Flouted Indian laws knowingly and creating ruckus during quarantine, lays bare the malafide intentions of the Tablighi Jamaat to create havoc during the epidemic. Their behaviour is not less than biological terrorism
Tablighi Jamaat has spread the Corona infection and created a challenge for India and South Asian countries. India has so far successfully controlled the spread of the Corona virus through its multiple initiatives and reached out to other South Asian countries with medical and humanitarian help. In between this organisation wilfully conducted its congregation in Delhi with a number of more than three thousand. The reports explained that many of the Jamaatis were already infected by Corona, despite that they came to India as biomass terror outfits and spread infections. Then they sneaked away in different parts of the countries and spread the contamination many folds. The natural question is, was it a deliberate machination?
Tracing the history and its major activities of Jamaat for almost three decades, showed the intention that it was not merely a religious congregation but a deliberate attempt of biomass jihadi terrorist activities. The way they defied the instructions of rules and instructions given to every citizen of India by the Central Government, made it clear that they did it intentionally. To verify the fact, its major activities are proofs.
There are different reports which entail that Tablighi Jamaat has terrorist routes. It was involved in various episodes. It exists in more than 150 countries, with 60 to 70 million Muslim across the world. Tablighi Jamaat operates roughly in 150 countries around the world, including Western Europe, Africa, and South Asia. In the British town of Dewsbury, Tablighi Jamaat functions as regional headquarters coordinating activities throughout Northern Europe. In Barcelona, it has geared to the needs of immigrants of North African origin. In Asia too, the Tablighi Jamaat has a great following, especially in Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Thailand.
Their actions are covered up under the religious garb. But their nefarious designs were exposed time and again. Secret US documents released by Wikileaks in 2011 revealed that some Al Qaeda operatives used the Jamaat to get visas and fund their travel to Pakistan. They also lived in and around Delhi. Tablighi Jamaat carried many terrorists’ activities in different parts. A report on Somalian detainee Mohammed Soliman Barre prepared on September 1, 2008, says, “JT (Jamaat Tablighi), a proselytising organisation, has been identified as an Al-Qaeda cover story. Al-Qaeda used the JT to facilitate and fund the international travels of its members.” In a nutshell, the Tablighi Jamaat creates an amicable environment the recruitment of Jehadis.
Tablighi Jamaat was also suspected to be involved in the burning of 59 Hindu kar sevaks in 2002 in Godhra, Gujarat, which led to mass communal rioting in the state. There are links of Tablighi Jamaat in Parliament and Mumbai attacks as well. Long back to this episode one of India’s leading security experts who is no more wrote a detailed paper in which I mentioned the terrorist genes of Tablighi Jamaat. According to late B Raman, former head of RAW’s counter-terrorism division, Tablighi Jamaat in Pakistan and Bangladesh gained adverse attention for association with Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad and members of the International Islamic Front formed by Osama bin Laden in 1998.
Quoting Pakistani newspaper reports from the 1990s, Raman pointed out that the trained cadre of jihadi terrorist organisations like HuM obtained visas by posing as preachers of Tablighi Jamaat and went abroad to recruit young Muslims for terror training in Pakistan. Ajit Doval, NSA has also verified that its activities are secretive and likely to be exploited by the terrorist activities. One of the experts of Pakistan who has done extensive research on the organisation says that it has multiple connections with the different terrorist outfits. It is in fact a gateway of Islamic terror.
Tablighi Jamaat’s links with terrorism have been proved on multiple occasions. Jihadi terrorists from Harkat-ul-Mujahideen have posed as preachers of the Jamaat to obtain visas. Many of its followers have proven links with notorious terror organisations like Harkat-ul-Ansar, Harkat-u- Mujahideen to Jaish-e-Mohammad.
Dr Farhan Zahid, a Pakistani counter-terrorism and security expert, in his analysis titled “Tablighi Jamaat and its links with terrorism” Tablighi Jamaat “in a way, plays the role of recruiter and sympathiser [for terrorism]. Tablighi Jamaat’s congregation allows radical elements worldwide to meet and discuss violent activities and provide them with the best opportunity to coordinate”. Adding “many of its followers have dual and overlapping membership with jihadist groups”, Dr Farhan cites references and says “Tablighi Jamaat has now been considered as a ‘gateway to terrorism’.
The links of its followers with notorious terror organisations, from Harkatul Ansar and Harkatul Mujahideen to Jaish-e-Mohammad, the entire menagerie of Taliban groups, to sectarian terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, all have been associated with the Tablighi Jamaat. Designated international terrorists like Masood Azhar have even been reported to have travelled extensively to East Africa – Sudan, Somalia, Kenya – to proselytise and build their network. Because of the large number of South Asian Muslims in the United Kingdom, Tablighi Jamaat is very strong in that country.
Tablighi Jamaat was banned in five Central Asian states in 1995 to 97 for its involvement in terrorist activities. Now the concern becomes more pinching as to how did this organisation maintain its headquarters in Delhi and continue to work as a conduit to recruit terrorists. The dreaded terrorists enjoyed the membership of this organisation and travelled across the globe to spread venom. India has a large number of Muslim population. The big chunk of the Muslim population are members of this Jamaat. Is it not the right time to declare this organisation as a terrorist organisation?
The way they have flouted the rules of Indian government wilfully and created ruckus in different hospitals of India, vouched for their malaise intentions to create havoc during the epidemic, is not less than biological terrorism. The second major responsibility lies with Muslim leaders who need to come forward and appeal for banning such Jamaat. When the entire country is struggling hard to contain the pandemic with the support of its citizenry, such machinations under the garb of religion will weaken the fight against Corona. Therefore, the onus lies with the Muslim Dharm Gurus and community to support. There are different anti-national groups like Indian Mujahideen, SIMI and many more are maligning the Muslim community. It is high time that initiatives and attempts need to emerge from the community leaders to address this issue.
(The writer is a faculty of Political Science at
MMH College, Ghaziabad)
