In the wake of global pandemic, India continues to alienate Muslim community as Ahmedabad’s hospital segregates Muslim patients from Hindu patients.
The world is facing an unprecedented crisis in the form of COVID-19, global economies are declining and global institution are calling for unity among nations. The world’s so called largest democracy is following the policy of state apartheid against its Muslim minority. As soon as the pandemic started showing its effects in India, the Indian government and its state run biased media started a hateful planned campaign against the Muslim community. Firstly, the tableeghi Jamaat gathering and its participants were blamed for spreading coronavirus which had no factual grounds except spreading religious hatred.
In a latest step of sponsored state apartheid, in a government hospital in Ahmedabad, Muslim patients of coronavirus are segregated from the Hindu patients and have been put in a separate ward. The hospital MS Dr Gunvant H Rathod has not only confirmed the move but also termed this as a state government’s decision. A patient was also quoted: “On Sunday night, the names of 28 men admitted in the first ward (A-4) were called out. We were then shifted to another ward (C-4). While we were not told why we were being shifted, all the names that were called out belonged to one community”.
Indian state of Gujrat is ruled by the Hindu nationalist and RSS inspired Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which also governs the country. It is worth noting that it is the same province where the heinous Anti-Muslim riots took place in 2002 under the state patronage of the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi who is currently the Prime Minister of India and leading the apartheid regime in India with an agenda of marginalizing the Muslim minority of the country. Narendra Modi was the state’s chief minister for nearly 13 straight years from 2001 before he became the country’s premier in 2014
In a time when whole humanity is at risk and globally unified efforts are required, apartheid regime in India led by RSS inspired Prime Minister Modi and his government is committed to continue alienating the Muslim population and spread hatred against them.
Earlier this month, the World Health Organization had warned against any religious profiling of coronavirus patients by the governments across the world.
“Having COVID-19 is not anybody’s fault. Every case is a victim. It is very important that we do not profile the cases on the basis of racial, religious and ethnic lines,” WHO’s emergency programme director Mike Ryan had stated.
US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has also condemned the state’s apartheid policy of segregation in the Ahmedabad’s hospital on basis of religious identity. The commission expressed its serious concern over the targeting of Muslim community in India in the wake of the pandemic and termed these efforts to increase the ongoing stigmatizing Muslims in the country. The commission had also earlier criticized Indian government’s decisions like Citizenship Amendment Act.
Various global media outlets including Al Jazeera have taken up the issue and criticizing the Indian government on this inhuman act which will prove to be counterproductive in the longer run. An Ahmedabad based globally acclaimed Sociologist, writer and retired Professor from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi Prof. Dr. Ghanshyam Shah termed this act as “Apartheid” with an absolute expression. He further expressed his displeasure and concerns over the widespread Islamophobia in the wake of COVID-19.
In the end, I want to ask the champions of Journalism and human rights, why are they silent? Why are they not highlighting the issue? Where are those scholars and journalists like Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa, Bismee Taskin and media outlets like “The Print” who were blatantly criticizing Muslims for being the source of spreading coronavirus in India. Why don’t they call it as an act of apartheid?
Indeed, we will continue writing till we get the answers of these questions from those champions of journalism and human rights.
