We, the undersigned, support unequivocally the recent interview given by author and poet, Javed Akhtar to the media in the context of the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan. We strongly condemn attempts to intimidate him and affirm his right to speak his views. We strongly disagree with those in the sangh parivar, led by a BJP MLA and other elements from the same wider parivar who have objected to the understanding of right wing supremacists, be it of the Muslim or Hindu kind.
In an interview to NDTV news channel, Javed Akhtar spoke with clarity and passion. We agree with his statement that irrespective of the religion in whose name they claim to speak, right-wingers- be they Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christians — share a common majoritarian world-view. This is particularly evident when it comes to their views on the status of women in the family and in society. The Taliban are but an extreme and violent version of the same common fundamentalist mind-set. It is not for nothing that many in recent years have referred to violent elements from the sangh parivar as the ‘Hindu Taliban’.
It is not insignificant that around the same time as the venal reactions to the interview by Javed Akhtar, sections of the Muslim community who have raised similar objections to recent comments by actor Naseeruddin Shah. In his video clip which went viral, Shah is specifically addressing the Indian Muslim community where he is warning Muslim compatriots against rigid forms of Islam, advising an espousal of modernity. Shah is only re-iterating the long, vibrant and tolerant tradition of Indian Islam that has been in recent decades afflicted by the Saudi-exported Wahhabi Islam, a trend that large sections of Indian Muslims recognise and also deplore.
Signatories:
1. Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM, ADC
2. Aditi Chowdhury
3. Aftab Khan, Journalist, Nasik
4. A.J. Jawad, Advocate, Chennai
5. Ajit Pandit
6. Amir Rizvi, Designer, Mumbai
7. Anand Patwardhan, Documentary Film Maker, Mumbai
8. Anil Chandra
9. Anjum Rajabali, film writer
10. Anubha Rastogi, Lawyer, Mumbai
11. Arshad Alam, Academic/Researcher, Delhi
12. Aruna Gnanadason
13. Anuradha Kapur
14. Apeksha Vora
15. Ashok Maridas
16. Askari Zaidi, Writer
17. Atul Tiwari, Writer
18. Aquila Khan- Filmmaker
19. Aadya Pandey
20. Aawaaz-Niswaan (Organisation)
21. Ashhar Khan- Jaunpur
22. B T Venkatesh, Senior Advocate,
23. Bebaak collective (Organisation)
24. Benson
25. Brinelle D’souza, Academic and Activist
26. Cedric Prakash, Jesuit and Civil Rights Activist
27. Chayanika Shah
28. Chirashree Das Gupta
29. Cyrus Guzder, Philanthropist and Civil Rights Activist
30. Deepika D’Souza
31. Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) (Organisation)
32. Dinesh Abrol, Professor ISID (retd), Chief Scientist CSIR-NISTADS (retd).
33. Dipak Malik, Prof. (retd), Varanasi
34. Dr. Asokan Mundon
35. Dr. S Faizi
36. Enakshi Ganguly
37. Farhat
38. Farhan Rahman, Research Scholar, Ranchi
39. Feroze Mithiborwala, National Convener, Bharat Bachao Andolan, Mumbai
40. Forum Against Oppression of Women (Organisation)
41. Gautam Bhattacharya
42. Geeta Kapur, Art Historian and critique
43. Geeta Seshu, Co-editor, Free Speech Collective
44. Ghulam Moyiuddin Faruki, New York
45. Gurumoorthy
46. H. C. Satyarthi
47. Hasina Khan, Feminist
48. Harsh Kapoor, Independent Researcher, Delhi
49. Hartman de Souza, Writer and Teacher
50. Hindal Tyabji
51. Imran Khan, Independent Theatre Artist
52. Indira Chandrasekhar, Publisher and Activist
