This slogan – recently amplified along with messages by Hindu nationalist accounts in the wake of the Shraddha Walkar murder case – suggested that all Abduls, or Muslims, might be potential killers, and those who did not share this essentialist belief were naive Hindu girls. Sections of the mainstream media too, in as many words, have vilified a community over the incident, in its reliance on the trope of “love jihad”: the conspiracy theory that Muslim men are ensnaring Hindu women as part of an organised network to convert Hindus to Islam and make India an Islamic state.
But Abdul the Evil isn’t just behind “love jihad”. On Monday, a Sudarshan News show accused Abduls of waging “vyaapaar jihad”, or “business jihad”. The anchor of the show – headlined “love jihad mein 35 tukde, vyaapaar jihad mein 80 tukde” – asked if one has to pay “with one’s life for a friendship with or love for Abdul”. “Do you feel that befriending a Muslim means giving your life?” asked anchor Mukesh Kumar on his show Jawaab To Chahye.
The anchor cited a murder case in Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh, where one Yunus Ansari allegedly killed his business partner Vikas Giri over a rumoured love affair with the former’s sister, and dumped the body in a forest after allegedly chopping it into 80 pieces. The incident came to light after Giri’s father lodged a missing complaint four months ago, with the police subsequently claiming to have arrested Ansari and discovered bones in the forest. Police earlier told Times Now that Ansari has confessed to the crime and alleged that he killed Giri for allegedly molesting one of his sisters in her house.
“Giri and Ansari form a friendship which turns into brotherhood and subsequently a business partnership. And after this comes forth Yunus Ansari’s jihadi agenda,” said the Sudarshan News anchor, alleging that Ansari had his eyes on Giri’s business and decided to murder him to grab his belongings. “It is important to know this unique story of business jihad to learn a lesson or help avoid any harm to life and property.”
Before moving on to a panel discussion on the subject, the anchor introduced a report on the incident, which alleged that Yunus had trapped Vikas in “vyaapaar jihad” just like Aftab Ameen Poonawalla had ensnared Shraddha Walkar in “love jihad”.
“Kya ganga-jamuni tehzeeb aur bhaichaare ki baat karne waali Shraddha aur Vikas Giri ki hum kya bali dete rahenge? Kya Abdul se pyaar ya dosti ki keemat jaan dekar hi chukaani padegi? Kya Abdul jaison ke saath vyaapaar karna aur partner banana aatmhatya karne ke baraabar hai? Aur Hinduon ki aapsi phoot ka faayda Abdul jaise log utha rahe hain?” Kumar asked, having clarified at the very outset who Abdul and the likes of him were.
“Will we continue sacrificing the likes of Shraddha and Vikas Giri who continue talking about ganga-jamuni tehzeeb and brotherhood,” the anchor asked. “Are people like Abdul exploiting the divisions among Hindus?”
This story was originally published in newslaundry.com . Read the full story here