Bengaluru – Fake news about the boycott of Hindu traders during Ramadan was dismissed by Jamiat Ulema of India’s Karnataka state, according to a statement released by the body on 26th March. Jamiat also urged Muslims to be just and not to differentiate people based on religious grounds.
According to the statement, “It’s a matter of great concern that, while there are boycotts and protests happening to stop Muslim vendors from selling in the vicinity of Temples and Jaatras by anti-social elements, at the same time there is a message in social media also doing rounds calling for Muslims to purchase only from Muslim traders. In the month of Ramadan, as if it’s a response from Muslims”.
Jamiat pointed out the the fake news was carried out by anti-social elements pretending to be Muslims, so that the communal harmony of the society gets disturbed.
It said, “We are already aware about the fake news culture spreading lies, and on top of it, from past few days few anti-social elements pretending to be Muslims in social media are doing such heinous acts of sending messages in the name of Muslims, whose agenda is to disturb peace and harmony among fellow citizens, which is a confirmed fact now”.
Later, the body urged the Muslims to be alert and cautious about such divisive messages and called it as a conspiracy.
“These types of malicious messages are not part of our culture and religion, and cannot be done or promoted by any sane Muslim. We as a responsible community should defeat such malicious agendas promoting hatred amongst anyone”, it added.
Further, Jamiat recalled the teachings of Prophet Mohammed in dealing with Muslims and non-Muslims alike without the partisanship behavior.
“Being Muslims we should respect people of all religion, and ensure that no harm is meted out to anyone. Also we should ensure the safety and security of everyone around, deal with them in the best of manners and etiquette and not differentiate between Muslim and Non-Muslims. These are the teachings of Islam”, Jamiat said. “The protection of the rights of our neighbors has to be carried out in accordance with the teachings of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)”.
Finally, they made humble request to Muslims to refrain from the communal agenda and behave like responsible citizens, and not to forward any message without proper verification.
“It is a humble request to all Muslims not fall for this communal agenda and to not discriminate based on religion. We as responsible citizens need to investigate the authenticity of any/all messages prior to forwarding and also avoid sharing provocative messages that are being circulated on Whatsapp and other social media platforms”.
