'India Belongs To Me As Much As To PM Modi', Says Islamic Body Chief
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New Delhi: Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind president Mahmood Madani said India belongs to him as much as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat.
He was speaking at the inaugural plenary session of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind held at Ramlila Maidan in the national capital. The three-day plenary session began on Friday.
"India is our country. This country belongs to Mahmood Madani as much as it belongs to Narendra Modi and Mohan Bhagwat. Neither Mahmood is an inch ahead of them, nor are they one inch ahead of Mahmood", Madani said.
"This land is the first homeland of Muslims. Saying that Islam is a religion that came from outside is totally wrong and baseless. Islam is the oldest religion among all religions. India is the best country for Hindi Muslims," Madani added.
He said that they are against forced religious conversions and that nowadays people who are converting their religion voluntarily were also being sent to jail on false charges.
"We are against religious conversion driven forcibly. Freedom of religion is a fundamental right. We are also against conversion by force, fraud, and greed. There are many examples of agencies targeting the Muslim community, such as the ban on Namaz, police action on them, and bulldozer action", he further said.
Uniform Civil Code, religious freedom and Muslim personal law, and autonomy of madrassas are among some issues that will be discussed in the convention. A proposal to provide reservation for socio-economically backward Muslims will also likely be considered.
In the 34th session of Jamiat, the steps being taken to strengthen religious brotherhood, and initiatives to prevent hate campaigns are also part of the agenda.
A century-old organisation, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind works for the protection of the civil, religious, cultural, and educational rights of Muslims with the socio-political and religious issues of the community on its agenda. The Jamiat believes in the Deobandi ideology of Islam.
