keep India united. Nehru torpedoed it by raising contentious issues at a press conference in Bombay (Mumbai).

Azad was shocked when the entire CWC accepted the Mountbatten plan without fuss. “Partition over my body” kind of sham was instantly abandoned. In fact, Rajendra Prasad came down strongly on a suggestion Mountbatten and Azad had made: That a United Armed Forces for a short period would obviate the massacres which eventually followed. “Not for a day” after August 15, 1947, would the Congress government tolerate a United Army, Prasad thundered. He wanted Partition to be sealed irreversibly. It was no concern of the CWC that an Army, abruptly separated along sectarian lines, would be sucked into the horrendous violence that followed as a partisan force on both sides.

Mahatma Gandhi’s Secretary Mahadev Desai wrote about Azad: “There was no other in the Congress to match Maulana’s insights and wise counsel.” Stalwarts like C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru deferred to him on many issues. On his wisdom and erudition, Sarojini Naidu was at her wittiest, “Maulana was 50 years old when he was born.”

It was this vast reservoir of wisdom that Nehru relied on when Home Minister Kailash Nath Katju decided to bar foreign missionaries in India, “if evangelism is their purpose”. The statement created a furore among Christian missionaries. Nehru singled out Maulana to handle the situation. The letter that Azad wrote to Cardinal Valerian Gracias is reproduced on page 79 of my book, “Being the Other”. It is a masterpiece of reasoning and logic on the question of conversion. Azad had settled the issue over 60 years ago.

He made a distinction between religious conversion, which requires deep reflection on issues of theology and what the constitution calls “mass conversions”. The latter is a response to a social and political provocation.

It is possible that Maulana was not suited to the rough and tumble of politics which demands fickleness generally dressed up as flexibility. Maulana was incapable of deviating from his core principles — Hindu-Muslim unity as the bedrock of Indian nationalism.

Dr. Rajesh Kumar Pruthi, Director General of the National Archives, published a rare collection of the Maulana’s letters in Urdu. The preface by Dr. Pruthi is by itself quite masterly. As evidence of Maulana’s consistency he cites a passage from the Maulana’s address as President of the Congress at a session held in Delhi on 15 December, 1923:

“If an angel came down from heaven and, from the height of the Qutub Minar, announced that if the Congress abandons its platform of Hindu-Muslim Unity, Swaraj or independence would be granted in 24 hours, I would turn my back on that Swaraj. Shunning it for the cost being demanded may delay Swaraj and harm India’s interest for a short period but abandoning our unity for good as a price for freedom will be a blot on all humanity.”

He maintained a decent silence on colleagues who had “blotted humanity”. But he did not cheat history. He kept away in the National Archives 30 pages which expose the men with feet of clay who faltered in the last lap towards freedom. Partition, he wrote in a press note, “would be unadulterated Hindu Raj”. These pages were made public in 1988 when he and all his colleagues had died. He may have had grievances with Nehru but that did not prevent him from dedicating “India Wins Freedom” to “Jawaharlal, Friend and Comrade”.

IANS

Karnataka on Saturday celebrated the 269th birth anniversary of erstwhile Mysore (Mysuru) ruler Tipu Sultan and the one person who was conspicuously missing from the festivities was Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Even Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, who was slated to inaugurate the state celebrations here, did not make it to the event.

Security was tightened as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) protested against the Vidhana Soudha celebration comemorating “tyrant Tipu” that was eventually presided over by Water Resources Minister D.K. Shivakumar of the Congress.

Minority Welfare Minister B.Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan and Culture Minister Jayamala of the Congress were also part of the celebrations, although its alliance partner — Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) — stayed away from the state-sponsored event.

In fact, Kumaraswamy’s name was missing from the official invite. The Chief Minister’s office though said that he was resting for three days from Saturday on the advice of his doctors.

Security was tightened around the assembly building in Bengaluru, and in Mysuru, Kodagu and Mangaluru to maintain peace, a police officer said. Several BJP cadres were detained in Madikeri in Kodagu district and Mangaluru.

Celebrations were also held across the state’s district headquarters despite the BJP-sponsored protests.

“Government is observing the birth anniversary of Tipu Sultan all over the state. Tipu’s progressive measures in administration, his quest for innovation are commendable,” a statement from Kumaraswamy’s office said.

“The Chief Minister is taking rest on doctor’s advice, and hence is unable to take part in the programme. It is far from truth that he isn’t taking part due to the fear of losing power, as he opposes such blind beliefs,” the statement added.

“Parameshwara had few prior engagements due to which he had to visit Singapore,” Minority Welfare Minister Khan told reporters.

“CM Kumaraswamy missing! While Congress-JD-S government is celebrating a tyrant Tipu, the CM himself goes into hiding, what is the point of celebrating a fanatic when CM himself abandons a government function.

“Glorifying a mass murderer for vote bank clearly shows mindset of this government,” the state unit BJP tweeted.

The Congress began celebrating the birth anniversary of the 18th century ruler on November 10 since 2015 to honour him as a patriot and for his yeoman service to the people in the southern region.

Khan, along with few Muslim clerics, visisted former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah’s residence in the city and presented him a sword and traditional headgear similar to that worn by Tipu.

