Islamization in Modern South Asia: Deobandi Reform and the Gujjar Response

344 Pages·2012·2.408 MB·English

by  David Emmanuel Singh

David Emmanuel Singh
Islamization in Modern South Asia
Religion and Society
Edited by
Gustavo Benavides, Kocku von Stuckrad
and Winnifred Fallers Sullivan
Volume 56
De Gruyter
David Emmanuel Singh
Islamization in Modern South Asia
Deobandi Reform and the Gujjar Response
De Gruyter
ISBN 978-1-61451-246-2
e-ISBN 978-1-61451-185-4
ISSN 1437-5370
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Acknowledgements
I must thank all those who helped to make this book possible. This re-
search would not have been possible without the generous grant awarded
by OCMS, Oxford. The librarians in Oxford, New Delhi, Dehradun,
and Hyderabad deserve to be thanked for allowing access to alarge num-
ber of secondary sources I needed to prepare for the fieldwork and con-
tinuing readings.
The Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK) in Dehradun
needs a special mention. The director, Mr Avadhesh Kaushal, his able as-
sistant and daughter-in-law, Ruchi, and all their staff at RLEK’s head-
quarters in Dehradun and school at Mohund continue to support the
Gujjar cause despite challenges. They gave me time for interviews, they
introduced me to a good number of Gujjars in the Rajaji National
Park(RNP),andsomeof themaccompaniedmetothederasintheforest
and also to the new settlements of Gendikhatta and Pathri. The local
Muslim leaders at Mohund invited me to the karguzari meeting and in-
troduced me to Muslim scholars associated with the Deobandi madrasas
and the Tablighi Jama‘at. I am grateful to them for accepting me among
them and permitting me to make my observations and conduct inter-
views.
The rectors and teachers of over thirty madrasas at Saharanpur, Mu-
zaffarnagar, Dehradun, and Haridwar districts of Uttar Pradesh and Ut-
tarakhand patiently answered my questions, and many also offered their
kind hospitality to me by accommodating me in their mehmankhana
(guest house), especially at Saharanpur and Deoband. The public rela-
tions officer at Deoband as well as the faculty and students at Deoband
sparedmuchof theirtimetotalkwithmeandreintroducedmefirsthand
to the great Indian Islamic tradition that Deoband represents. The ma-
drasa at Harsauli in Muzaffarnagar district has been at the very heart of
the movement. The rector and the faculty there shared with me the
only written source in Urdu on the early tabligh among the Gujjars –
something I found invaluable, especially for the correspondences and re-
ports of the first ‘preachers’to their supervisors and their instructions to
them.
VI Acknowledgements
The then Chief Conservator of forests, Mr Srikant Chandola, was a
man with a mission. He personally helped me in obtaining the necessary
clearanceandpermitstotravelintoRNPforresearch.Hisstaffandrang-
ersintheforestalsohelpedinvariousways,includingprovidingfoodand
cups of tea served at the guest house in Dhaulkhand, and for accompa-
nyingmetotheGujjarderas.MrVarma,thentheonlypoliticianworking
fortheGujjars,gavealotof histimefortheextensive interviewwithme.
He gave me many new insights into the difficult life of the Gujjars and
their broader context.
Last but not the least, thanks to all the Gujjar leaders, little children
who sang their beautiful ballads, young children and young adults who
showed me how they perform their religious duties, and others in groups
and individually who graciously answered my questions and expanded
my own horizons. Thanks too to the many Gujjar families who invited
me to their homes and treated me well and generously shared their
food and drink with me. Their wisdom and generosity has changed me
forever. I pray for the best possible solution for this proud people, who
despite transition give us a view of how individuals and communities
bridge cultures and religions without any sense of contrivance and dis-
honesty.
Contents
Introduction .......................................... 1
Studies on Ethnic Muslims ............................... 2
Studies on Muslim Gujjars ............................... 5
Theoretical Considerations ............................... 11
Chapter One: The Deoband School ........................ 16
Introduction .......................................... 16
The Deoband School ................................... 17
Dar al-‘ulum, Deoband ............................... 18
Tablighi Jama‘at .................................... 25
Deoband among Ahl-e Hadith and Barelwis ................. 30
The Deoband School in the Gujjar area ..................... 35
Conclusions ........................................... 40
Chapter Two: The Van Gujjars ........................... 41
Introduction .......................................... 41
Origins .............................................. 41
Demographic Profile .................................... 49
Gujjars as part of a wider ethnic group .................. 49
Religion-Islam ...................................... 52
The Gujjars in Uttarakhand ........................... 56
The Context of Uttarakhand ........................ 56
The Gujjar in Uttarakhand ......................... 59
Contact with Rulers ............................... 63
Rajaji National Park .................................... 69
Conservation issues .................................. 69
The National Park ................................ 70
The Gujjars in RNP ................................. 73
Conclusion ........................................... 77
Chapter three: The Gujjar ‘Indigeneity’ ..................... 79
Introduction .......................................... 79
Discourse on Adivasis ................................... 80
NGO’s Vision for Gujjars ................................ 84
RLEK and the ‘tribal’ identity of the Gujjars .............. 85
VIII Contents
Religious Practice and Alleged ‘Fundamentalism’ ........... 98
Community Forest Management .......................... 101
Other Actors .......................................... 108
Conclusion ........................................... 123
Chapter Four: Deobandi Islamization ...................... 124
Introduction .......................................... 124
Contact with the Deoband School ......................... 125
Partnership ........................................... 129
Deobandi Description of the Gujjars ....................... 133
Strategies for Outreach .................................. 138
Itinerant preaching .................................. 139
Teaching-Learning in Madrasas ......................... 145
Full-time resident teachers ............................ 154
Learning on the job ................................. 160
Madrasa education .................................. 165
Conclusion ........................................... 169
Chapter Five: The Gujjar Response ........................ 171
Introduction .......................................... 171
Response to Deoband ................................... 171
Knowledge and Practice of Islam ....................... 172
Practice ......................................... 173
Beliefs .......................................... 178
Popular Islam ...................................... 182
Traditional Culture .................................. 190
Temporal Genealogy: Rajput Gotra ..................... 199
Strategic Contact .................................... 207
Comparison with the Meos .............................. 211
Conclusion ........................................... 217
Concluding Discussion .................................. 218
Conclusions ........................................... 218
Implications ........................................... 221
Islam and Integration ................................ 221
Gujjarism and Integration ............................. 224
Spheres and Contact Zones ........................... 227
Islamization as Socialization ........................... 228
Diversity and Hybridity .............................. 229
Social Re-structuring ................................. 232
Contents IX
Bibliography .......................................... 236
Primary Sources ....................................... 236
Secondary Sources ...................................... 238
Appendices ........................................... 276
Appendix I ........................................... 276
Appendix II ........................................... 291
Appendix III .......................................... 304
Appendix IV .......................................... 311
Appendix V: Maps ..................................... 323
Subject Index .......................................... 327
People/Organisations Index ............................... 331
Place Index ........................................... 333