10th Anniversary Issue
August - September 2003 

Year 10    No.90-91
MEDIA


 


‘Fair and fearless’

Hisam Siddiqui

A decade is a long time, during which anything can happen. More so if it is a journal born out of the passion and concern of a dynamic journalist couple devoted to the cause of combating communalism, which has escalated beyond all proportion in this period.

After the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on a black Sunday in December 1992, and the worst ever carnage that followed in Mumbai, everyone felt the urgent need for a journal/magazine that remained focussed on the communal question and fights communal forces head on. Teesta and Javed fulfilled this need and Communalism Combat appeared on the scene.

I have been among the lucky few who were well acquainted with Teesta and Javed from day one, when they were propelled into bringing out Communalism Combat. I have followed this journal closely throughout the ten years in which the couple has faced many ups and downs, but never faltered.

They have effectively combated the charge that their journal was ‘pro-Muslim’. Communalism Combat is so outspokenly honest against communalism of all kinds – not just in India but also in the subcontinent – that the charge has failed to stick.

The editors not only made it a point to flay the Taliban when they bombarded the historic Bamiyan Buddhas, but went to the extent of terming it an act of ‘barbarism’ while seeking to impress upon Muslims that the Islam of the Taliban was not real Islam.

They drew a stark comparison between Babri and Bamiyan, condemning the sacrilege in both cases in equally vehement terms. Glaring instances of racism in different parts of the globe have always found adequate space in the journal, which has negligible advertisement support. When Javed lashed out at the Indian government’s policy on providing Haj subsidy, he drew much criticism from quarters that questioned the government’s stand on doling out similar subsidies for the Mahakumbh and the Amarnath Yatra.

Being the editor and publisher of a weekly myself, I can understand the problems faced by any publication, especially a journal like Communalism Combat. Although the publication continues to be plagued by an extreme financial crunch, Teesta and Javed have never wavered. Combat’s rapidly growing credibility, if not its circulation figures, has kept it afloat, solely because of their dedication and unwavering commitment.

Communalism Combat’s evocative slogan, ‘Hate Hurts, Harmony Works’, sums up the approach of its editors who took real pains to bring out a comprehensive document on the genocide in Gujarat. A report that was clearly unbiased, as evident even in the report’s dedication: "For the people who died in the attack on the Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 28, 2002... In memory of all those who have been killed in the genocide in Gujarat, which began on February 28, 2002."

Besides the series on the Mumbai riots, Combat’s special 150-page report, ‘Genocide – Gujarat 2002’ was balanced, objective and almost as comprehensive as a thesis. The Genocide special was exhaustive in providing minute details of the frenzy that was systematically unleashed both in Godhra and subsequently, elsewhere in Gujarat, as the guardians of law turned into predators.

The fearless stand taken by the journal deserves to be admired. Despite the onslaught by various constituents of the sangh parivar, the journal has continued its mission undaunted.

Communalism Combat and Teesta have now practically become symbols of impartial, fearless exposure and a fitting retort to communal forces in India as well as on the Indian subcontinent.

Today the magazine is every sensible, secular person’s answer to rival communal publications such as the Saamna, Organiser and Panchjanya. Where the latter deals with blatant falsehoods, Combat hits back with difficult to refute facts and harsh truths.

Combat’s mission cannot be more eloquently spelt out than through the poser in a message ad that appears frequently in the journal –

"So, whose side are you on? Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, Jew.

Or discrimination against none and justice and equality for all."

(Hisam Siddiqui is editor of the weekly, Jadeed Markaz, Urdu and Hindi, published from Lucknow, Mumbai and Delhi).


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