'Hijab' and the Law

The recent expulsion of a number of ‘Hijab’-wearing, young Muslim students in Karnataka, and the subsequent imposition of a ‘ban’ on religious attire in academic institutions raise disturbing questions about Executive excesses, given their profound implications on the future of individual choice, religious freedom, and minority rights in India. Given the fact that multiple religious symbols  and attires are accepted and accommodated as part of the nation’s secular ethos and composite culture, and most Muslim girl children had been wearing headscarves along with their School uniforms for many decades all across the country without any issue, the present manufactured controversy against ‘Hijab’ in coastal Karnataka can only be seen as a manifestation of the tectonic shifts that are currently underway in Indian politics, especially the growing muzzle-flexing by Islamophobic extremists in the country who enjoy impunity from law despite their vitriolic campaigns for the erasure of all markers of Muslim-cultural identity from the public sphere of India as well as threatening to commit mass atrocities against the minority community. Hence, attacking a religious and cultural practice like ‘Hijab’ in the name of ‘uniformity’ in the class-room dress code is only the latest episode in the larger political project of remaking India into a ‘Hindu Rashtra’. 

Constitutional Secularism in India

As a large country with over a billion- people: professing different faiths and belonging to diverging denominational groups; a variety of regional traditions and food cultures; indigenous communities; speaking several languages; India cannot but remain as a shining example of unity in diversity. It is this spirit of tolerance, accommodation and inclusion that is the hallmark of the Indian nationhood as envisaged and consciously chosen by the founding fathers of the Constitutional order when India regained independence from British colonialism in 1947. Respecting the dignity of the individual, and accommodating cultural differences by express recognition of minority rights; evolving the bond of fraternity across all category distinctions and constructing a public order where every social group finds equal access to flourish in togetherness is the idea of India that emerges from that founding document of the secular republic.

'Respect the Privacy, Dignity and Rights of People'

Allah (swt) says: 

وَ  اِذَا  الۡمَوۡءٗدَۃُ  سُئِلَتۡ ۪ۙ۝ ۝بِاَیِّ ذَنۡۢبٍ قُتِلَتۡ ۚ  ۝

Wa ‘izal - maw - ‘uudatu su’ilat; Bi - ‘ayyi zambin - qutilat?

“Indeed, those who like that immorality should be spread [or publicized] among those who have believed will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah knows and you do not know.” (An-Noor, 24: 20)

In a Hadith Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) has said:

“He who sees something which should be kept hidden and conceals it will be like one who has brought to life a girl buried alive.” (Abu Dawud, Kanz al-’Ummal, Tabarani)

This Sahih Hadith teaches us that he who finds a defect/ weakness, whether physical or moral in a Muslim and who conceals it, that is to say, he does not spread it among the people, but rather keeps the matter a secret, then he shall have a reward comparable to the one who saves a girl buried alive from her grave, for this practice was widespread among the Arabs at the time of the Jahiliyya (ignorance, before the advent of Islam), as well as among the pagans and the ignorant ones before the advent of the Holy Prophet (pbuh). We need to advise people to improve their conduct (to atone for their wrongdoings) but it is illegal for us to reveal their flaws to those who are not concerned (with that matter).

TV: Impact on Islamic Life

TV’S HARMFUL EFFECTS

Today, by the grace of Allah, Allah has given me the Tawfiq to continue the second part of my Khutba Jummah on ‘The Harmful Effects of Television’.

Through TV, the Islamic dress code is disappearing, to such a point that there are some who consider the Islamic clothing as uncivilised dress code and only good for ancient times!

Islam has put great restriction concerning sexuality so that the social life of our community remains clean and far away from prostitution, homosexuality and other social maladies. As for TV, it not only removes that restriction through the means of its dirty films but it also incites young people to satisfy their carnal desires (sexual needs/ passions) in an immoral and illicit (Haram) way.

Islam is a religion which teaches Muslims men as well as women to cultivate shame (Haya) in them because shame is a quality which helps cultivate mutual respect. The Holy Prophet (pbuh) has even made us know that Allah (swt) has joined shame (Haya) together with faith (Iman). As long as someone has shame in him, his faith shall be alive, but if he loses his shame, he loses also his faith, and he begins to act like an animal. Through the various obscene TV channels proposed to people, television has taken away shame from that community (the Ummah of Hadhrat Muhammad (pbuh)).

Watching Too Much TV

TV’S HARMFUL EFFECTS

Today the subject of my sermon shall be on the harmful effects of television. TV in itself is a favour for us from Allah (swt). You shall notice that in all good favours that Allah gives man, little by little Satan makes his way in them, leaving his mark, thus spoiling the favours which Allah have enabled us to have, especially in this past era and the actual era in which we are living with the introduction of television. There are programmes on TV which are essential for viewers, to learn from the given information, such as documentaries, news, educative programmes and others.

Now attraction to all the good effects of TV has disappeared, especially among the youths. Are you people now pondering over the arrays of TV Channels which are available today? I recall the past when there was only one television channel in Mauritius and there were interesting programmes, educative ones (such as documentaries etc.) which started around 3.00 pm and ended at 10.00 pm. Even the radio ended early just like for television. It was years later that a second channel was introduced and today there are a whole lot of TV channels besides the basic national TV channels. Now there are TV stations such as CANAL + proposing new programmes and channels and there is also the MY.T which proposes different new channels. Recently MY.T through publicity done have given viewers 3 months (till October 2015) free viewing of all its channels (more than 73 channels), with the hope that this attracts more and more people to subscribe to these usually paid channels. From what I have learnt, all kinds of Hindi and other serials are being broadcast, one after the other.

Now, what one sees is that all people are before the television, morning and evening. And there is even the option now to get to view the missed programmes and films of the past days.

So the believers need to ponder a lot over the harmful effects of television. Nowadays, a TV in a house has become for the people like a dangerous enemy. It has become such an enemy which is destroying your Iman (faith), time and money when you go to have paid subscriptions to get to view such channels which are dirty. At the same time, you are inviting your wives and children to partake of the harmful effects of these immoral movies and as a result, they also get to be negatively affected by these.