INDIAN ISLAM: DEOBANDI-BARELVI TENSION CHANGING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 000207 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA, DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/01/2020 TAGS: PGOV PTER PREL PINR KDEM KISL IN SUBJECT: INDIAN ISLAM: DEOBANDI-BARELVI TENSION CHANGING MAINSTREAM ISLAM IN INDIA Classified By: A/Political Counselor Les Viguerie for reasons 1.4 (B,D) ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Like most issues affecting the world's largest democracy, Islam in India presents a series of dichotomies. The Muslim population of India ranks as the second or third highest in the world and yet it is only a minority in India, representing 13.4 percent of the total population. Iconic celebrities such as Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan attract legions of fans, while millions of Muslims languish in poverty. Since independence, three Muslims have been appointed President, but Muslims are grossly under-represented in parliament and other elected bodies. Muslim millionaires like Azim Premji influence Indian markets, while the release of the Rajinder Sachar Committee Report in November 2006 revealed that Muslims in general fare worse in economic terms than India's Dalits (former Untouchables). These seeming contradictions reflect overall socioeconomic trends in India: a tiny percentage of Muslims thrive, while the vast majority struggle to support themselves. Indian Muslims are eager to catch up to their compatriots. Their Sufi heritage, promoting pluralism and tolerance, should leave them well-equipped to compete in secular India. However, lingering resentment from the Partition and external influences threaten to divide the community. With this overview cable focusing on the basic divisions of Indian Muslims, Mission India introduces a reporting series on Islam in India. END SUMMARY. Islam in India: Figures and Foundation -------------- ¶2. (U) According to the 2001 Census, over 138 million Muslims live in India, making it the second or third most populous Muslim country (Note - various estimates have Pakistan and India tied for second place. End Note). Most contacts believe this figure is under representative and predict the actual number is substantially higher, closer to 160 to 180 million Muslims. Despite their impressive numbers, Muslims are a minority in India representing only 13.4 percent of the total population. States with highest Muslim population include: Jammu and Kashmir (67 percent),Assam (30.9 percent),Kerala (24.7 percent),West Bengal (25.2 percent), and Uttar Pradesh (18.5 percent). Uttar Pradesh (UP) has the most Muslims, with a population of 30 million. The status of Muslims across India generally mirrors the general population, where development has been strongest in southern and western India. For example, Muslims in UP and West Bengal lag behind educationally and economically, while their counterparts in Kerala and Hyderabad fare slightly better. ¶3. (SBU) More than demographics, the key to understanding the subcontinent's Muslim population is appreciating the profound impact that Sufism has had on the nature and spread of Islam in India. The Sufi message of love and harmony promoted by Sufi saints and through its various orders, particularly the Chishti order, have profoundly shaped the experience of Islam in the subcontinent. Noted Islamic scholar Imam Mohammad Mian Mazhari noted that the Sufi "unorthodox approach," which accepted the local customs of South Asia, including Hindu influences, facilitated its spread in India. When Sufi Muslims came to India as far back as the 12th century they embedded older South Asian traditions with a syncretic Islamic tradition. Muslim contacts emphasize that Sufi Islam is "mainstream" Islam for both Sunnis and Shias. Sunni Muslims: Barelvi vs. Deobandi -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Over 85 percent of Indian Muslims are Sunni. Most contacts emphasize that because Muslims are a minority in India, they have traditionally avoided public disputes between Shias and Sunnis, although communal violence has NEW DELHI 00000207 002 OF 003 periodically flared up in Uttar Pradesh. Commentator Sultan Shahid told Poloff that Indian Muslims "expended their fighting instinct" on political battles against the Indian government or proponents of Hindutva (political Hinduism). However, Shahid and others explained that there is tension between two Sunni movements -- Barelvi and Deobandi -- rooted in differences in ideology, wealth, education, and views on reform. ¶5. (SBU) The Barelvi school, which proudly promotes the Sufi ideal of pluralism, considers itself "mainstream" Islam in India due to its large following of over 75 percent of Sunni Muslims. Many Barelvis converted to Islam from Hinduism and the Sufi influence allowed them to retain elements of their prior faith and culture. Unfortunately, they tend to lag behind economically and educationally. Imam Mazhari blamed the Barelvis' current lot on the Partition -- before Indian independence Barelvis sided with the Muslim League that supported the creation of Pakistan. The Interfaith Harmony Foundation's (IHF) Khwaja Iftikhar Ahmed agreed, adding that the move was in reaction to the Congress Party's alliance with the Deobandis. Barelvi contacts lamented that Partition heartburn has left them "politically orphaned." To this day, Barelvis resent the perceived Deobandi influence over the Congress Party and its allies, and the very public support the Congress party has thrown behind their rivals, including the appearance of the Home Minister and National Security Advisor at Deoband