The day USCIRF termed India “Anti-Muslim”, a country of 80% Hindus was crying for a Muslim

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) published a blemished report stating that Islamophobia was on a rise in India. Making deliberate misinterpretations about enactments like the CAA and Article 370 abrogation, this sham of a Federal Commission recommended the State Department to designate India as a “country of particular concern” next to the likes of Pakistan, North Korea, and China. Of course, before you take this organization any seriously, it is the same body that had once recommended denial of US tourist visa to PM Modi after the Gujarat riots when he was the Gujarat Chief Minister.

India has, of course, seen through the prejudices of the Commission and the Ministry of External Affairs has termed the report as “biased and tendentious”. “We regard it (USCIRF) as an organization of particular concern and will treat it accordingly.” the MEA spokesperson had announced.

However, on the day when the USCIRF condemned India for its alleged Anti-Muslim stance and came out with the highly-contentious report, the imprudent religious freedom panel should have seen what was transpiring across the country. Something unique that depicted the reality of India and quashed the beliefs of USCIRF.

The revered actor Irrfan Khan, 53, died on 29 April at the Kokilaben Hospital in Mumbai after a long drawn battle with a neuroendocrinal-disorder. The moment the news of his death broke out, the entire nation was pushed into mourning for the brightest star of the cinema world.

The entire nation has been pushed into mourning by the news of Irrfan Khan’s untimely demise. In an industry where without influence, nepotism and power, seldom can anyone make the cut, Irrfan Khan emerged as a living legend.

The doe-eyed actor was loved and admired by people irrespective of their age, political affiliations, or religion. From children to the elderly to Hindus and Muslims, all seemed to be awestruck by Khan’s powerful performances. 

So when he breathed his last, the Indians did not think of him as a Muslim, they thought of him as an individual and as an artist that had touched their lives. A country of 80 percent Hindus was mourning the death of a Muslim and that very well reinforces the belief in India that despite our differences, we are together as one.

Even the world-renowned author Paulo Coelho remembered Khan and recited averse from Bhagwat Gita to convey his respects for the departed soul.

A Twitter user beautifully pointed out that a Christian was paying tribute to a Muslim using a Holy Hindu scripture.

https://twitter.com/KhosoSaalim/status/1255707148660727808

What Coelho depicted through his tweet is what happens in India on a daily regular basis. The cliché line that ‘India hates the Kasab’s and the Tablighi’s, not Abdul Kalam’s and Irrfan’s’ holds true in this setting.

Calling out Tablighi’s for their deranged behavior does not quantify as Islamophobia and if it is in the books of this organization then so be it—they can go on and publish 100’s of such reports but the truth will shine as bright as the Sun that the social fabric of the country is stronger—much more than ever.

USCIRF should have seen the pictures, the adulation Khan received—be it from a metropolitan like Delhi, or a small town like Ranchi in Jharkhand or Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh, the actor’s fans from every nook and corner of the country across religious lines collectively had a moist-eye for him.

In an industry where without influence, nepotism and power, seldom can anyone make the cut, Irrfan Khan emerged as a living legend. This is perhaps a fundamental reason as to why for many, the death of Khan has come across as a personal loss.

The secular media and the entire left-ecosystem weaves a narrative that Indian Muslims are in danger and through such reports, they want to validate their self-beliefs on the layman. But the reality that nearly all of the country, including Hindus, were mourning for a Muslim—speaks volumes about the falsehood being propagated.

The void left by Irrfan will be difficult to fill but we as Indians would forever cherish the fact that we had the fortune to watch the master-craftsmen weave his magic on the silver-screen in flesh and blood and for that, we will be eternally grateful. Hopefully, USCIRF rises above its motive to promulgate communal discord through biased reports and understand the ground-reality.