UPDATE
In the past three days, signatures have been pouring in from the length and breadth of the country as 472 citizens from all walks of life have condemned outright the hounding of intellectuals, poets and actors most especially Javed Akhtar and Naseruddin Shah.
On September 7, days after the hounding of these two public figures, 150 people had signed in their support. Here is the updated List of Signatories dated September 10, 2021 with the text of the statement below
Citizens from all walks of life stand by Javed Akhtar, Naseeruddin Shah
Hundreds of eminent citizens, artists, writers, filmmakers, activists, journalist, academics and others have come together to condemn the ongoing harassment and targeting of Javed Akhtar and Naseeruddin Shah, two of India’s most renowned intellectuals, poets, writers and actors, who are known the world over.
A solidarity statement, which at the time of publishing had around 150 signatories from across the country emphasises that they “support unequivocally the recent interview given by author and poet, Javed Akhtar to the media in the context of the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan.”
Javed Akhtar has been targeted by the right wing ever since he compared Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), and Bajrang Dal with the Taliban, saying their goals seems and ideology was similar, in an interview to NDTV. Apart from trolling, complaints and protests against him, Bharatiya Janata Party politician Ram Kadam also announced that no movies of which the lyricist was a part of will be allowed to screen till he “issues an apology”.
The signatories of the solidarity statement have strongly condemned all attempts to intimidate him and have affirmed his right to speak his views: “We strongly disagree with those in the sangh parivar, led by a BJP MLA and other elements from the same wider parivar who have objected to the understanding of right wing supremacists, be it of the Muslim or Hindu kind” they stated, adding “Javed Akhtar spoke with clarity and passion. We agree with his statement that irrespective of the religion in whose name they claim to speak, right-wingers — be they Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christians — share a common majoritarian world-view. This is particularly evident when it comes to their views on the status of women in the family and in society. The Taliban are but an extreme and violent version of the same common fundamentalist mind-set. It is not for nothing that many in recent years have referred to violent elements from the sangh parivar as the ‘Hindu Taliban’.”
Sections of the Muslim community have also raised similar objections to recent comments by actor Naseeruddin Shah. In a video message which went viral, Shah specifically addressed and reached out to the “Indian Muslim community”. He send out a warning to Muslim compatriots “against rigid forms of Islam, advising an espousal of modernity.” The solidarity statement put on record that “Shah is only re-iterating the long, vibrant and tolerant tradition of Indian Islam that has been in recent decades afflicted by the Saudi-exported Wahhabi Islam, a trend that large sections of Indian Muslims recognise and also deplore.”
Supporters may still sign in here
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeGzOnZEurCwH5xROZFOYp8nMlNbv8pQSpWW_StAkia8k1e-A/viewform
The entire statement and list of signatures may be viewed here:
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