Rashida Aunty talked a bit more about bohras and political involvement. She said Bohras vote for Congress because the BJP (which they pronounce as Bhaajap in Gujarati) wants India to be only a Hindu country, just as Pakistan is a Muslim one. Congress, on the other hand, advocates equally for all religions. She said that while Shiv Sena (a Hindu nationalist party in the state of Maharashtra; wants to keep outsiders ouf of the state) is ostensibly a different party than the BJP, everyone knows it is closely allied with them, and recognizes that the only reason BJP leaders don't outwardly support the Sena is that it would be bad for their public image. She was explaining all this to me, and its all stuff I have read and know about, but it was good to hear the same kinds of views from a regular person, and not just an editorial page or academic article. She also talked at length about the Sena's Marathi only campaign... now, the younger children all learn Marathi in school because its compulsory and government applications and documents are only written in Marathi and English, despite the vast presence of Hindi and even Gujarati in Bombay. Interestingly, while she vehemently disagrees with the Sena's Marathi-only push, she sympathizes with their stance against migrants because the city is so overcrowded.
As far as Bohras go, she said Sayedna (TUS) goes out of his way to keep neutral in politics and to have good relations with all political leaders, regardless of party. Once, during a broadcast of a vaaz (sermon) out of Ahmadabad, after it was over but the camera was still recording, the audience heard Sayedna ask someone close to him if a car had arrived. It turned out to be Gujarat Chief Minister Modi's car, and she explained that while neither Sayedna nor Modi were visible to them, they all heard a very cordial and respectful exchange between them. She said Modi was extremely reverent. (Modi is a BJP leader, very Hindu nationalist).
Bohras, she said, don't get involved in Hindu- Muslim politics, and as a result, no one really bothers them when religious tensions materialize. I asked how they can remain uninvolved, considering they're Muslim, and she replied that the Muslim masses (her term, not mine) in Bombay are very politicized, and in her opinion, do things to provoke conflict. For example, young men tear down Shiv Sena posters that have Bal Thackeray's face on them. So when they take such actions, she said, of course they provoke the Sena further. (On the other hand though, the Shiv Sena message is so chauvinistic, that maybe you can't really blame those men for tearing down posters).
Then she told me about the time of the destruction of the Babri Mosque in Aydodhya (1992- 1993)... there was violence all over India, including Bombay. She said that they didn't leave the house at all because there was so much rioting on the streets. At that time, she and her family lived in a heavily Shiv Sena dominated area, and they all temporarily left to go stay with a relative in a part of the city that was safer for them. But her father was the head of a mosque in that area and he refused to leave his responsibility. He didn't want to leave an empty mosque at the hands of people who would destroy it. He was basically the only Muslim there. She said, however, that the bohras had enough of a reputation for being unpoliticized that the Sena didn't disturb him or the mosque at all. They dealt with each respectfully, and even cooperated on a couple of things, like water access from a particular hose inside the mosque. Her point was that bohras stay out of politics, and don't face the same anti-Muslim backlash as a result. When I asked about voting, she said that everyone definitely votes, and they vote for Congress. But when there's a contentious election on the horizon in Bombay, Sayedna (TUS) tends to leave town to stay totally out of the fray.
Monday, September 8, 2008 at 10:19PM 
