Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband issued a fatwa against the chanting of slogan ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’, saying ‘there is only one God in Islam’.
It states that ‘idol worship is not permissible in Islam’ therefore Muslims should restrain themselves from chanting ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ — which has been portrayed as a Goddess carrying a trident in one hand and clad in saffron clothes.
The fatwa states that Muslims should restrain themselves from using the slogan as Islam condemns idol worship.
The fatwa, which was issued on March 19 by the seminary, came into light after it went viral on social media on Thursday evening.
The spokesperson of the seminary, Ashraf Usmani, said, “Scholars of Darul Ifta had issued fatwa in response to queries of people who sent letters along with portrait of Bharat Mata.”
He clarified that that idol worship is not permissible in Islam hence in light of the teachings of holy Quran and Hadees followers of Islam can’t say Bharat Mata Ki Jai, which has been portrayed as a Goddess carrying a trident in one hand and clad in saffron clothes.
“We love our country, but it is not our god. In Islam, we believe in only one God and hence it is against the faith of a Muslim to chant the slogan,” the fatwa issued by the Deoband seminary said.
“From Hussain Ahmad Madani to Maulvi Ahmadulla Shah, there is a long series of those freedom fighters who laid their lives for the independence of the mother land,” Usmani said.
“Darul Uloom has asked Muslims across the country to hoist the national flag on their houses and other establishments on Independence Day and also to celebrate this day with great spirit of patriotism,” he said.
Uloom’s action has caused major outrage and one of the first to react is Minister of State for Food Processing Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti on Friday where she said denying people to chant ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ slogan amounted to insulting the freedom fighters.
“It is showing the fundamentalist side of Islam. Denying ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ shows disrespect to martyrs of the country. It shows their mentality. They should understand that they are not living in Pakistan,” said Jyoti.
