Rivalry among Mangaluru Salafi groups quenches media’s thirst for ISIS story

coastaldigest.com web desk
October 4, 2017

Mangaluru, Oct 4: A controversial voice message by the leader of one of the coastal Karnataka-based Salafi groups has sent shockwaves in the region after local media gave massive coverage to the 11-minute clip in which the speaker apparently discouraged his followers from joining another Salafi splinter group and claimed that its members dress like ‘ISIS’ terrorists.

The audio clip, which contains some advices and warnings by Ismail Shafi, vice-president of South Kanara Salafi Movement (SKSM), to the members of his organisation, unexpectedly went viral as people began to share it on social media platforms.

The Beary language clip also grabbed the attention of the local police officers who heard the word ‘ISIS’ but couldn’t immediately understand anything else. “The Beary audio clip contains the word ISIS. We got it translated to Kannada. Now we are verifying the authenticity of the speaker’s claims and allegations. We will take necessary action based on the probe report,” said Sudhir Kumar Reddy, superintendent of the police of Dakshina Kannada.

The speaker in the audio clip has levelled a series of allegations on so called Dammaj Salafi group, a by-product of the ongoing churning process within the Salafi movement in Kerala and Coastal Karnataka, and warned Salafis against joining that group.

According to the speaker, the clerics of Dammaj group brainwash the youths and college students of Muslim community, persuade them to discontinue the studies, leave the country and die in so called jihad. He says that the new group, which has built a mosque at BC Road in Dakshina Kannada with the help of funds provided by a man from Al-Khobar, identifies itself as Salafi group but indulge in extremism.

He says that Dammaj group members are present in Mangaluru, BC Road, Ullal, Kalladka, Maripalla areas of the coastal district and they are financially supported by a Moodbidri-based man. “They wear black or brown gowns... Their intention is to cause damage to Salafi movement and put an end to its da’wa activities,” he says adding that they are backed by Jews.

He also cautions the Salafi parents against forging matrimonial alliance with the members of Dammaj group claiming that they take their better halves to countries like Yemen and Afghanistan. “In Kerala, they are facing the charge of supplying men to ISIS,” the voice said.

Some of the other attention-grabbing allegations levelled by the speaker against the Dammaj group members are: “They don’t mingle with people; they don’t interact with non Muslims such as Hindus and Christians; they believe that India is not suitable for them and they prefer to leave the country; they don’t send their children to the schools here; they don’t travel by buses here; they don’t do any job; they keep their women in house arrest after forcing them to cover all their fingers with ‘black bandage’; their ultimate goal is to wage so called jihad and die...”

Comments

MSS KHOBAR
 - 
Monday, 9 Oct 2017

Most of the half learned people they cause damage and spoil the true religion of Almighty which has come as guidance to all humankind.

 

Our prophet preached not to be too extreme in following religion.

He advsised to follow middle path. 

 

We should study : 1)Quran,       2)Hadees     3) Sunnah the footsteps of Prophet and his sahabah. This will suffice to be follow true and acceptable Islam.

 

When anybody see following a true religion,  it itself is a marketing of preaching its fact.

Definitely they will be impressed and people will have more urge to know and follow them.

 

These are the basics and common sensed teachings. Then there will be no enemies.

 

Action speaks louder than the voice.

 

Mohammed Fayaz
 - 
Thursday, 5 Oct 2017

Dear friends,

 

First of all police should keep close vigilant on all those people who have taken in charge of muslim groups of mangalore like Salafi, Sunni, Jamath,Tabliki,anti hadees etc. this people just use religion to play politics for thier own personal gain, blaming each other creating ruckus in society, All beary belong to one single family one single ummah why dont we unite. Ya Allah keep us away from all groupism and guide us on straight path Ameen.

shabeer Puttur…
 - 
Wednesday, 4 Oct 2017

First arrest Ismail Shafi and give him third grade treatment then truth will come out, this guy 27 years back was in Puttur, Normally puttur Hindus and Muslims were like brothers that time, this ismail shafi wrote some bad words about Hindu gods, which divided  Hindu Muslim hearts.

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News Network
January 10,2020

Bengaluru, Jan 10: Demanding the setting up of a House Committee to probe the Mangaluru violence, former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday released multiple videos of the clashes that broke out during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest that claimed two lives on December 19.

Janata Dal-Secular leader further demanded suspension of Police Commissioner PS Harsha and insisted that House Committee consisting of members of all the parties should be formed to probe into Mangaluru violence and said that magisterial inquiry ordered by the state government cannot be trusted.

"Constitute a House committee and produce the fact. The main culprit is the commissioner of Mangaluru, remove the officer as he is the main culprit. I am going to take this issue on the floor of the House." Kumaraswamy said during a press conference here.

Two people were killed in Mangaluru in the alleged police firing after protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act turned violent.

The Act grants Indian citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Parsi communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India on or before 31, 2014.

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News Network
May 23,2020

Mangaluru, May 23: In order to ensure that students do not miss out on their studies due to educational institutions being shut owing to the coronavirus lockdown, Dakshina Kannada Pre-university College Principles Association (DKPUCPA) is conducting online classes on YouTube for pre-university students.

The online lessons are shot by lecturers at St Aloysius College and the lectures are then uploaded on YouTube enabling students to watch them online.

"The whole world is currently in a crucial situation because of COVID-19, and because of the lockdown, all are forced to stay indoors. Usually, we used to conduct lectures in a class full of students, but now it is a new experience that we are providing the same information to students in their absence," Rajaram Rao, a lecturer said while speaking to news agency.

He said at present these classes are being conducted for second year pre-university students.

