RSS Sarsanghachalak Shri K.S. Sudarshan has favoured modernising the education system in madrasas and said that opening up to new thoughts would be better for Muslims as well as the country. ?To open up your thoughts and accommodate others is necessary for one to have modern education and the madrasas today lack it. The sooner they inculcate modern thoughts, the better it is for Islam and the country,? he said while releasing a book Islamic Madrase Benaqab (Islamic madrasas exposed) in New Delhi on February 4. The book has jointly been written by Shri Navin Kumar and Asif Iqbal Khan. Former Director General of Punjab Police Shri K.P.S. Gill, former Union Minister of State for Home Shri I.D. Swami and Lok Sabha MP Shri Bhartuhari Mahatab were also present on the occasion. The 300-page book is in Hindi and is based on research work in India and abroad on the educational system in madrasas.
Stressing the need for imparting both the religious and modern education in madrasas, Shri Sudarshan further said the madrasas need to impart the education, which makes Muslims a qualified doctor, engineer, scientist and specialist in other fields. ?Those Muslims who got modern education have proved their talent and also held the top posts of the country. The example of Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is before all of us to see,? he said adding that the modern education would help Muslims understand the whole world. ?Could the scientists of Pakistan have made modern missiles and nuclear bombs without getting the modern education?? he asked.
He alleged that Islam had got infected with intolerant attitude by coming in contact with imperialist powers like Christianity. He objected to Muslims being called a minority, arguing there is no logic for it as the community constitutes a sizable 17 crore population in the country. He made it clear that all Muslims are not terrorists and a majority of Muslims in India are in mainstream as well as live with Hindus in harmony. ?A large number of Muslims participated in the freedom movement and played a key role in national reconstruction. The problem of partition on the religious basis developed because of several mullah and maulvis as well as the vote-hungry politicians,? he said further saying that some so-called Islamic scholars interpreted Islam wrongly, which earned bad name for all Muslims.
He said there have been 1,24,000 messengers in Islam and the Prophet Mohammad was the last. ?Since Allah sent messengers all over the world, He must have sent someone in India too. In this sense, the Muslims of India should accept Ram and Krishna as those messengers,? he added. He said many Muslim countries of the world have removed objectionable ayats from the Quran and it should happen in India too to strengthen social harmony.
Presiding over the function, Shri K.P.S. Gill advocated the killing of terrorists who sneaks into the country. He said the intelligence agencies had information about the presence of terrorists in madrasas for decades and described the illegal migrants from Bangladesh as the biggest threat to security of the country. ?I don'tsee any government or the organisation that has will-power or the courage to send them back today and the madrasas are just a part of the worldwide conspiracies against India,? he added. Talking about the end of terrorism in Punjab he said everybody had expected that the officers who were involved in that operation would get rewards. But nobody thought about them.
Shri I.D. Swami said the book has exposed a truth with concrete evidences. Whenever this issue was raised, it was asked to prove from which madrasa the terrorists were caught. He said if everything was seen through the prism of majority and minority the dream of India becoming a super power would not be materialised.
Shri Bhartuhari Mahatab, editor of leading Oriya daily, Prajatantra, said the authors have done a courageous work. He said despite India having the second largest Muslim population, Muslims enjoy the minority status here, which is ridiculous. ?The religious education being imparted in madrasas produce just ulemas. Then why Muslims say they are backward in all spheres? All Muslims should read this book carefully and must introspect and also find ways for their progress,? he added.
Earlier, introducing the book Shri Navin Kumar said the madrasas have become host of illegal and immoral activities including homosexuality and more than 80 per cent of them have become hideouts of terrorists. He said the foreign fund taken for madrasas is misused in other illegal activities. ?The majority of students staying in madrasas are being treated as bonded labourers. They have to massage the bodies of ulemas, wash their clothes and cook food for them. The heads of madrasas play with the emotions of the students and there is no forum to redress their grievances. The ulemas and maulvis are fully aware of the fact that educated Muslims would not support them. Therefore, they understand that they can survive by exploiting religious fundamentalism but that is being done at the cost of Hindu-Muslim unity,? he said pointing out that about 2,87,000 women are being trained to become human bomb in madrasas. Besides religious education the authors have also touched various other issues like role of ulemas in freedom struggle, politics in madrasas, bankrupt ideology of madrasas, madrasas and extremism, curriculum of the madrasas and education to Muslim girls.
