JEDDAH, 26 February 2004 — The Forum for Democracy and Communal Amity (FDCA) plays a major role in promoting peaceful coexistence among the various communities in India, according to T.K. Hussein, the organization’s secretary in Kerala.
Speaking to Arab News, Hussein, who was in the Kingdom to perform Haj with his wife Safiya, called on Indians to support the FDCA’s activities to prevent communal riots and reinforce peace and stability in the country.
Established in 1993 following the demolition of Babri Masjid by Hindu extremists on Dec. 6, 1992, the organization is led by prominent figures such as Justice V.M. Tharkunde (the chairman), former Foreign Secretary Muchkund Dubey, former Supreme Court Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer, Swami Agnivesh of Arya Samaj and journalist Kuldip Nayyar.
“Our organization not only stands for human rights but also interferes effectively when they are violated,” explained Hussein. It had been instrumental in promoting human rights all over the country, he said.
Spelling out its achievements in Kerala, he said it had presented 12 proposals to solve the advisasi (aborigines) problem in Waynadu. Kerala’s Chief Minister A.K. Antony has “commended” the report on violence in Nadapuram and had said he would consider it “seriously”, he pointed out.
Hussein said people have been happy with the FDCA’s activities. The organization’s visit to Marad, where Hindu extremist organizations drove out some 500 Muslim families following the murder of seven Hindus in a revenge attack by Muslim extremists, helped in reducing communal tension in the coastal area close to Calicut.
Hussein, a member of Jamaat-e-Islami’s consultative Shoura Council in the south Indian state and in charge of its human service development, said Jamaat had decided to expand its humanitarian activities, especially among the poor in coastal and rural areas.
He said the organization was using its own manpower to carry out many of its humanitarian projects. “We run 225 interest-free banks with a total capital of 30 million rupees in the state,” he said.
The Indian Association for Islamic Economists under the Jamaat had presented plans to teach interest-free banking at Calicut University. The university’s syndicate would shortly take a decision on the matter, he said.
