After the Taliban militants recently ordered Sikhs in Pakistan's tribal region to pay Jizia (Islamic poll tax on non-Muslims), a number of Muslim leaders in India issued a declaration criticizing the militants for not following the true spirit of Islam.

Following is the text of the declaration: [1]

"Imposition of … Jizia is Nothing More Than Extortion By an Armed and Lawless Gang Which Does Not Constitute a Sovereign Government or State"

"We, religious, political and community leaders of the Indian Muslims, are alarmed at the reports coming out of Pakistan's tribal areas about the Pakistani Taliban's kidnapping, extortion of huge amounts of money from their Sikh compatriots as Jizia, and demolition of the houses and shops of those who fail to pay the demanded sums.

"We would like to say that Jizia is a tax paid in an Islamic state for exemption from military service by healthy non-Muslim adults who are free to follow their vocations without restriction or fear, and that there is no other tax payable by them after paying this tax - unlike Muslims who have to pay various taxes including Zakat and who have to perform military service as well.

"Jizia was payable by non-Muslims only in lands conquered by Muslims, like Egypt, Syria and Iraq, but not in unconquered areas like Madina, where, during the time of the Holy Prophet, no Jizia was ever imposed on non-Muslim citizens, who enjoyed equal rights and duties under the Constitution of Madina.

"For many centuries, Jizia has not been levied by Muslim states, and today, even the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran do not levy Jizia on non-Muslims - for the simple reason that non-Muslims in these states pay all taxes payable by others.

"Prominent Islamic scholars of the modern times like Sheikh Yousef Al-Qaradhawi are of the view that Jizia should not be imposed now, as non-Muslims are equal citizens of Muslim states and pay all taxes paid by other citizens, and shoulder all the duties."

"We wish to make it clear that the imposition of the so-called Jizia is nothing more than extortion by an armed and lawless gang which does not constitute a sovereign government or state, or even an organ thereof. Moreover, Pakistan's tribal areas are not 'conquered lands,' as their non-Muslim population has been living there for centuries. These areas were part of the British India and became part of the new State of Pakistan as a result of peaceful transfer of power on Partition [in 1947]."

"We Regard This as an Act of Injustice Incompatible With the Letter and Spirit of Islam and the International Covenants Accepted by All Muslim States"

"As regards the huge amounts in millions reported to be demanded, these are arbitrary and exorbitant, as the amount of annual Jizia paid by non-Muslims in early Islam was merely one to one and a half dinar, which is 4.24 gram to 6.36 grams of gold. Moreover, this tax was payable only at the end of the year, and not in advance.

"We regard this as an act of injustice incompatible with the letter and spirit of Islam and the international covenants accepted by all Muslim states.

"We demand that the Pakistani authorities take earliest steps to retrieve the extorted sums and to repay them to their affected non-Muslim citizens, to facilitate their peaceful return to their homes and properties in their traditional homelands, and to give them all due protection."

Signatories of the declaration:

Maulana Mufti Mukarram Ahmad
Shahi Imam, Jama Masjid Fatehpuri, Delhi

Hafiz Muhammad Yahya
President, All India Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadees

Maulana Abdul Hameed Nomani
Secretary, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind

Syed Shahabuddin
Ex-President, All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat

Prof Tahir Mahmood
Member, Law Commission of India

Mujtaba Farooq
Secretary, Jamaat-e Islami Hind

Maulana Ataur Rahman Qasmi
President, Shah Waliullah Institute, Delhi

Maulana Waris Mazhari
Editor, Monthly Tarjuman, Delhi

Dr Zafar Mahmood
President, Zakat Foundation of India

Dr SQR Ilyas
Member, Muslim Personal Law Board

Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan
President, All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat

Mirza Yawar Baig
President of Yawar Baig & Associates

Shahnawaz Ali Raihan
Secretary, Students Islamic Organisation

MYSORE: Communal riots erupted in areas falling under Udayagiri police station limits in Mysore on Thursday after a place of worship was desecrated, leaving three people dead and six others grievously injured.
The deceased were identified as Mubarak (22), a resident of Shantinagar, Tirupati (42), a K N Pura resident and Junaid Pasha (15) of Rajivnagar.

The injured are being treated at a hospital in Udayagiri. The first two deaths took place before police arrived at the spot.

With tension mounting on both the sides, Mubarak, passing through Kyathamaranahalli Circle on his two-wheeler was waylaid by a mob.
He bled to death on the spot after miscreants attacked him with wooden logs. Within an hour, Tirupati, a mason was killed when another group hit him with a boulder in K N Pura, barely half a kilometre from Kyathamaranahalli Circle.

There was confusion over Junaid’s death. The boy’s parents and eyewitnesses claim he died after police fired at a mob near Quba Masjid in Rajivnagar.

Police commissioner Sunil Agarwal and deputy commissioner Manivannan dismissed the claim and said the boy died due to stabbing.

``There are no bullet marks. We can infer that he died of stabbing,’’ Agarwal said, adding that a postmortem will be conducted July 3.
Arson and looting were reported across Vinayakanagar, K N Pura and Shantinagar. Six houses and huts, autorickshaws and two-wheelers were set on fire. Mobs ransacked houses, leaving women and children terrified.

A carcass of a pig found inside a madrasa is said to have triggered the clashes.

Rioting and stone pelting spread to various pockets across the Udayagiri station limits. Section 144 was imposed in Udayagiri, Lashkar, Mandi Mohalla and N R police limits and police had a tough time bringing the situation under control. N R ACP Poojar and a few media people were injured in stone pelting.

