Muslims Condemn oppression against Sikhs

Dallas, Texas

We the Muslims, condemn the oppression of Sikhs in Taliban held territory of Pakistan, and urge the government of Pakistan to immediately put these lawless individual men behind bars for evaluation and rehabilitation. It is the duty of every government to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen.

A Muslim stands up against oppression, and the harassment of Sikhs by the Taliban is one that needs to be checked immediately. This is an act of gross arrogance of those in power abusing religion to their own end; we should not let bad guys use religion for their gain, shame on us if we let these evil men act in the name of Islam again, as they did on September 11. Time has come to put an end to this bullyism.

Oppression is one of the most evil elements in Islam and we have an obligation to stand up for that value.

We welcome the statement by the Indian Muslim Leaders and urge the Muslims leaders around the world to add their name in the comments section below. We also invite all such condemnations for posting on this site.

Please add your name, organization name to the list by clicking this link.

Mike Ghouse
World Muslim Congress
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Joint Statement of Indian Muslim leaders

Pakistani Taliban’s treatment of Sikhs in tribal areas is illegal and barbaric
We, religious, political and community leaders of the Indian Muslims, are alarmed at the reports coming out of Pakistan’s tribal areas about the Pakistani Taliban’s kidnapping, extortion of huge amounts of money from their Sikh compatriots as “Jizya” and demolition of the houses and shops of those who fail to pay the demanded sums.

We would like to say that Jizya is a tax paid in an Islamic state for exemption from military service by healthy non-Muslim adults who are free to follow their vocations without restriction or fear, and that there is no other tax payable by them after paying this tax, unlike Muslims who have to pay various taxes including Zakat and have to perform military service as well.

Jizya was payable by non-Muslims only in lands conquered by Muslims like Egypt, Syria and Iraq but not in unconquered areas like Madina where during the time of the Holy Prophet no Jizya was ever imposed on non-Muslim citizens who enjoyed equal rights and duties under the Constitution of Madina. For many centuries Jizya has not been levied by Muslim states and today even the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Islamic Republic of Iran do not levy Jizya on non-Muslims for the simple reason that non-Muslims in these states pay all taxes payable by others. Prominent Islamic scholars of the modern times like Shaikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi are of the view that Jizya should not be imposed now as non-Muslims are equal citizens of Muslim states and pay all taxes paid by other citizens and shoulder all the duties.

We wish to make it clear that the imposition of the so-called Jizya is nothing more than extortion by an armed and lawless gang which does not constitute a sovereign government or state or even an organ thereof. Moreover, Pakistan’s tribal areas are not “conquered lands” as their non-Muslim population has been living there for centuries. These areas were part of the British India and became part of the new State of Pakistan as a result of peaceful transfer of power on Partition.

As regards the huge amounts in millions reported to be demanded, these are arbitrary and exorbitant as the amount of annual Jizya paid by non-Muslims in early Islam was merely one to one and a half dinar, which is 4.24 gram to 6.36 grams of gold. Moreover, this tax was payable only at the end of the year and not in advance.

We regard this as an act of injustice incompatible with the letter and spirit of Islam and the international covenants accepted by all Muslim states.

We demand that the Pakistani authorities must take earliest steps to retrieve the extorted sums and pay them back to their affected non-Muslim citizens and facilitate their peaceful return to their homes and properties in their traditional homelands and give them all due protection.

Maulana Mufti Mukarram Ahmad
Shahi Imam, Jama Masjid Fatehpuri, Delhi
Hafiz Muhammad Yahya
President, All India Jamiat Ahl-e Hadees
Maulana Abdul Hameed Nomani
Secretary, Jamiat Ulama-e Hind
Syed Shahabuddin
Former PM & ex-President, All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat
Prof Tahir Mahmood
Member Law Commission of India
Mujtaba Farooq
Secretary, Jamaat-e Islami Hind
Maulana Ataur Rahman Qasmi
President, Shah Waliullah Institute, Delhi
Maulana Waris Mazhari
Editor, Monthly Tarjuman, Delhi
Dr Zafar Mahmood
President, Zakat Foundation of India
Dr SQR Ilyas
Member, Muslim Personal Law Board
Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan
President, All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat
Mirza Yawar Baig
President of Yawar Baig & Associates
Shahnawaz Ali Raihan
Secretary, Students Islamic Organisation

Issued at New Delhi on 2 May 2009

Issued by the All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat, Delhi
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