If any student has a doubt on any concept, he said they can contact the teachers. "At present, students also are getting information about the teachers who have uploaded the videos. All the information about the teachers is already being uploaded on the system so that they can contact the teacher," he said.

Dhanya, a student, hailed the DKPUCPA for the setting up of the online classes despite the prevailing situation.

"The teachers who have taught in these classes have taught very well, as if they are teaching right in front of us. It has been very useful for me during this time," she said.

The nationwide lockdown imposed to combat the threat posed by the coronavirus pandemic has been extended to May 31.

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Ram Puniyani
January 9,2020

‘Go to Pakistan’ has probably been most often used phrase used against Muslims in India. Recently in yet another such incident the SP of Meerut, UP has been in the news and a video is circulating where he, Akhilesh Narayan Singh, is allegedly using the jibe ‘Go to Pakistan’. In the video he is seen shouting at protestors at Lisari Gate area in Meerut, “The ones (protestors) wearing those black or yellow armbands, tell them to go to Pakistan”. His seniors stood by him calling it ‘natural reaction to shouting of pro Pakistan slogans. Many BJP leaders like Uma Bhararti also defended the officer. Breaking ranks with fellow politicians, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi of BJP, criticised the said officer and asked for suitable action against him. Interestingly this is same Naqvi, who earlier when the beef related arguments were going on; had stated that those who want to eat beef can go to Pakistan.

Interestingly this is probably the first time that any BJP leader has opposed the use of this jibe against the Indian Muslims. True to the dominance of trolls who support divisive politics, Naqvi has been trolled on the issue. As such vibe ‘Go to Pakistan’ has been a strong tool in the hands of aggressive elements to demonise Muslims in general and to humiliate those with Muslim names. One recalls that when due to the rising intolerance in the society many eminent writers, film makers were returning their awards, Aamir Khan said that his wife Kiran Rao is worried about their son. Immediately BJP worthies like Giriraj Singh pounced on him that he can go to Pakistan.

The strategy of BJP combine has been on one hand to use this ‘go to Pakistan’ to humiliate Muslims on the other from last few years another Pakistan dimension has been added. Those who are critical of the policies of BJP-RSS have on one hand been called as anti National and on the other it is being said that ‘they are speaking the language of Pakistan’.

Use of Pakistan to label the Muslims and dissidents here in India has been a very shrewd tool in the hands of communal forces. One remembers that the ‘cricket nationalism’ was also the one to use it. In case of India-Pakistan cricket match, the national hysteria, which it created, was also aiming at Indian Muslims. What was propagated was that Indian Muslims cheer for Pakistan victory and they root for Pakistan. There was an unfortunate grain of truth in this as a section of disgruntled, alienated Muslim did that. That was not the total picture, as most Indian Muslims were cheering for Indian victory. Many a Muslim cricketers contributed massively to Indian cricket victories. The cricket legends like Nawab Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Irfan Pathan, and Mohammad Azaruddin are just the few among the long list of those who brought glories for India in the field of cricket.

Even in matters of defence there are legions of Muslims who contributed to Indian efforts in the war against Pakistan all through. Abdul Hamid’s role in 1965 India Pak war and the role of Muslim soldiers in Kargil war will be part of Indian military history. There have been generals in army who contributed in many ways for the role which military has been playing in service of the nation. General Zamiruddin Shah, when asked to handle Gujarat carnage, does recount how despite the lack of support from local administration for some time, eventually the military was able to quell the violence in some ways.

During freedom movement Muslims were as much part of the struggle against British rule as any other community. While the perception has been created that Muslims were demanding Pakistan, the truth is somewhere else. It was only the elite section of Muslims who supported the politics of Muslim League and later the same Muslim League could mobilize some other section and unleash the violence like ‘Direct Action’ in Kolkata, which in a way precipitated the actual process of partition, which was the goal of British and aim of Muslim League apart from this being the outcome of ‘Two Nation theory’.

Not much is popularized about the role of great number of Muslims who were part of National movement, who steadfastly opposed the idea and politics which led to the sad partition of the subcontinent. Few excellent accounts of the role of Muslims in freedom movement like Syed Nasir Ahmad, Ubaidur Rahman, Satish Ganjoo and Shamsul Islam are few of these not too well know books which give the outline of the great Muslim freedom fighters like Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Ansari Brothers, Ashfaqulla Khan.

Immediately after partition tragedy the communal propaganda did the overdrive to blame the whole partition process on Muslim separatism, this totally undermined the fact that how poor Muslims had taken out massive marches to oppose the Lahore Resolution of separate Pakistan moved by Mohammad Ali Jinnah. The whole Muslim community started being seen as the homogenous, ‘The other’ and other misconceptions started against the community, the one’s relating them to atrocities of Muslim kings started being made as the part of popular folklore, leading the Hate against them. This Hate in turn laid the foundation of violence and eventual ghettoisation of this community.

The interactive-syncretism prevalent in India well presented by Gandhi-Nehru was pushed to the margins as those believing in pluralism did not actively engage with the issue. The economic marginalization of this community, coupled with the increasing insecurity in turn led to some of them to identify with Pakistan, and this small section was again presented as the representative of the whole Muslim community.

Today the battle of perception is heavily tilted against the Muslim community. It is a bit of a surprise as Naqvi is differing from his other fellow colleagues to say that the action should be taken against the erring police officer. The hope is that all round efforts are stepped up to combat the perception constructed against this religious minority in India. 

Comments

Prakash SS
 - 
Thursday, 9 Jan 2020

it is very much understandable if Pakistan is bad country our PM Namo would never visited without any invitation, that time Pakistan was good he prised their Mutton biriyani and Karak chai in pakistan. we feel something is wrong with our PM and his chelas. 

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