Tension and fear gripped Rajivnagar, Gayatripuram, Shantinagar, Ghousianagar, Kyathamaranahalli, Vinayakanagar and K N Pura in Udayagiri limits. Police took several troublemakers into custody and are maintaining strict vigil.

Police fired several rounds, burst teargas shells and lathicharged mobs. Police Commissioner Sunil Agarwal, Deputy Commissioner Manivannan, DCPs V S D’Souza and Shivalingappa are closely monitoring the situation and leading the forces.

Twenty platoons of City Armed Reserve, District Armed Reserve and Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) are on duty in trouble-hit areas.

New Delhi, June 29, 2009: Muslim clerics have reacted angrily to gays demand for scrapping Sec 377 in India. They say that if this ‘senseless’ action is taken, it will create sexual anarchy in the country and will break family norms.

On Sunday when gays and lesbians gathered in significant numbers in metro cities in India demanding scrapping of Sec 377 that bans gay and lesbian union, many Muslim clerics have said that they will not allow it to happen.

Several newspapers and gay right NGOs have ran campaigns in the country in recent weeks demanding that the ban on gay and lesbian marriages be lifted. There were even hints from government that the section that bars it may be amended. But Muslim and Christian clergy has opposed the move.

ALLAHABAD: While cruising on the Noorullah Road in Kareli flanked by upcoming marriage halls giving a veneer of modernity, there is a virtual treasure trove of knowledge lying unknown in a secluded corner. This unknown place is christened as `Urdu Ghar' in which rare books of Urdu literature are available. However, despite being named as Urdu Ghar, it is also a rich storehouse of books in Hindi and English.

The main objective of the establishment of the Urdu Ghar, set up in 2000, is to arouse the interest of the people towards Urdu which has unfortunately dwindled in the present times. Though the place is a rich reservoir for the promotion of Urdu language, it also acts as a main centre where lovers of this language meet and discuss the problems afflicting the language. Even solutions are also suggested.

Detailing about the books kept in the library, MA Qadeer, manager of the library informed that there are about 10,000 books which have been contributed by many people. The books available are based on diverse subjects including literature, history, geography and social sciences. Even the literary masterpieces of the doyens of Urdu literature including Ghalib, Mir Taqi Mir, Zauq and other Urdu writers grace the place.

The most valuable possession of the library is the famous collection of the newspaper `Al-Hilal' published in 1912, which was started by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. This newspaper was instrumental in channelling the spirit of patriotism in the country. Due to its fiery content and articles based on patriotism, the British government banned its publication. However, this newspaper was again published with another name Al-Bilagh in the year 1918.

This library, located near the cattle pond in Kareli, also boasts of another valuable possession of `Gul-o-Naghma' penned by great Urdu literary figure Firaq Gorakhpuri. He was given a Sahitya Academy award for this masterpiece creation.

In fact, even a resolution was passed in the sadan meeting of the Allahabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) regarding the establishment of Urdu Ghar. This library has been taken from AMC on lease for about 90 years .

For the propagation of Urdu language, even camps are organised in which children, grown-ups are being taught the intricacies of the language.

Urdu Ghar has got the honour of felicitating many figures including Prof Abdul Haque of Delhi University, Prof Sharif Husain, head of department of Arabic and Persian, Delhi University, Syed Hamid, former vice-chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University and present chancellor of Jamia Hamdard, Prof Iqbal Qureshi of Jammu and Kashmir University, Ali Javed, head of National Council of Urdu Promotion Language.

The fatwa has been issued by Mufti Mohammed Shoeb Raza Qadri and Mufti Muti-ur-Rehman of the Darul-uloom-Mazhar-e- Islam in India.

Mufti Mohammed called Shahrukh a Kafir (non-believer) and said such person should be thrown out of Islam and that in an Islamic state his comments would have warranted a death penalty.

Shahrukh Khan has strongly denied the comments attributed to him in an interview published in the magazine, saying he had been misquoted.

Bareilly-based Markazi Darul Ifta which is a authority for issuing fatwas however dismissed the fatwas issued by clerics. They stated that since Shahrukh has issued clarification that he was misrepresented in his alleged statements he should not be held guilty.

An NGO by the name of Mumbai Aman Committee had also filed a complaint to Mumbai police against the star for his comments. They had asked the police file a case under section 504 of the IPC (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace).

Shahrukh Khan is currently in US shooting for Karan Johar's My Name Is Khan.

"According to you who is the most impressive figure in history?

'There are lots of them, some negative ones like Hitler, then Napoleon, Winston Churchill and if I can call it history, then Prophet Mohammed and from recent time - Nelson Mandela. And there are the nice ones like Gandhiji and Mother Teresa.'"

However, in an attempt to cover their tracks, the magazine published a clarification of the interview in a tabloid. The Magazine claims that the answer to the question should have appeared in the following way:

''There are lots of them, some negative ones like Hitler. Then Napoleon, Winston Churchill were impressive. If I can call it history, then most impressive positive figure is Prophet Mohammad. And from recent time - there are nice ones like Nelson Mandela, Gandhiji and Mother Teresa''.

Over the weekend, Shah Rukh has left no stone unturned to clarify that the comment was a mistake on the part of the reporter or a "writing error". He said that he had named Prophet Mohammad the greatest, most impressive personalities in history. SRK said that as a Muslim, it is his most important agenda to stand up for the tenets of Islam. He thinks Prophet Mohammad is the most important positive figure in history and Islam. The magazine since published a corrigendum accepting the error.