Perhaps taking cue from the US semi-official think tank, the Rand Corporation, the Hinutva government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attempting to edit the Quran, the holy book of Islam. In 2004 the Rand Corporation questioned the authenticity of the Quran by claiming that some verses may have been falsely or inaccurately recorded in the Quran. Modi's government is using Waseem Rizvi to attack the Quran.

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Perhaps taking its cue from the US semi-official think tank, the Rand Corporation, the Hinutva government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attempting to edit the Quran, the holy book of Islam.

In 2004 the Rand Corporation questioned the authenticity of the Quran by claiming that some verses (suras) may have been falsely or inaccurately recorded in the Quran. [1]

Tellingly, Modi's government is using Waseem Rizvi, a Lucknow-based Muslim leader with close ties with the Hindu right-wing to attack the Quran. On Thursday, March 11, Rizvi filed a public-interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court demanding removal of 26 verses of the holy Quran. Rizvi claims that these verses "promote terrorism, violence and jihad." They were "inserted" in the holy book by the first three caliphs of Islam, namely Abu Bakr, Umar and Usman, "to widen the influence of Islam by force". Rizvi has also claimed that these verses are being used by terrorists to justify their acts.

Sunni and Shia Ulema have denounced Waseem Rizvi and demanded his immediate arrest for hurting the religious sentiments of the Muslims.

On Friday, March 12, the Mumbai-based Raza Academy reached the apex court with a petition seeking dismissal of the PIL. The academy has also requested the court to pass strictures against Rizvi for hurting people's sentiments.

Top Shia leader and former minister Aga Ruhullah Mehdi called Rizvi a servant of Sangh (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh). "He is a known servant of Sangh and I suggest he should be left alone," Mehdi tweeted.

Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi, general secretary of Majlis Ulema-e-Hind in Lucknow, said that if there is no arrest, it will be assumed that the government is also involved in this.

Majlis Ulama A Hind, general secretary, and Imam Juma Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi said that Wasim Rizvi has taken such a step to appease the anti-Muslim forces so that they support him and he can avoid going to jail. As everyone knows, the CBI is investigating him, so he is making such statements so that his dishonesty and corruption are covered.

FIRs against Wasim Rizvi

Tellingly, in November 2020 the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered two FIRs against Wasim Rizvi, former chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf Board, and has taken over the investigation into illegal sale, purchase and transfer of Waqf properties in Allahabad and Kanpur.

Waseem Rizvi had allegedly allowed illegal constructions at Imambara Ghulam Haider in the Tripolia area of Allahabad and another board property off GT Road. The government had stopped the work but constructions resumed without its knowledge after a few months.

According to Sabrang India, when he was still heading the UP Shia Central Waqf Board, Rizvi had welcomed the Supreme Court verdict on Babri Mosque demolition that cleared the way for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya. He had announced that he was donating Rs 51,000 for the construction.

It is not surprising that Wasim Rizvi has asked the Supreme Court to delete 26 verses of the holy Quran to appease the anti-Muslim forces so that they support him.

It is an open secret that the Bhartia Janta Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on record of embracing convicted criminals. Here are few examples.

Criminals in Indian politics

According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-profit organization that analyzed candidates' declarations in 2019 parliament election, 40% candidates from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP faced criminal charges, including crimes against women and murder.

Tellingly, with 240 cases against him, K Surendran of the BJP tops the list of candidates with the most outstanding criminal complaints that include rioting, criminal trespass and attempted murder. [2]

The BJP had 37 per cent legislators with criminal history elected to UP Assembly in 2017, according to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). The BJP which had won 312 seats in 2017, 114 had declared that they faced criminal cases and 83 were booked under cases of heinous crime. [3]

Modi Govt opposes life ban on convicted lawmakers

In December 2020, Modi government opposed a public-interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court asking for a lifetime ban on convicted lawmakers from contesting elections. The PIL was filed by Delhi-based advocate and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Ashwani Kumar Upadhyay. It said that since convicted bureaucrats are banned for life, the same rule should apply to elected people's representatives. The Election Commission had also supported the move in 2017. But the Union ministry of law and justice argued that legislators can't be bound by the same "service conditions" as bureaucrats are, and that they are "bound by propriety, good conscience and interest of the nation". [4]

Out of the 539 candidates who won the Lok Sabha elections last year, 233 had criminal records, according to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an NGO that works in the area of electoral and political reforms. 116 of these members of Parliament (MPs) belong to the BJP and 29 to the Congress. Around 29% of the total MPs have serious charges against them, such as rape, murder, attempt to murder and crimes against women, as per the ADR analysis. [5]

Consequently, it can be understood why Hindu right-wing-aligned Waseem Rizvi filed a public-interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court demanding removal of 26 verses of the holy Quran to promote anti-Muslim agenda of the BJP.

Moreover, Waseem Rizvi's PIL echo's Modi governments plan to re-write the history of India, particularly deleting the 712 AD to 1857 AD Muslim rule period of Indian history by changing the school curriculum and changing the Muslim names of cities. [6]

References

[1] The Rand Corporation study, titled "Civil Democratic Islam: Partners, Resources, and Strategies," is written by Cheryl Benard, a sociologist and fiction writer. It was released on March 18, 2004. Cheryl Benard intelligently attacked the Quran by saying: Modernist Muslims believe that some verses (suras) may have been falsely or inaccurately recorded in the Quran. Modernists believe that the Quran is legend.

[2] CNBC - May 18, 2019

[3] Economic Times - Feb 14, 2020

[4] Livemint - December 9, 2020

[5] Ibid

[6] Following Modi's election in 2014, the BJP's drive to reshape education gathered momentum once again. That year, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sang, a nationalist paramilitary group closely affiliated with the BJP, set up a committee to draft suggestions to "Indianize" the education system. Since then, Modi's administration has amended syllabuses at both national and state levels. Changes have included rewriting the outcome of a historical battle to claim that a Hindu king defeated the Mughal emperor in 1576, and downplaying the importance of independence movement leaders such as Gandhi and Nehru. [Hindu nationalists rewrite history in India's classrooms by Gautama Mehta - Codastory.com Sept. 29, 2020.]

Authors Bio:

Author and journalist.
Author of
Islamic Pakistan: Illusions & Reality;
Islam in the Post-Cold War Era;
Islam & Modernism;
Islam & Muslims in the Post-9/11 America.
American Muslims in Politics.
Islam in the 21st Century: Challanges, conspiracies & Chaos
Muslim Word in the New Global Order
Currently working as free lance journalist.
Executive Editor of American Muslim Perspective: www.amperspective.com