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Is Anubhav Sinha A Jihadi Apologist? Here’s How The Distorter-In-Chief Peddles ‘Secular’ Propaganda

September 5, 2024
The Commune

With the series on the hijack of Indian Airlines flight IC 814 making the news again and again over its apologetic tone towards Jihadis, let’s take a look at Anubhav Sinha, his statements from the past and recently that makes him a Jihadi apologist. Here are a few gems from Sinha that will prove why he is one. 

Muslims Did Not Start Terrorism

During his film Mulk’s trailer launch, Anubhav Sinha is seen wearing a saffron scarf with the words Ram written on it. A journalist asked him why Muslim youths are taking to terrorism. In response, Anubhav Sinha said, “Do you watch the news? Do you read the papers? Yesterday, your country’s two ministers felicitated Hindus who indulged in riots. There ends the matter. I have answered your question.”

The audience, including actress Taapsee Pannu, started clapping, and he continued, “Why are they choosing? You must read a little bit of history. You have to do some research. It will take time. I cannot tell you (the press) in a short time why Muslims chose terr… Do you know who started terrorism? When was the word terrorism first used? Tell me. I am saying this for your information that Muslims did not start terrorism. Do you know that? Study history.”

Speaking at length about the film, he narrates how the country was formed, calls Jinnah secular who then stood for the Muslims, talks about how Kashmir was formed, and says, “We have no idea about Kashmir, and we are harbouring so much malice in our minds.”

I Saw Riots From Both Perspectives

Narrating instances from his youth with respect to Hindu-Muslim riots, he said, “When I was 12-13 years old, Emergency was just getting over. I lived in Benaras at that time and during that time Hindu-Muslim riots were a given. Every year there was a month when these riots happened – Benaras, Allahabad, Meerut, Moradabad. I belong to the Hindu (majority) population, we would read about the riots in the papers, people would die, shops would be burnt, and all that. However, the majority population was never affected by the riots. As the riots came to an end, life would come back to normalcy. In 1982, I went to Aligarh to study. There were not many Hindu students there. My batch had 3 or 4. The riots were continuing. But now I was a minority, and I saw it from a different perspective. I was among Muslims. All my friends would make me feel safe. But when I was in Hindu majority, most of them were not supporting the riots. When I was in Muslim majority, even then most of them did not support the riots. These riots are not connected with the governments.”

What Will We Achieve By Building Temple At Ayodhya?

Moving on to the 90s, he touches upon the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. He said, “In the early 90s, two important events took place. One was the rath yatra from the south to Ayodhya to support the construction of the temple in Ayodhya, the temple has not been built yet. I don’t know if it will be built, and if it is built so what? We have so many temples in the country that do not allow women to enter, women are not allowed to touch the murtis, and the Trust indulges in scams with the money. So if we build another temple, what will we achieve?”

Rath Yatra Took Up Screen Space That Should Have Been Given To Kashmiri Pandit Exodus

He further alleged that the Rath Yatra was the reason why the Kashmiri Pandit exodus was not given screen space. He said, “Another incident that happened in the 90s was that in Kashmir, many Kashmiri Pandits were chased out of that place. An exodus occurred. It was not reported much in those days, but it is spoken about today. It was not reported because there was not much TV then, no internet, and the newspapers were also less in numbers. The headlines were occupied by the Rath Yatra. Several 1000s of Hindu Pandits were displaced from there. Even today they are displaced and they live in refugee camps. No government did anything for them. All this happened. Then in 1993 Bombay bomb blasts happened and the case went on. 2002 saw a big incident in Gujarat and there was peace among Hindus and Muslims who decided that life is way tougher than this conflict. So they started dealing with life. For the past few years, it has changed again, it has taken a new form.”

Why He Is Anti-Hindu

Then he narrates an episode where a woman messages him on Facebook and asks him why he was so anti-Hindu. He said, “In the 53 years of my life, I have never been asked this question and why do I need to prove it? Why should a Muslim prove to anybody that he loves his country because if you put a gun to my head and say Jai Shri Ram, I will not do it. Call me anti-Hindu, call me pro-Muslim, call me tukde tukde gang, call me whatever you want. But if you want me to prove something about my religion or my country, first of all, I need to know who you are and I need to know why I need to prove this. We are living in such times that we have to prove that we love our country, that we respect our religion and also prove that we do not respect other religions. I have seen this conflict from both sides.”

Terrorism Is Not Islamic

In another video, where he is again seen with the saffron scarf that he wore for the Mulk trailer launch, in a discussion on NDTV, he said that terrorism was not Islamic but a Western construct. He said, “You know what happened with Muslims. They met with a problem, if we look back into history. Oil was found in Muslim countries. This is their fault. America wanted that oil so they reached there. Then turmoil began and people started dying. To cover all this news, a brand was necessary. That brand was what they made out of Islamic terrorism and this has been sold to us for the past 30. 40, 50 years through TV channels. Do you realise that corporate houses own TV channels? We bought that story. To reverse this story, it will take time. On a daily basis, every individual has to make an effort that this stereotype is broken.”

He further said, “I always say this, because of this Islamic terrorism, more number of Muslims have died. Do you know this? Where is the violence happening? In the Middle East. Who lives there? Muslims. So, Muslims are dying. Others die too but mostly Muslims are killing each other and these are not riots. This is not Islamic terrorism; this is terrorism because Islam would not say to kill Muslims, and it is the Muslims that are being killed. So it is not Islamic. When you separate these two, you will love your neighbor and help him because he is stuck. A taxi driver I spoke to tells me that people look at him with doubt in their minds. Imagine what he will feel like. he was born here; he will die here, and he will be buried in this soil. You are preventing yourself from loving him. Even if he wants to love you, you will look at him with doubt. So, he will walk away.”

Love For AMU

Speaking at an alumni meeting in his alma mater Aligarh Muslim University, wearing a traditional Muslim topi, he says, “The love between Hindus and Muslims has increased and not reduced. When I came to Aligarh to study, in December 1982, in Benaras in my neighbourhood, among my friends and family, it was considered as if I was going to Pakistan and even I thought so. To be honest, I was a bit selfish when I came here and thought yeah it might be Pakistan and I will just get my degree and return, do a job and that’s all. But when I came here and met people, made friends. I am meeting my old friends here 30 years later, and we met as if we were then. This university has given me so much – points to his topi and says it is symbolism you gave me this topi. It is our culture that has come from symbolism. They will make a hundred different stories because of this about me.”

Does Not Respond To Questions On Web Series

Anubhav Sinha had a tense exchange with a journalist during a press conference in Mumbai on Tuesday, 3 September 2024, when asked about the controversy surrounding his latest directorial, IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. Sinha, visibly frustrated, declined to address the issue, urging the reporter to watch the series first. When the journalist pressed further on the matter, Sinha’s patience wore thin. He sharply responded, “Have you watched the series?” before abruptly exiting the stage, leaving the question unanswered.

 

Anubhav Sinha’s so-called love for Jihadis, which is more likely an extended Stockholm syndrome owing to his life in AMU, is visible in his films such as Mulk and now IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack as well. From painting terrorists as human and saintly to showing them as faultless, Sinha is one true Jihadi apologist.

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