On Tuesday, the campus of Jamia Millia Islamia was decorated with rangolis and lit with diyas as part of Diwali celebrations before students headed home for the holidays. Organised by student groups and Rashtriya Kala Manch, the event, titled ‘Jyotirmaya 2024’, was intended to be a cultural gathering featuring music, a rangoli competition, and the raising of Islamic slogans.
According to the media reports, the event was disrupted when these students protested the Diwali festivities, raising slogans like ‘Nara-e-Taqbeer’ and to the shock of attendees, chants of ‘Palestine Zindabad’ in support of Palestine. As tensions increased, the sloganeering became more intense, drawing attention to political issues far removed from the festive occasion. What started as a celebration of light and unity turned into a scene of division as these students voiced opposition, linking their protest to broader geopolitical issues.
Islamists quickly took to social media, claiming that tensions flared on the campus, leading to clashes between Hindus and Muslims, supposedly sparked when Hindus started chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’. This reaction comes as if chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ during a festival that celebrates Lord Ram’s return to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile is somehow blasphemous.
This is not the first time that Jamia Millia Islamia has witnessed opposition to Hindu festivals. In March 2023, students disrupted the celebration of Holi on campus. The event, named ‘Rangotsav’ and organized by the university students, was meant to mark the Hindu festival, but it quickly turned into a scene of unrest as students opposed the festivities.
Referring to the event’s poster inviting students to ‘Ragotsav’, a student wrote on X, ‘Sahih Hadiths suggest that it is not allowed to participate in the festivals of disbelievers. When Hindus in India are oppressing Muslims and burning them alive just because they eat beef, still you’d want to celebrate it with them?’
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