Have political parties, but spare the pious iftar

Iftar parties in the capital are falling into a rut - the president and the vice president's iftars have taken place while Sonia Gandhi and Shiela Dikshit are about to host their parties. There are so many of them that it is difficult to tell who was the first one to break the ice this year!

Almost all political hawks, big and small, jump on the iftar bandwagon in their effort to portray their special love and affection for the cajoled and beleaguered Muslim community. What is very interesting is that most of the invitees are non-Muslims and the few Muslims who are part of it are the ones who never observe fasting.

It is observed that token representation from old Delhi, Zakir Nagar and trans-Yamuna areas and senior bureaucrats and politicians are invited to mingle next to beautifully laid-out buffets. The idea is perhaps to show that politicians are one with the minority community.

Mufti Mukarram Ahmed, the imam of the Shahi Fatehpuri Masjid in Delhi and a pious 'rozedar' (one who fasts), hates the politicisation of iftars and points out that more than 90 percent people at such dos do not observe the fast. Besides, the fast is nullified if the iftar material is bought with money from bribes and he wants this practice to stop.

Ramadan, the ninth month according to the Islamic calendar, happens to be the most pious month as it was during this month that the holy Quran was revealed to the last Prophet, Hazrat Mohammed. There is no room in it for lies, hypocrisy and politics. If ever there was blatant hypocrisy indulged by the political hawks, it is the "iftar party". There can be other political dinners; the pious iftars ought to be spared.

What hurts is that iftar tokenism is indulged not just by those who see Muslim minorities as a bunch of illiterate and ghettoised vote banks. These iftar sessions are also held by those who see the Muslim community as the punching bag. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that leaves no stone unturned to prove that Indian Muslims are antinational seeks to mellow the animosity by throwing big designer iftar parties with elaborate menus. I remember the iftar at Hyderabad House by then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998 - an occasion that seemed to implore the Muslim community to wash away the Babri mosque imbroglio and its aftermath.

It is believed that these iftar parties began some time in 1975 after the Turkman Gate riots during the Emergency. The late Inder Mohan, activist of the PUCL (People's Union for Civil Liberties), told me that Indira Gandhi started the practice to appease the angry Muslims of Delhi, at the behest of Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna. That is when the tradition of iftar diplomacy began. In the first of these iftar parties, the people invited included a selective gathering of ambassadors and diplomats, top politicians, celebrities from the fields of media, sports, films and business.

Indira Gandhi's plea was - and rightly so - that such parties provide an opportunity to mix with the public and it was for a festive cause. She believed that iftars create an air of better understanding between the people of various communities and that they are truly secular.

Iftar dinner parties began in Delhi's political circus when Indira Gandhi was wooing Muslims. But now they have become mandatory, especially for the ruling party.

Iftars, like all else in the land of Mercedes, Fords, Cielos and cellular wielding cronies, have transformed over the years.

In today's iftars we find that tradition has given way to designer decorations and the mian bhais of Delhi's glitterati! The food too has been adapted to various tastes with Punjabi being in the driver's seat - Amritsari fish amidst sheermal and mutton qorma.

The way iftar invitations are sent is ridiculous! One person in the office prepares the list. Another dispatches them. Yet another receives invitees at the gate.

It becomes a very impersonal affair. After the Congress, every party arranged political iftars "religiously". The roza is basically a religious ritual and there are certain tenets to be followed as far as roza iftar is concerned. Though no dishes are specified like the ones at the political iftars, the real iftar is rather simple -- consisting of kachalu (fruit mixture), pakodas, dates, water etc. Since Islam believes in sharing, it is recommended that iftar be shared with members of the family, friends and the not so privileged.

The ministerial iftars make a mockery of Ramadan. The purpose of an iftar congregation was basically to serve food to the downtrodden and the deprived. By indulging in iftar diplomacy, politicians make a mockery of this otherwise very solemn and dignified rite. In one BJP iftar last year, the moment the time of breaking the fast approached, thousands of people (bearded and un-bearded) fell on the food and everything was over within seconds, leaving nothing for the poor rozedar.

Maulana Abdul Hameed Rehmani, the Ahl-e-Hadees scholar, states that iftar is a religious and personal activity and should not be interfered in a political manner that mocks at iftar. But Maulana Jameel llyasi, president of the All India Imams' Association, is of the view that such iftars are socially viable as people belonging to various backgrounds feast with one another.

Some years ago, Hyderabad House was booked for H.D. Deve Gowda's first iftar party as prime minister. Preparations began well in advance as a menu of standard iftar dishes was prepared. But Gowda's men struck down a few non-vegetarian items to include the humble farmer's favourites - sambar, dosa and bisi bela bhat. Well, if I tell you the secret, democracy triumphed over sheermal! On the day of the iftar, as Gowda welcomed his 700-strong gathering, a combined aroma of uthapam and seekh kebabs arose from the kitchen puzzling old timers. In fact that served as the appetizer. Even haleem was there in pure Hyderabadi style.

Some regular iftar buffs eagerly wait for this holy month and the most sought-after iftar invitations for them are those of the president, prime minister and of some ministers. Various approaches are used to pocket an invitation.

"It is high time to move from symbolism to realism, from tokenism to service," says Khwaja Iftekhar Ahmed, president of the Inter Faith Harmony Foundation of India. He adds that the Sachar committee report and recommendations are an eye opener for the whole Indian society and also for the Muslim community to join their heads and hands together to undertake the gigantic task of uplifting the second largest majority of India.

For the last couple of years, the iftar session where Sonia Gandhi spends more time is the one considered a success in the Congress. Similar is the case in the BJP. Their iftar success is measured by whether Vajpayee and Advani attend them. In Mumbai, Bal Thackeray commands the same respect in his circles as Sonia in the Congress.

Indo-Asian News Service