Raqib Hameed Naik, of Kashmiri origin, who is among the respected journalists of the USA, made important statements to the Milli Gazete about the persecution of the Indian forces against Muslims. Raqib Hameed Naik, who gave dozens of conferences, including at Harvard University in the USA, where he lived in exile, said, “Being a Kashmiri, a Muslim and a journalist in today's India is literally a death sentence." In the last 8 years, the Kashmiri journalist who stated that he saw firsthand the trend of India towards a fascist Hindu presence, drew attention to such matters that discriminatory laws targeting religious minorities in India, increase in cow lynchings, hate crimes and hate speech calling for the genocide of 200 million Muslims.
“HINDUTVA SEES MUSLIMS AS SECOND CLASS”
Raqib Hameed Naik, who gave information about the ideology of "Hindutva", that is, "Hindu supremacy" followed by the cruel Indian administration, said, “Today, India is ruled by Muslim opponents. Hindutva ideology aims to make India a Hindu majoritarian country where social and religious minorities, especially Muslims and Christians, are made second-class citizens and deprived of all their fundamental rights.”
“THEY DESTROYED THE RIGHT OF CITIZENSHIP OF MUSLIMS”
Raqib Hameed Naik underlined that the international community should take the calls for the genocide of Muslims seriously and take action before the genocide takes place. Raqib Hameed Naik, who stated that there have been open calls for the genocide of Muslims in India for the last two years, said, “The National Registry of Citizenship law, which currently deprives half a million Muslims of their citizenship rights in the state of Assam, mainly includes: consuming beef ban, Hijab ban on Muslim girls, 'jihad love' laws targeting Muslims who marry Hindu women, economic boycott calls to Muslims and the illegal demolition of Muslim houses and mosques with bulldozers.”
Here is our interview with Raqib Hameed Naik, who is of Kashmiri origin, who continues to live under the threats of the Indian government and Hindu nationalist groups:
You started your journalism career when Narendra Modi came to power eight years ago. You made news about both India and Kashmir. What was it like for you as a Kashmiri, Muslim and journalist to live and work in India?
I started my career as a journalist in 2014. It was around the time when Narendra Modi's current Hindu nationalist government came to power in India and later formed an alliance with a regional party in Kashmir... So it was the most difficult period for journalists and broadcasters in the region.
“BEING A MUSLIM IS LIKE BEING PUNISHED TO DEATH”
Harassment, intimidation, arrests and beatings were commonplace, as they have been commonplace in the conflicts that have been going on in Kashmir for the past three decades. Being a Kashmiri, Muslim and journalist in today's India is literally like a death sentence. I had the slightest idea that the worst was about to come, but it wouldn't be as bad as 7 years from now. I would literally have to leave my homeland, family, friends and everything behind with the prospect of never seeing it again. In 2020, I moved to the United States to live in self-exile. In the last 8 years, I have seen firsthand India's move towards a fascist Hindu presence. The government has mobilized various policies to achieve India's long pending 'settler, colonialist' goals in Kashmir. Discriminatory laws targeting religious minorities in India, an increase in cow lynchings, hate crimes and hate speech calling for the genocide of 200 million Muslims...
What is the ideology followed by the ruling party of India?
What is today India, it is ruled by people who follow the Hindutva or Hindu supremacy ideology propagated by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) a fascist Hindu paramilitary group founded in 1925 in India. The first terrorist act in independent India was committed by Nathu Ram Godse. Godse was the RSS member who fired 3 bullets into Mahatama Gandhi's chest.
THEY SEE THE MUSLIMS AS THE NUMBER 1 THREAT
India's ruling party is a political arm of the RSS, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a longtime member of the RSS. Simply put, today India is ruled by anti-Muslims. Hindutva ideology aims to make India a Hindu majoritarian country where social and religious minorities, especially Muslims and Christians, are made second-class citizens and deprived of all their fundamental rights. MS Golwalkar, the second chief of the RSS, devoted a full chapter to what he calls internal threat in his book Bunch of Thoughts. He described Muslims as the number 1 threat.
“INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY MUST ACT"
What would you say about the atrocities committed by India?
The international community must take these latest calls for the genocide of Muslims seriously and act before this escalation occurs. The process of genocide begins with the classification of “us and them”, in which perpetrators define who belongs to the community, while labeling those who do not as “the other”. Indian Muslims have been labeled "other" by Hindu supremacists. The idea behind the explicit and systematic targeting of Muslims, their property and places of worship, and the enactment and enforcement of discriminatory laws, is to restrict their public and private lives. The "National Registry of Citizenship" law, which currently deprives half a million Muslims of their citizenship rights in the state of Assam, mainly includes: a ban on beef consumption, a headscarf ban for Muslim girls attending schools in the state of Karnataka, "jihad love" laws targeting Muslims who marry Hindu women, an economic boycott call on Muslims, the illegal bulldozer demolition of Muslim houses and mosques...
“OPEN CALLS ARE MADE FOR THE GENOCIDE OF THE MUSLIMS”
What would you say about the calls for genocide against Muslims in India?
For the past two years, there have been open calls for the genocide of Muslims in India. The definition of genocide in Article 2 of the 1948 Genocide Convention has two elements, one spiritual and the other physical. The mental element is the intention to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. The physical element includes 5 different actions, such as killing and causing serious bodily or mental harm, among other things.
“HINDUS RECOMMENDED TO BE READY TO KILL MUSLIMS”
Genocide in India has both mental and physical elements. Open calls for the genocide of 200 million Muslims have also become normal. A Hindu event held in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, the city considered sacred by Hindus in December 2021. During the pro-supremacist event, several prominent Hindu clerics directly called for mass murder of Muslims, even going so far as to call it a "purification" for India. Hindu participants were repeatedly advised to buy weapons and be prepared to kill Muslims to turn India into a Hindu nation. Among these clerics, Sadhavi Annapurna Maa, general secretary of the Hindu Mahasabha political party, made perhaps the most direct call for genocide: “If you want to exterminate their population (Muslims), kill them… If even 100 of us are ready to kill, we will be victorious.” Social, political, economic and cultural genocide against minorities still continues. A purge is underway to remove all traces of their history as if they never existed in India. In 2022, “Genocide Watch,” an NGO that monitors countries for signs of impending genocide, Dr. Gregory Stanton “In the 10 stages genocide” rank, he placed India in the 8th stage of the genocide (persecution).
“HEADSCARF PROHIBITION MAY COMING SOON IN WHOLE AROUND THE COUNTRY”
What can you say about the headscarf ban?
In December 2021, educational institutions in the state of Karnataka began to prohibit students from wearing hijab in class, even though the school year has already started and there was no such rule before. Students who did not comply with the ban were not allowed into their classrooms and were harassed by the school administration and Hindu nationalist thugs. The ban was upheld by the state's supreme court and is currently awaiting a decision in the country's supreme court. The ban expelled thousands of female students from schools. They were forced by the Hindu nationalist government to choose between wearing a headscarf or getting an education. Hindu extremists are now pushing for a nationwide hijab ban; This is a very likely possibility in the near future.