The eldest son of Sultan Hyder Ali, Tipu (1750-1799) is also hailed as the “Tiger of Mysore” for fighting the British East India Company’s advances and protecting his kingdom.

Tipu was killed in a battle with the British army in 1799 while defending his fort at Srirangapatna near Mysuru, about 120km from here.

Celebrating Tipu’s birth anniversary was the coalition government’s way of appeasing the Muslim community, state BJP chief and former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa had said in 2015.

On Saturday, he again tweeted: “Nobody will appreciate this celebration. In the interest of the state, the sate government must stop it. Government’s intention behind celebration is to satisfy the Muslim community.”

Ahead of the Tipu Jayanthi celebrations in Karnataka, the Mandya police will place prohibitory orders in Srirangapatna, the erstwhile capital of the Mysuru from where Tipu Sultan once ruled, from Friday evening. Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code will take effect in Srirangapatna, Kodagu and Chitradurga from 6 pm on Friday and continue till 6 am on Sunday.

“To avoid any untoward incident, Prohibitory Orders have been clamped. Processions, display of flags, raising of slogans, etc have been banned, as a large number of people are expected to arrive at Srirangapatna for the celebrations”, Mandya Superintendent of Police Shivaprakash Devaraj told media. The celebrations of Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary on November 10 has been opposed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has accused the ruling JD(S)-Congress coalition government of conducting the celebrations to appease the Muslim community.

The historical fort town of Srirangapatna has many monuments related to Tipu Sultan, including the tombs of Tipu and his family. In the last three years, the celebrations were held at Gumbaz in the town but murmurs of holding the celebration at the Mini Vidhana Soudha in Mandya are doing the rounds this year. A final decision is yet to be taken on the venue of the celebrations in Mandya but a heavy police presence is expected.

Prohibitory orders have also been put in place at Kodagu as well. The order issued by Deputy Commissioner of Kodagu PI Sreevidya will be effective from Friday 6 pm to Sunday 6 am. At least two people had lost their lives in 2015, as tensions had escalated between protestors and those supporting the celebration.

“In the view of maintaining law and order, besides government programmes and pre-commissioned private events such as weddings, engagement and house-warming, no public or political gathering or processions, agitation, will be allowed. Individuals are prohibited from carrying arms and action will be taken against those making provocative statements. Any flex boards, banners or buntings on Tipu Jayanti will be removed,” DC Sreevidya in her statement said.

The state government has celebrated the birth anniversary of erstwhile Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan since 2014 and it has been marred by violent protests by the BJP.

The BJP, like the past few years, has opposed the celebrations in the state. The party was earlier in favour of Tipu Sultan but has opposed the celebrations ever since it was sponsored by the government.

Tipu Jayanthi was officially celebrated by the state government in 2014 when the Congress was in power. It has been marked by protests every year, especially in Mysuru and Mandya, parts of the state that was ruled by the erstwhile Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan.

“Nobody will appreciate this celebration,” Leader of Opposition BS Yeddyurappa tweeted. “In the interest of the state, the government must stop it. Government’s intention behind Tipu Jayanti celebration is just to satisfy the Muslim community.”

The situation this year is a tad complicated due to the Congress-JD(S) alliance government in the state. Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, once a critic of the celebration, has approved the celebrations in the state, including the formal function at the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru. Earlier, Home Minister Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara had announced that the celebrations in Bengaluru will be held at Ravindra Kalaskhetra instead of the Banquet Hall in Vidhana Soudha.

The celebrations are set to go ahead amid tense conditions with police deploying additional forces and installing CCTV cameras in sensitive areas, especially Mandya and Mysuru, to ensure peaceful celebrations.

TNM

 A total of 550 women from the hitherto banned age group of 10 to 50 years have registered online for prayers at the Sabarimala temple during the upcoming festival season beginning on November 16.

According to the Travancore Devasom Board, till Friday close to 3.50 lakh pilgrims have booked for ‘darshan’ through the Kerala Police online facility. It includes 550 women between 10 and 50 years, the temple custodians said.

To regulate and streamline the devotees, the online registration designed and developed by the police was opened to weed out trouble makers who have created disturbances in the last two months in and around the temple.

Both temple authorities and protesters stopped 15 women from the 10-50 age group from praying at the Lord Ayyappa shrine in October and November despite a September 28 Supreme Court ruling that allowed all women to enter the hilltop shrine.

Between October 17 and 22 and again in November when the temple opened for a day, women devotees faced stiff resistance at Sabarimala.

Ahead of the next pilgrimage, the Supreme Court on November 13 will hear a batch of petitions against its September verdict.

The Left government in Kerala, which has said it will implement the apex court ruling, opened the “Sabarimala Virtual Q-System” that was introduced in the 2011-12 season and had functioned till 2015.

The online booking, on the lines of the one at the Tirupati temple, is expected to enable the pilgrims to book their ‘darshan’ in the upcoming festival season.

The Q-booking is linked to travel between Nilackal to Pamba from where the pilgrims have to walk up to the temple located on a hill.

As per the online booking, all pilgrims can take their vehicles till Nilackal. Then onward they can only board the Kerala State Road Transport Corp (KSRTC) buses.

IANS