Author: Iymon Majid
Affiliation: Independent Scholar
Organization/Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date/Place: July 18, 2020/UK
Type of Literature: Research Article
Number of Pages: 14
Keywords: India, Kashmir, Jama’at-e-Islami, Secularism, Islamism, Conflict
Brief:
This paper is a detailed analysis of how Jama’at e Islami works in Indian administered Kashmir in opposition with India. Their Islamist politics don’t necessarily fall in line with the politics of Jama’at e Islami (JI) in India and Pakistan. The Indian and Pakistan JI hardly bother to talk about the Kashmir conflict. Even though there is the notion of otherness in Kashmir’s Jama’at e Islami, they are yet supposed to work within the framework of the Indian state due to Kashmir’s provincial relationship with India. The organization was founded in 1946, and Kashmir’s right to self determination has been on its agenda for a long time; they completely reject India’s forced accession of Kashmir. Moreover, it questions the secularism of India with respect to the government’s treatment of Indian Muslims in the Hindu authoritarian state. But Jama’at e Islami’s promotion of Indian secularism (even taking an oath under a secular constitution) puts it in a contradictory position with its own politics, which is to live the Islamic way. It therefore becomes incumbent for them to disassociate themselves from the Indian state and establish a counter programme that keeps the state as the heart of Jama’at’s political project. The author makes an observation that Islamic movements can’t remain indifferent to the context in which they operate, which defines their scope, limits and aspirations. For instance, the JI of India works very well under the Indian constitution because it doesn’t have the conflict like Kashmir. Meanwhile, in Kashmir it is not only about forming an Islamist state, it is about keeping the struggle for secession with India as the top priority.
By: Saima Rashid, CIGA Research Assistant
