JOIN USFinally, some sane voices in the country seem to have woken up to the vilification of the entire Muslim community after a large chunk of people who participated in the Tablighi Jammat event in Nizamuddin, Delhi, tested positive for COVID-19. Prominent among them is Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, who has issued a stern warning to those communalising the issue. The chief minister, who recently called a meeting of elected representatives and leaders from the minority community, said, “Muslims have extended their full cooperation to us. I am issuing a strict warning that nobody should speak against them. If somebody says the entire Muslim community is responsible for an event that was held somewhere, I will not hesitate to take action against them.” But Yediyurappa should not stop at mere threats and should show that he means business by initiating action against hatemongers within his own party. BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje, for instance, described the Tablighi Jamaat event as ‘corona jihad’. She also put out tweets about some patients allegedly misbehaving with doctors at a Belagavi hospital, which has been found to be fake news.
While the organisers of the Tablighi Jammat event need to be brought to book and the alleged perverse behaviour of some of its members in hospitals must be investigated, it is unfair to target the entire community for the acts of a few. In a bid to end this stigmatisation, the Tamil Nadu government has decided not to use the expressions ‘Delhi congregation’ or ‘Tablighi Jammat’ in its daily health bulletin. Gujarat has waged a war against fake and hate messages, arresting over 200 people in just one week for spreading communal animosity. On the other hand, the Union Ministry of Health continues to brandish ‘Tablighi Jammat’ as some kind of a trophy at its daily press briefing, each time taking great pains to explain how COVID-19 cases saw a spurt after the Delhi event, in what appears to be a deliberate and calculated move to paint Muslims in poor light.
Like Yediyurappa, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, too, has given a call to people to stay clear of “untenable generalisations against communities.” One wishes PM Modi, too, chips in with a message to stop the virus of hatred. While some vested interests have started a smear campaign against Yediyurappa on social media for his warning against communal elements, the chief minister, who has been statesman-like in his mature handling of the crisis deserves the support of the citizens. The war will be lost unless we realise that the enemy is COVID-19, and not fellow human beings.