"King Abdullah's interfaith dialogue initiative will usher in a new golden age of Islam," said Professor Madhav Das Nalapat, UNESCO peace chair and director of the Department of Geopolitics at Manipal University in India.
Speaking to Arab News, he described Islam as a tolerant religion. "King Abdullah's initiative indicates that Islam is a religion of tolerance and accommodates others views. The Prophet (peace be upon him) was extremely humane and tolerant while dealing with other people. He never imposed his point of view on anybody. King Abdullah's initiative is in line with the tenets of Islam and is a healthy development," he said.
He said the king's message should be spread to more countries in Asia, Africa and South America besides Europe and North America. "We have to carry this message to every single community. This is essential to remove the misconceptions about Islam."
He called for holding the next interfaith conference in Kerala, adding that the south Indian state is a model for peaceful coexistence of different faiths.
In his interview with Arab News, Nalapat said the Kashmir issue, which claimed the lives of thousands of people on both sides and caused losses to the tune of billions of dollars, could be solved once the two Asian neighbors establish closer relations in economic, social and cultural spheres. "Once their relations are normalized, it will be relatively easy to solve the Kashmir problem." He said the civil societies in both countries wanted peace.
"We have to think of one Asia and follow the example of Europe," he said and commended Saudi Arabia for its look-east policy.
The Indian journalist blasted the US and other Western forces for occupying Iraq and Afghanistan. “I was happy to see Saddam Hussein, who was a dictator, removed from power. At the same time, I was shocked to see an American occupation in Iraq. America should learn from India. After operations in Bangladesh, Indian forces withdrew within two months." He said the Iraqis and Afghans should be given full freedom to determine their future. He said Afghan national army should be given modern warplanes and weapons like those of NATO forces.
Asked about the standoff between Iran and the West on Tehran's controversial nuclear program, Nalapat said: "It would be a big mistake if they attack Iran, because Iran is not Iraq. Those in power are ruthless and will not hesitate to go to any extent. It will be very risky to go after Iran. The entire region will be in turmoil. It will be far better if they deal directly with the Iranian people. If they are given dignity and respect they would be peaceful and if you abuse or insult them they would become hostile."
According to Nalapat, reports about communal tension in India were exaggerated. "India is a very secular country where different communities live peacefully with dignity. There may be some exceptions. Some atrocities have been committed against minorities in Gujarat. At the same time, we should not forget that minorities in Kashmir are also persecuted. Wipro Chairman Azim Premji, one of the richest Indians, is a Muslim. There are so many prosperous Muslim business families in Kerala."
He called for changing the country's outdated Police Act in order to contain abuse by police forces "whose victims are not only members of a particular community." He said no community should isolate itself from the rest of India, adding that all should work together to find common solutions for their problems.
Professor Nalapat, who is the eldest son of the famous novelist and poetess Kamala Surayya, who was short-listed for the Nobel Prize in Literature on the strength of her poetry collection "Summer in Calcutta," said his mother had embraced Islam in 1980s. She was a Muslim for more than 25 years of her life. "She felt that the Qur'an is the word of God and Islam is a moderate and tolerant faith. She always told me that we could learn the qualities of compassion, tolerance and graciousness from the Qur’an. The Islam my mother embraced is not the Islam of fanaticism or terrorism or extremism. It's the Islam of peace, love and tolerance. She was happy in Islam to the last breath of her life." He denounced the demonization of Islam by its enemies in different parts of the world.
Nalapat said he had read the Qur’an several times and was convinced that it is the authentic word of God. "My only doubt is whether we are interpreting it correctly. I cannot agree with many hard-line interpretations. What is important now is that everybody should try to understand the exact meaning of the words that was conveyed during that time. We should also consider that the language and context have changed," he said and criticized the attitude of some scholars who think they know everything and what they say is final. "We should understand that we are very small in relation to the Almighty and in relation to the truth. We should make more efforts to understand the truth."
