The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has strongly objected to making the participation of schools compulsory in International Yoga Day celebrations, and has asked Muslims to stay away from
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has strongly objected to making the participation of schools compulsory in International Yoga Day celebrations, and has asked Muslims to stay away from the event.
The board had firmly opposed the involvement of Muslim children on Yoga Day in 2015 also. In 2016, they said that they may have to seek legal redressal as the Modi government failed to take cognisance of their objections.
“This is an attack on the constitutional framework and against the spirit of democracy. Muslim children should not be forced to attend the yoga programmes,” said Zafaryab Jilan, a senior member of the AIMPLB.
They has already opposed the inclusion of surya namaskar in schools and said that such programmes amount to interference in personal religious freedom.
The AIMPLB in 2015 had set up a committee to decide on a campaign against this move.
“Hindu rituals cannot be imposed on Muslims and vice versa. Even though the chanting of ‘om’ has been exempted, the compulsory participation of Muslim children in the event is objectionable. After all , the majority of the participants will be chanting ‘om’, which will add to the discomfort of our children”, he explained.
Meanwhile, the Rashtriya Muslim Manch , which owes allegiance to the RSS, has already published a book on “Yoga aur Islam”which explaisn that opposition to Yoga is uncalled for. The 32 page booklet says that ‘Namaaz’ is also a form of a Yoga asan and Yoga is not un-Islamic. Meanwhile, several other Muslim outfits have also expressed solidarity with the AIMPLB and se the Yoga Day as a move by the Modi government to saffronize education, as declared by union minister fo state for human resources development Ram Shankar Katehria.
