Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUH) president Maulana Mahmood Madani has strongly condemned the Assam government’s recent eviction drive, calling it “barbaric”. He said the state government has ignored the Supreme Court’s guidelines that called for rehabilitation of the affected families. Maulana Madani visited the eviction-affected areas and met the affected families there. He said the government’s attitude towards the displaced families is more painful than the eviction. He also alleged that it is extremely sad to address people as ‘unknown’, ‘suspect’ and ‘Miyan’ to divide the society on religious grounds.
“No support to foreigners, but no injustice to citizens”
Maulana Madani made it clear that Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUH) does not support the presence of foreigners in India, but he insisted that evicting Indian citizens without a rehabilitation plan is not only unjust but also against the Constitution and Supreme Court orders. He said that there is a solid way to identify foreign nationals, but the government did not follow it. If someone is found to be a foreigner, he should be sent to his country, but evicting Indian citizens and not rehabilitating them is absolutely wrong.
“If the Chief Minister wants, send me to Bangladesh”
Reacting to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s comments against him, Maulana Madani said, “Yes, I agree that he is a hero and I am a zero. He threatened to send me to Bangladesh. I have been in his state for the last two days, so he should send me.” He reminded that his father and grandfather had spent 20 years in jail during the freedom struggle, so it is extremely inappropriate to say things like sending them out of the country. Maulana Madani also clarified that he had never demanded the arrest of the Chief Minister, but his statement was presented in a distorted manner by the media. He said, “As an Indian citizen, I have the right to demand action against a leader from his party if he uses foul language.”
“Both mosque and Namghar are part of our culture”
Maulana Madani, citing the Ganga-Jamuni culture of Assam, said that if Namghars (religious places of Hindus in Assam) are not safe, then mosques cannot be safe either. He said that both Namghar and mosque are two parts of the same hand. Referring to historical figures like Srimanta Shankardev and Azan Fakir, he said that the culture of Assam has always been inclusive and attempts to weaken it are wrong. He also said that concerns about population balance are not limited to Assam, but such discussions are also taking place in areas like Basti and Shamli in Uttar Pradesh. Maulana Madani reiterated that if the evicted people are foreigners, they should be sent to their country, but if they are Indian citizens, then it is the responsibility of the government to rehabilitate them. He also visited relief camps on Monday, where hundreds of families displaced in the recent eviction have taken shelter.
