Missing the Real Task

CONSEQUENCES OF MISINTERPRETATION were instructed to dedicate all their collective strength with total focus. I do not intend to debate the fiveyear time frame here, as such estimates are usually inaccurate. However, in a situation where none of these tasks have yet been accomplished, it was incumbent upon the Jamaat to continue striving with full force to complete them. But the strength to “bring forth streams of milk from a mountain” was no longer present. On the other hand, the absence of a dedicated Muslim organization created an opportunity for anyone willing to raise slogans that appealed to Muslim sentiments to gain immediate support. After the Partition, with the decline of the Muslim League in India, a leadership vacuum appeared within the Muslim community. Reflecting on how Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind sought to fill this vacant role, Maulana Abul Lais Islahi, the then Ameer of Jamat Islami Hind, once remarked: “These people, seeing the field empty, are running at full speed.” Today, these very words have come back to apply to Jamaat-e-Islami, which now seems actively engaged in taking up the mantle of Muslim leadership following the failure of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind to fill this role. 3. Another reason for this shift is the influence of mainstream Muslim politics. For a long time, the Jamaat had been the target of criticism from Muslims, who argued that it did nothing for them,