Reflections on Communal Riots

Thane and Mumbai. Large numbers of innocent lives were lost in the riots, and property worth millions went up in flames. The riots stopped only when the Army was called in. Needless to say, most of those who suffered in the riots were from one particular community. In this case, Muslims acted in a very foolish way—like a watermelon in the face of a knife. Muslims who behave in this way may think that they are acting in accordance with Islam, but they are terribly mistaken. According to a hadith, the Prophet said, “It does not behove a Muslim to humiliate himself.” Someone asked, “How can one humiliate oneself?” The Prophet replied, “When one engages in a task that is beyond one’s capacity.” (At-Tirmidhi) In the light of this hadith, one can say that in this case, as in many others, Muslims acted in a very foolish way—like a watermelon in the face of a knife. Muslims who behave in this way may think that they are acting in accordance with Islam, but they are terribly mistaken. Analysis of the Riot One can analyze this riot in two ways. One way is to see it from the Muslim communal perspective. The other way is to see it from the Islamic perspective. The Muslim communal perspective is the perspective that all Muslim leaders, big and small, always employ on such occasions—and they did this on this occasion, too. In the wake of this riot, every Muslim began speaking the same language, saying exactly the same things. They one-sidedly placed the entire blame for the riots on the Shiv Sena or the administration. If you see things from a communal perspective, you do not distinguish between right and wrong. You only see things in terms of your community versus another community. And when a communal riot happens, you blindly support your community and start abusing the other community.