rallies over the past year. This chip weighs heavily on the Barelvis' shoulders, despite the fact that all 29 Muslims MPs and five Muslims cabinet members are Barelvi. ¶6. (SBU) Deobandis, who make up approximately 20 percent of India's Sunni population, follow a more puritanical version of Islam, shunning many Sufi traditions. Deobandis mainly reside in western UP and are the economic and educational elite of Indian Sunnis. The Deoband school, based in UP, has become a model of Islamic scholarship and graduates have founded Deoband institutions throughout South Asia and beyond. Compared to their Barelvi compatriots, Deobandis more closely resemble Wahhabis in their austere interpretation of Islam and more conservative stance on social issues, including the role of women. Journalist Sultan Shahin joked that Indians refer to Deobandis as "pink Wahhabis," despite vehement protests from Deobandis to the contrary. Deobandis have tried to distance themselves from Wahhabism because of the stigma associated with conservative Arab Muslims. Imam Mazhari estimated that less than five percent of the Indian Muslim population is made up of "true Wahhabis," but he fears the numbers are growing. ¶7. (C) Contacts have speculated that Deoband's wealth may be attributed to an influx of funding from Arab Wahhabis starting before Partition. According to IHF's Khwaja Iftikhar Ahmed, Deobandis have used the money to create a powerful system of madrasas that provide shelter and education to Muslims, including Barelvis, that would otherwise be unattainable. Deobandis have also made aggressive efforts to place Deobandi imams in mosques across India in hopes of influencing Barelvi communities. Urdu newspaper editor Zaheer Mustafa explains that Deobandi groups loosely connected to Wahhabi ideology donate money to dilapidated Barelvi mosques for repairs, then "appoint their own priest and slowly take over." Arshad Faridi of the Fatehpur Sikri Sufi shrine estimates that Deoband imams have taken charge of roughly one-fourth of Barelvi mosques over the past 15 years. He warned, "the younger Barelvis are being indoctrinated to a radicalized version of Islamic thinking with the help of this chain of Deobandi madrasas and Tablighi Jamaat volunteers (a conservative Muslim missionary group that emerged from the Deobandi sub-school of Hanafi jurisprudence)." Contacts agree that Deoband's strategy has NEW DELHI 00000207 003 OF 003 strengthened its "spiritual control" of India's Muslims, threatening the country's Sufi-influenced mainstream Islam. The political patronage of the ruling Congress party has also helped the number of Deobandis to swell. Shia Muslims - Searching for a New Identity -------------- ¶8. (U) The Pew Research Center estimates that approximately 16-24 million Shia Muslims live in India, making it the country with the third largest Shia population after Iran and Pakistan (Note - again estimates put India and Pakistan roughly on par with each other. End Note). Shias compose approximately ten percent of India's total Muslim population. According to commentator Zafar Agha, there are three main divisions of Shias in India: Asna-e-Ashari, the group to which the majority of Shias belong, residing in north India and Hyderabad; Dawoodi Bohras originally from Gujurat but now living in Maharastra; and Khojas, former traders who also migrated from Gujurat to Maharastra. ¶9. (SBU) Agha explained that historically Shias enjoyed the status of India's landlords. Unfortunately, this linked the fate of Shias to the decline of the landed property system after independence and Shias lost their political and economic clout. Agha admits that compared to Sunnis, Shias failed to adapt to the new democratic India, where numbers (i.e. votes) mattered and Shias fell short. They have struggled economically because employment had been viewed as beneath the Shia landholders. Agha observed that Shia youth, especially women, are changing the mind set in the community and exploring both high tech and traditional fields. Shias still retain large land holdings that were folded into Islamic charitable foundations -- Waqfs -- but some holdings were lost due to corruption and mismanagement. ¶10. (SBU) Shias are searching for a new political identity as well. According to Agha, Indian Shias tend to be more liberal and cosmopolitan and feel a kinship with higher caste Hindus. Historically, they have supported the Congress Party. Given the patrilineage of their imams, Shias easily relate to the dynastic politics of the Congress Party, including Congress heir apparent Rahul Gandhi of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. In certain elections Shias have thrown their support behind other parties, including the BJP, in retaliation for Congress' cozy relationship with Deoband. Both Agha and Imam Mazhari noted that Shia and Barelvi leaders have discussed forming a political alliance to counter Deoband and the increasing influence of Wahhabism. The alliance would balance each groups' strengths: Barelvis have the numbers and Shias have a higher level of education and more contact with the Indian elite. ¶11. (C) COMMENT. Barelvis' long-term fear of increased Wahhabi influence over Deoband leading to a more extreme form of Islam in India has lent a new sense of urgency to efforts to mobilize their community -- possibly with the help of a Shia alliance -- to regain control of mainstream Islam and their political fate. Such an alliance could motivate political parties to pay greater attention to the Muslim vote bank, especially in Uttar Pradesh where the Congress party has begun mobilizing for 2012 state elections. END COMMENT. ROEMER