53. Irfan Engineer, Director, Centre for the Study of Society & Secularism, Mumbai
54. Irfan Khan
55. J.S. Bandukwala, Professor of Physics (retd), Vadodara
56. Javed Anand, Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy, Mumbai
57. John Dayal, Author and Activist
58. Jyoti Punwani, Freelance Journalist Mumbai
59. K. M. Shrimali, Professor of History (retd), University of Delhi
60. Kasim Sait, Businessman, Philanthropist, Chennai
61. Kavitha Lankesh, Filmmaker
62. Keval Arora
63. Kirti Singh, Lawyer and Womens Rights Activist
64. Kumar Samatahala
65. Lalita Ramdas, Peace Activist
66. Lyndon Saldanha
67. M.K.Raina
68. Madangopal Singh
69. Madhu Prasad, Professor (retd), Delhi University
70. Madhusree Dutta
71. Mansoor Sardar, Bhiwandi
72. Masooma Ranalvi, Co-Founder, India Lead,WeSpeakOut, Delhi
73. (Prof.) Mazhar Mehdi (JNU, New Delhi)
74. Meera Dewan, Filmmaker
75. Mohammed Imran, Lucknow
76. (Prof) Mohammad Sajjad Aligarh Muslim University (AMU)
77. (Prof.) Mohan Rao
78. Mukhtar Khan, Mumbai
79. Mukta Srivastava
80. Mumtaz Shaikh
81. Muniza Khan, Gandhian Institute, Academic & Activist, Varanasi
82. NS Shankar
83. Najid Hussain, USA
84. Nandan Maluste, entrepreuner and civil rights activist
85. Nagaragere Ramesh
86. Nasir Tyabji, formerly with Jamia Millia Islamia
87. P A Azeez
88. P.K.Shukla
89. Pamela Philipose, Senior Journalist
90. Parcham Collective
91. Parthiv Shah, photographer
92. Peggy Devaraj
93. Persis Ginwalla
94. Pradeep
95. Pradeep E, Bangalore
96. Premachandra U
97. Priyanka
98. Prabhat Patnaik, Prof Emeritus, JNU
99. Qamarjahan, Lucknow (Prof. retd)
100. Dr. Qaiser Shamim, Delhi
101. Qurban Ali, Senior Journalist, Delhi
102. Qutb Kidwai, Social Activist, Mumbai
103. (Dr) Ram Puniyani, Author, Social Activist
104. R.B.Sreekumar, former DGP, Gujarat
105. R Manohar
106. Rajinder Arora
107. Ram Rahman, Photographer
108. Ramachandran
109. Ramesh Dixit. social activist and academician. Lucknow
110. Razia Patel, Academic-Social Activist, Pune
111. Romar Correa
112. Rosey
113. Rudrashish Chakraborty
114. S.V. Raghurama Rao, Professor
115. Sabah Khan, Parcham, Mumbai
116. Dr. Sabiha Alam, Academic, Delhi
117. Sachin Chavan
118. Salim Yusuf, Lawyer-teacher, Bhiwandi
119. Sandhya Panaskar, Activist
120. Sayed Riyaz Raheem, Poet, Mumbai
121. Saurobijay Sarkar
122. Shabnam Hashmi, Social Activist, New Delhi
123. Shakeel Azmi, Poet
124. Shalini Dhawan, Designer, Mumbai
125. Shamsul Islam, Associate Professor University of Delhi (retd) and street theatre practitioner
126. Shama Angelina Chatterjee
127. Shamim Abbasi- Ghazipur
128. (Dr) Shahnawaz Alam, Asst Professor
129. Sheela Sridhar
130. Shweta Damle
131. Simantini Dhuru, Documentary Film Maker, Mumbai
132. Sohail Hashmi, Writer, Film Maker, Heritage Activist, Delhi
133. Subhan Bande
134. Suhel B
135. Sujata Gothoskar
136. Sumit Chowdhury
137. Syed
138. Syed Sarwar Hussain, Writer, Patna
139. Syed Tehsin Ahmed, Political Activist, Delhi
140. (Dr) Teesta Setalvad, Author, Journalist, Activist
141. Tushar Gandhi, Peace, Rights and Liberalism Influencer
142. Vasanthi Raman, (Prof., retd), New Delhi
143. Vicky
144. Vinita Balekundri, Maharashtra Hawker Federation
145. Vivan Sundaram, Artist and Activist
146. Wan Manan
147. Yaqoob Rahi (Poet, Mumbai)
148. Zafar Agha, National Herald, Delhi
149. Zafar Bakht, Allahabad
150. Zaheer Ali, Chairman, Centre for Promotion of Democracy and Secularism, Mumbai
151. Zakir Sardar Naufil Arya, Poet, Agra
152. Zoya Hasan, Professor Emerita, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)
