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Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer: A Tribute To The Departed Soul

By Asad Bin Saif

18 May, 2013
Countercurrents.org

Dr Asghar Ali Engineer, a renowned international Islamic and Secular Scholar and an ace social activist, is no more as he breathed his last on Tuesday, 14th May. 2013 at 9. 20 A.M. at Santa Cruz Flat, in Mumbai after a brief illness. In fact he was a formidable personality and institution in himself. His commitment to the cause of communal harmony, peaceful co-existence, secularism and women emancipation has been the bastion of social activism. He was inspired by the liberal religious ethos for which he tried to liberate the Muslim community through enlightenment from orthodox conservatives and obscurantist interpretation of religion on the one hand and on the other hand, he defended the community from communal stereotypes and Islamo-phobic assertion unleashed in the backdrop of the so-called Islamic Terrorism. His work was to promote a better understanding of Islam and to critique some of its manifestations from inside. His progressive interpretation of the scriptures often brought him into direct conflict.

Because of his liberal views and struggle against the priesthood of his sect for that he was ostracized in the 70s and even attacked six times in which two times had been brutal and his office and home had also been vandalized. He was part of the Progressive Dawoodi Bohra Movement to liberate the community from the stranglehold of the priesthood that ‘he took up the leadership of the community a few years after the progressive movement had brought about reforms in the community and in society’, stated Saifudding Insaf a long time friend of Dr Engineer. He was democratically elected General Secretary of Central Board of Dawoodi Bohra in Feb. 1977 in Udaipur. He found happy blending of Islamic Doctrine and Marxist Philosophy as both stressed on economic justice i.e. equity. He debunked the propaganda onslaught let out by the Communal BJP about Muslims that they were appeased arguing rather it was the communal politics which had brought socio-economic deprivation of the community which later on came to the same conclusion by the high powered Sacchar committee.

He had created a happy amalgamation among the micro level activism, meso-level enlightenment process and macro level campaign and advocacy. For him democratization of the society is a must in order to strengthen people’s sovereignty which is the integral part of our democratic polity. And also enlighten at macro level do something at campaign level as most of the problems emerge at macro level. In fact it was the holistic approach which had distinguished his activism from others. He was the member of National integration Council and also advocated for the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice & Reparation), Bill, 2011 so that linguistic and ethnic minorities could get institutional safeguard from communal and parochial onslaughts.

Born on March 10, 1939 the son of a Bohra priest at Salumbar, a town near Udaipur, Rajasthan, Engineer completed his B.Sc in Civil Engineering from Indore and later on he joined the BMC as an engineer in Garbage and Sewage Disposal Department but did not carry on his job for long and after few years in 1983 he took voluntary retirement in order to serve the society.

Right from the beginning although born in the orthodox clergy family but his inquisitive soul ever remained alert to seek answer to the various complex problems. In his school days he faced anti- Muslim verbal bashing along with other Muslim friends which had cast an impact on his psyche. In the Warda at the time of Partition, he heard the horrible stories of people being killed and trains full of dead bodies had influenced him very deep and shaped his future mission of peaceful co-existence as he divulged in his autobiography ‘A Living Faith: My Quest for Peace, Harmony and Social Change’ and he lamented why people were being killed in the name of religion. In 1961 when Jabalpur riots was perpetrated it made deep impact on him and drew him more deeply into the social activism for the cause of communal brotherhood. His passionate zeal to serve the society led him to reach to the bottom of the communal riots that affected India’s social and secular fabric and his interfaith initiatives had been given necessary fillip since then.

With his death the country and the community has lost a great visionary who visualized the future of the country and had articulated those vision through his writings and activism. ‘It is the big loss for the secular people of the country’ stated Ms. Shabnam Hashmi, the Director of Delhi based Social Organization, ANHAD. His faith on humanity and integrity of purpose remained ever alive and pursued it with abiding zeal in his entire life.

He was the founder of the Asian Muslim Action Network (AMAN), the Director of the Institute of Islamic Studies (IIS) and founded the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism (CSSS) in 1993 after Communal flares-up with the avowed objectives to promote secular ethos and communal harmony. He was a prolific writer, had written more than 52 Books in wide range of Issues which has besieged the society and nation like: Communal Problems, Secularism, Religions, Sufism and Bhaktism and umpteen articles mainly in English languages and in other languages too. He edited the Indian Journal of Secularism and a monthly paper Islam and Modern Age including fortnightly brought out as secular perspective helps in understanding the issue well and helps the vision clear. ‘He was a great Islamic Scholar who wrote without fear and favour. He endorsed egalitarian laws that would bring equality and justice with the Muslim Community and his contribution especially those relating to Muslim Women and towards codification of Muslim Personal Law in India’, stated Dr. Zeenat Shaukat Ali, Prof. of Islamic Studies, St. Xavier College. Some of the Books are: Globalization and Emerging Challenges to Islam in Asia, The Rights of Women in Islam, Communal Riots in Post Independent India and Kashmir: Secular Crown on Fire.

He was a liberal scholar and firm believer and adherent of egalitarianism which is very much embedded in the religious teachings which has been taken away because of the myopic and selective interpretation of the priesthood. His hope remained stubborn in democratic and secular polity where everybody would have a say and help in achieving inclusive nation building which brings about real stability and development.

Every communal riots would be investigated mostly by himself and start campaign against the venom of communalism. He remained vehement opponent of the notion of two nation theory. According to him such notion is divisive and deleterious in nature rather according to him it is the contrived logic to consider religion should be the basis of the nationalism as Jinnah’s Pakistan could not be held for long and Bangladesh emerged from it in spite of professing the same religion. He combated communal issue by invoking ethos of Sufism and Bhaktism which talks about humanity and coexistence which deserves to be embraced. He was always for critical understanding of the history and combated historical misinterpretation by the communal groups which tried to involve the struggling masses particularly youth on none and pesky issues and create impediments in the realization of their aspirations. For him it is a bad augury as it usurp their democratic space and creates disillusionment which is the prelude to chaos and upheaval.

According to him, ‘India’s progress is hampered with prevalent ambience of insecurity, deep divisions due to the smouldering hatreds, communal politicization of polity unleashed by the sustained campaign from the communalists and fanatic elements’. He adopted multidimensional approach to combat insecurity and divisiveness which has been corroding the vitality of the nation’.

For his contribution on social cause he was showered with various international as well as national awards including Right Livelihood Award or the Alternative Noble in recognition of promoting religious, peaceful co-existence, tolerance and mutual understanding.

His departing towards heavenly abode is a huge loss to the causes of communal harmony, secularism, gender justice and human rights. The void created by his death will be difficult to be filled up, is the lamented farewell expressed by his friends who got together in his funeral at Santacruz cemetery. For him ‘rest is rust’ and ‘work is worship’ as he did not bother about his health and ultimately died in harness to say the least. Now on the best tribute should be paid in shape of accomplishing his unfinished mission and his declared objectives, was the general consensus of the people who came together during obsequies in order to say goodbye to the departed soul.

Asad Bin Saif is a Social Activist based in Mumbai

 

 

 




 

 


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