IMC-USA briefs organizations & Congressional staff on conditions of Muslims in India

Washington D.C., February 24, 2003: In commemoration of the one year anniversary of the Gujarat massacres, the Indian Muslim Council-USA (http://www.imc-usa.org) held a briefing today for Muslim organizations and Congressional staff members on the deteriorating conditions of Indian Muslims. The event was held from 12:30pm to 1:30pm in the press conference room of the Council on American Islamic Relations.

Zahir Janmohamed, National Outreach Director of the Indian Muslim Council-USA (IMC-USA), gave an overview of the conditions of Muslims and spoke about his own experiences working in the relief camps in Gujarat during the anti-minority violence in which thousands of Muslims were killed and raped. The documentary “Evil Stalks the Land” was also screened.

In his presentation, Janmohamed stressed, “We must not speak about Gujarat in the past tense. The conditions in Gujarat continue to deteriorate for Muslims. With the BJP and its affiliates firmly in power and calling the violence a ‘successful experiment,’ Muslims should be prepared for another Gujarat to occur, unfortunately sometime very soon.”

Janmohamed expressed concerns about violence erupting against Muslims in the upcoming weeks, given that extremist Hindu groups have convened in New Delhi, India, demanding the construction of the Ram Temple on the site of the razed Babri Mosque.

“If we wish to improve the conditions of minorities in India,” Janmohamed said, “We will have to mount a collective, dedicated, long-term campaign to apply international pressure to curb the rise of Hindu nationalist groups.

” IMC-USA will launch a nationwide series of public programs on February 27th with a press conference in Washington D.C., to mark the first anniversary of Gujarat carnage.

Contact person:

Zahir Janmohamed,
National Outreach Director
Indian Muslim Council-USA
1717 K Street NW Suite 600
Washington D.C., 20036
Tel: (202) 349-3967