In the aftermath of New Zealand’s deadliest terror attack, the way their Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, came out in support of the victims’ families, is winning hearts all over the world. She met each and every member of the families that lost their loved ones in the attack. Ardern and many women of New Zealand wore headscarves (hijab) to show their solidarity with the Christchurch victims. New Zealand’s parliament session opened with the reading of the Holy Quran. After the attack, the government of New Zealand has decided to rethink its gun-law. Through this, New Zealand has set a strong example for the world against Islamophobia.
Islamophobia means outright anti-Muslim bigotry, due to religious intolerance or racism, and xenophobia towards Islam. The term ‘Islamophobia’ especially became very common after the 9/11 attack.
I am a Hindu by birth and I have a rugged long black beard. Many people assume I am a Muslim boy or a Kashmiri. After my graduation, I got a job in Noida. And here I realized that the stories which I have read and heard, of a particular man or family that was refused accommodation by the landlord because of their Muslim identity, were not fabricated or false. My beard helped me realise people’s sentiments against Muslims.
Three winters ago, I was roaming on the streets of Noida, Sector 12-22, looking for a rented accommodation. I saw, a ‘TO LET’ template on the wall of a beautiful house. When I rang the bell, an old uncle came out peeped from his balcony. I said, ‘Is there any room for rent?’ He came down, stared at me and said, “Beta, hum Musalmano ko kamra nhi dete hain” (Son, we don’t want Muslim tenants).
“Why? What’s wrong in being a Muslim?” I asked, “Please let me stay here, uncle”. “Son, I am not the one who has a problem, my wife does. Just give me your number. I’ll let you know if I come across something”, the old uncle vomited in a single breath. I thanked him and left the place. I was highly disappointed to see how someone could make like that.
Once, while I was travelling on the metro, I saw two young boys my age staring at me and saying, “In mullo ka to kuch karna padega.” (Something needs to be done about these Muslims) I just looked at them and smiled.
The most horrific incident that I have faced till now was back in July 2016, when a Kashmiri militant, Burhan Wani, was gunned down by the Indian security forces and thousands of people came out to be a part of his funeral in the valley. It was then that I truly realised that the hatred in the atmosphere against Muslims had reached its zenith in our country.
I was in Noida sector 57, at a stationary shop around 8 PM, where the shopkeeper was praying. I think he was about to leave for the day. He looked at me and I said, “I need a rough notebook.” I was negotiating the price of the notebook, though my intention was just to have some fun with him. The shopkeeper was also enjoying the banter and he shared anecdotes of his old helter-skelter stationery shop. And then he suddenly asked me, “Bhai tum Kashmiri ho?” (Brother, are you from Kashmir?) As always I said, “Yes”.
He asked me for my name and I said I was Rehman Bhatt. He went on to ask me where I lived and what I was doing in Noida. I told him I was from Baramullah and that I was studying in Jamia. And then he began picking on me as if he had been waiting for a very long time to take out his frustration on Kashmiris. The so-called nationalist shopkeeper told me, “Bura mat manna, but tum Kashmiri jis thali me khaatey ho, ussi me thooktey ho.” (Don’t mind, but you Kashmiris have backstabbed your own nation, time and again). I was taken aback. I asked him what happened to him suddenly.
He said, “You’re all the same, all you Muslims are the same…all of you pelt stones at our military”.
“Please don’t drag me into this, I have never done that,” I interrupted. He went to say, “You hate your own country, but you love Pakistan”.
“I am an Indian and that’s why I am here,” I retorted. I wanted to tell him that not every Kashmiri is as bad as he thinks they are, or how the media portrays them. I told him that every year more than 10 Kashmiris make it to the Indian Civil Services, and that Athar Aamir was the topper of the year (2016). They all love this country, that’s why they want to become civil servants.
Clearly, he didn’t want to understand and went on with the same nonsense. “So tell me, who were those who attended Burhan Wai’s funeral?” I said they were probably his friends or his relatives, but that didn’t mean they were all militants.
He then said, “You seem to have a lot of sympathy for your brothers”. I didn’t see the point in explaining myself any further because he clearly didn’t want to listen. I left that place with that horrible experience that always stayed with me.
I sometimes believe that the conflict in the middle east, misunderstood jihad in the name of religion, and the Shiite-Sunni rivalry are responsible for the hatred against the Muslim community, but it’s primarily world politics that should be guilty of poisoning Islam.