‘Keep the mullahs and pundits away, let sensible people talk’

Renuka Narayanan caught up with the ‘sandbag Sufi’, the Hurriyat’s Abdul Gani Bhat

Over a sparse breakfast of toast and marmalade with coffee (he grimaces at a bowl of nutritious dalia), outgoing Hurriyat chairman Abdul Gani Bhat typifies paradox.

A ‘sandbag Sufi’, if one may so call him, the former Persian alumnus of Aligarh, who had to quit Sopore College because of his anti-India classroom propaganda, left New Delhi late last week after a low-key trip ‘‘to assess the situation. But the path is not clear to me yet’’.

His party, the Muslim Conference, is the oldest separatist voice in the Valley and allegedly the largest beneficiary of ISI funding. Yet, Bhat’s own brother was killed by the Mujahideen. It is Valley folklore that when his confrere Syed Ali Shah Geelani (now a guest of the Indian Union) came to condole on the fourth day, Bhat refused his sympathy.

‘‘I am a dreamer,’’ he says ruefully, about the reversal of politicising his teaching tenure while sounding professorial as a politician. Born to a family of well-to-do orchardists in Batengu village, Sopore, the bachelor Bhat is locally called a qalandar (mendicant) of frugal habits. His addictions are cricket (he says his heart thumps when it’s an Indo-Pak match), cigarettes, poetry and visiting the tombs of Sufi saints.

In New Delhi, his favourite place is the ziyarat of the 13th century Sufi, Qutb’uddin Bakhtiyar Kaki in Mehrauli, the capital’s oldest historical settlement. On his three-day trip, the professor managed two visits. ‘‘I love its simplicity. It has a true qalandaria air about it. The grave is so large, it gives you a feeling of breadth—of a big man with big vision. Best of all, it is un-crowded and peaceful.’’

For all his affiliation with orthodox Islamic political parties, Bhat’s own views are startlingly liberal and secular. On the sensitive issue of hijab, he categorically states: ‘‘Dress is a matter of geography and culture. You, as a woman of the tropics might find me very funny, bundled up in my phiran and topi. I, as a Kashmiri, might be shocked, seeing how much skin is shown in a sari. But we must respect each other’s backgrounds. Blindly copying the Europeans will destroy us both. But there should be no coercion of women in the name of religion. Heavyhanded-ness in any area, in fact, is uncivilised.’’

Bhat has equally firm views on bridging the communal divide. ‘‘The historical suffering of each community—Hindu, Muslim, Sikh—has been passed on from generation to generation. Is sailaab ko chalne diya (This tide was allowed to keep flowing). This is the reality and the riddle. The negative view is to pass this on till qayamat (doomsday). The positive view is to let go of the past, grasp the future. Each community must do this. There are both longterm solutions and immediate steps to achieve this.’’

Specifically, Bhat urges education as ‘‘the main long-term tool for social transformation’’. But, he cautions, ‘‘that is such a long process that we may all be finished before it takes effect. Meanwhile, we should understand ourselves. Who am I? I am a Muslim. I am not a Hindu. Who are you? You are a Hindu, you are not a Muslim. But beyond that, who are we? The clash in our thoughts is resolved if we realise we come from the One, that God is our father and mother.’’

‘‘Administration and media are two other important factors,’’ continues Bhat. ‘‘Administrators have to be swift and strict. Wrongdoers must be instantly punished, or it spoils public confidence. Media’s role is all-important. The BBC’s initial Babri Masjid coverage was unqualified. They kept saying ‘the Hindus, the Hindus’. This had worldwide repercussions. Exactly like that, when Godhra first happened, if the media had said that the matter was being investigated instead of instantly blaming the Muslims ... and now forensic reports say that the fire was caused from within.’’

The minority will come out of the ghetto, feels Bhat, ‘‘if the majority reassures them. The mullah is not my god. He can’t stop me from leaving the ghetto on my own, if psychologically I feel welcome in the mainstream. I know very well that the majority can kill off the minority in one day, if it so chooses. But if I feel secure about belonging, mullah ke grip se chutkara paaonga (I will be released from the mullah’s grip).’’

The swiftest solution, according to Bhat, ‘‘is for the communities to commingle. For this, don’t call mullahs and pundits. Call sensible people from each side, people who can think, who can lead forward, who know what life is about. Once, the Bhakti movement cleansed hearts and brought people together. Let us again throw out caste and regionalism, let us appreciate each other with genuine perspective, with no putting down of each other’s religion. Bring the Sufi principle of one-ness into the mainstream, perhaps we can finally live in peace. But as the Arabic saying goes, ‘‘Ann’aasu alladeeni mulookihim, which means Yatha raja, tatha praja’. As the ruler, so the people.’’