Ahmadiyyas’ Quran exhibition cut short by protests,Bukhari detained

The exhibition showcased the Holy Quran in 53 languages,translated by Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat. It was scheduled to be held from September 23 to 25,between 11 am and 8 pm daily. The organisers put up a board reading ‘Exhibition Closed’ outside the main entry around 2.15 pm on Saturday.

A contingent of police,some in riot gear,was also deployed at the spot.

As the protests grew,police took a few persons,including the Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid and his younger brother,in preventive custody.

According to police,at least 56 people were detained from the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Marg in Daryaganj. “They were planning a rally towards the Constitution Club. We took them into preventive custody so that law and order is not disturbed,” said a senior police officer.

The exhibition faced stiff opposition from all Muslims groups in Delhi,including members of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. On Friday,Kamaal Farooqui,a member of the Board,had camped outside the venue “educating people walking out of the exhibition that Ahmadiyya are not Muslims,and that they have no right to meddle with Quran”.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat has been ostracised by Muslims in countries like Iran,Iraq and Pakistan and declared “non-Muslims” for their different and allegedly “faulty” understanding and interpretation of the Quran.

Shahi Imam Syed Ahmad Bukhari,who was detained at the Daryaganj police station,told Newsline over the phone: “I will not leave jail till the exhibition of Quran is closed.”

“Scholars across the world and in India have given a collective verdict that Ahmadiyyas are not Muslims. Musalmanon ke libaas mein yeh exhibition kar rahein hain. Apna literature distribute kar rahein hain… bhole bhalay musalmanon ko gumrah kar rahein hain (They are posing as true Muslims,but are distributing their own literature. They are misleading innocent Muslims),” he said.

He alleged that Ahmadiyyas,also known as Qadiani,have made changes in the Quran. “We are saying that they can do whatever they want,but they should stop using the name of Islam/Muslims and Quran for their propaganda,” he said.

Imam Bukhari also blamed the Congress. “The hall for the exhibition has been booked by Congress MP Pratap Singh Bajwa. When we asked him to cancel the booking,he refused,” he said.

Bajwa is MP of Gurdaspur in Punjab,the base of Ahmadiyyas in India.

Syed Tanvir,Secretary of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat-India,told Newsline,“This is an unfortunate incident. We were trying to raise awareness on the teachings of the Quran among all. This is a propanganda against us. It was a good opportunity for everybody to see and know for themselves what Quran teaches.

“We are true Muslims; we follow all the basic tenets of Islam… We do not require a certificate of being a Muslim from anyone,” he said.

For the exhibition,the community had sent invites to embassies,colleges and schools. On display were translations of Quran in Kashmiri,Russain,Telugu,Igbo,Sarieki,Jula,Kikamba,Spanish,Fijian,Mende,Deutsch,etc.

Hameedah Habibullah,mother of former Chief Information Commissioner Wajahat Habibullah,who had come to see the exhibition on Saturday,expressed happiness over the display and dismay at the protests.

The Ahmadiyyas

The Ahmadiyya movement in India was founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad on March 23,1889,in Qadian,Punjab. This group believes that Ahmad was the “divine reformer” of Muslims. In fact,many leaders of the group call it the “revisionist” form of Islam. In India,they claim there are 2.5 to 3 lakh Ahmadiyyas.

The world-wide head of the Ahmadiyyas is Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad,who is from Pakistan but based in London. Newsline has learnt that Masroor Ahmad had advised Ahmadiyyas across the world to hold exhibitions of the Quran after a pastor allegedly called for Quran burning in Florida,US.