Those who sow Hindu terror will reap Muslim terror

July 9, 2017, 12:05 am IST SA Aiyar in Swaminomics | India | TOI

Prime Minister Modi and his partymen wax eloquent about the need to tackle and end terrorism. But
what exactly is terrorism? The dictionary definition is the unlawful use of violence and intimidation,
especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

Going by this definition, the lynch mobs that beat up and kill people suspected of carrying beef are
terrorists. So too are Muslim lynch mobs killing policemen in Kashmir. All these lynch mobs are
unlawful, use violence against civilians, and have religio-political goals. They fit the definition of
terrorist like a glove.

Many in the BJP will not agree: they would like to say that Hindu sentiments have been hurt and anti-
beef violence is an understandable though not entirely warranted reaction. The Hurriyat in Kashmir
will also shed crocodile tears for the killed policemen but say the mob violence must be seen in the
context of Indian military repression. Such excuses are as hollow and cruel as those given by al-
Qaida or ISIS for their misdeeds.

The murder of 15-year-old Junaid Khan, for the crime of simply being a Muslim, has been condemned
after a typical long pause that will not discourage mobs by Modi. Many of his ministers have also
issued condemnations. Yet the lynch mobs have not appeared out of a vacuum: they have grown in a
socio-political climate created by three years of BJP rule.

ROAD BLOCK: The govts plan to showcase India as a global manufacturing hub may be in jeopardy
from rising violence

A deadly mix of communalism and ultra-nationalism has stirred communal passions despite an
absence of major riots. One more Muslim was killed by gau rakshaks in Jharkhand after Modis call
for peace, showing how difficult it is to put the genie back into the bottle.

My fear is that, unless checked quickly, Hindu terror will be met with Muslim terror, and the country
will go up in flames. If the state cannot protect Muslims, there is a high risk that they will devise their
own armed squads for protection. Hindu-Muslim terror can escalate with the state a helpless
spectator.

Modi wants to sell India to the world as a global manufacturing hub. That will not be possible if Indias
fastest growing industry is lynch mobs. Economist Dani Rodrik has shown that the ability to manage
internal conflicts is an important determinant of economic growth and prosperity. Since
Independence, despite a thousand flaws, India has succeeded in managing its internal conflicts
reasonably well, and reaped the corresponding social and economic dividends. That achievement is
now in jeopardy.

Fifteen years ago, President Bush of the US congratulated India on having 150 million Muslims but no
terrorists. That plaudit was an exaggeration, yet it was not unearned. Given the strident rise of militant
Islam across the world since 2001, the moderation of Indias Muslims stood out. That moderation
owed a lot to strenuous political efforts to check majoritarian violence and persuade minorities that
India was their land too. Alas, the rise of lynch mobs could signal the coming end of that phase.

Across the West, small Muslim terrorist groups (mostly homegrown) are wreaking havoc. They do not
need financing or encouragement from ISIS or other foreign agencies: the expertise and knowledge
for making bombs are on the internet. Militancy is not typical of Islam: the vast majority of Muslims in
the West, as in India, are law-abiding citizens who condemn terrorism. Nevertheless, militants have
become a menace in countries with just a few million Muslims.

India now has a Muslim population of 180 million. Even if 0.01% of these Muslims turn militant, that
will guarantee havoc. And if 0.01% of Hindus interpret the violence of 0.01% of Muslims as a reason
to bash all Muslims, communal terror can ratchet up. Even if 99.99% of both communities are against
hate crimes, that will not save the situation, unless the sternest action is taken to halt vigilante groups.
Dawood Ibrahims bomb blasts in Mumbai did not occur in a vacuum.

They were a reaction to the anti-Muslim riots that followed the destruction of the Babri Masjid in 1992
and the Shiv Senas maha-aarti riots of January 1993. Thirteen bomb blasts hit prominent locations
including the Shiv Senas headquarters. Fortunately, violence did not ratchet up further, and
communal tempers gradually eased.

If Hindu-Muslim terror escalates today, it will not easily be doused. I fear that those who sow Hindu
violence will reap Muslim violence and vice versa, in a vicious spiral.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

Author

SA Aiyar

Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar is consulting editor of The Economic Times. He has frequently been a consultant to the
World Bank and Asian Development Bank. A popular columnist and TV commentator, Swami has been called "India's
leading economic journalist" by Stephen Cohen of the Brookings Institution. "Swaminomics" has been appearing as a
weekly column in The Times of India since 1990. In 2008, The Times of India brought out the book "The Benevolent
Zookeepers - The Best Of Swaminomics".

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