The Muslim Gujjar community mainly, involved in dairy farming in Punjab, is bearing the brunt of the misdeeds committed by the orthodox Muslim organisation, Tablighi Jamaat.
As per a recent report, the farming community has approached the Punjab government stating that a number of them are facing ostracization during supply of milk to the dairies, which is crucial for the survival of many in the community.
According to them, this economic boycott has started after two Tablighi Jamaatis tested positive for the novel Wuhan virus in the Ludhiana district of Punjab- one in Rajgarh village on Sunday and the other in Chowkimaan village, the next day. Both of them had attended the fateful religious gathering at the Nizamuddin Markaz last month that has caused a huge spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in India.
Unfortunately, the families of both these Tablighis are engaged in the profession of supplying milk to the dairies. Both the villages barred the entry of Muslim Gujjars, due to which police had to intervene.
The two infected Tablighis too remained uncooperative with the police and other state authorities, as has been the case with the Tablighi Jamaatis across all parts of the country.
In Rajgarh, the Tablighi in question had participated in the religious gathering at the Nizamuddin Markaz, but he told the police that he had gone to Hyderabad.
The other man, who has tested positive from the Chowkimaan village had gone around preaching in Samrala and nearby areas, when he came back to Punjab after attending the religious gathering of 8000 odd preachers at the Tablighi Jamaat gathering in Delhi.
While this issue is said to have been resolved in Punjab, it really brings to light how innocent and uninfected Muslims too could face discrimination and ostracization, including in the form of economic boycott due to the Tablighi Jamaat fiasco.
Tablighi Jamaat attendees have been found misbehaving with the authorities, even spitting at them in a brazen attempt to infect them.
They have also attacked authorities, including women health officials across the country when they went searching for the Tablighi Jamaatis who had attended the trans-national conference at the Alami Markaz Banglewali Masjid in Nizamuddin, Delhi.
Now, as per recent reports, Tablighi Jamaat members headed back to their homes in Uttar Pradesh after attending the religious gathering in Delhi were distributing sweets on the way, seemingly in an insidious attempt to infect their fellow passengers.
The manner in which Tablighi Jamaat held a conference amidst the Coronavirus outbreak and prohibitory orders in force, and followed it up with serious misdemeanours has caused a trust deficit with the society at large.
Tablighi Jamaat has instilled a sense of panic and fear within the society at large. This feature is not limited to Punjab alone, and if there are cases of Muslims getting economically boycotted, it is the Tablighi Jamaat to blame for it.
The Tablighi Jamaat Super Spreaders have wreaked havoc in the country, and the innocent Muslims too are unfortunately paying its price.