Forgotten after each election..

accused of appeasement ..

silence pain held captive

in his parched throat

politics of survival vengeance

without holistic apology

ends on a bitter note

betrayed by his own so

called Muslim leaders

turncoats ..who do what

they do for power bank notes

break dance of democracy

a system cutthroat

He is an Indan first what has

religiosity got to do with

how you govern.. create riots

destroy destruct the soul

of Mother India ..is what hurts

the irony of a Vote ,,,

#muslimvote

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

the guy looked at me sheepishly in his skull cap.. he was still in the mouse trap

caught held captive

to forget or forgive

or move ahead live

let live ..the flesh was

willing the spirit inactive

burden of existence

hardly magic the grass

on the other side an

illusion unattractive

harping on appeasement

to garner votes politically

devious tactic..a system that

divides citizenry based on religion

dangerous not at all progressive

also they the custodian of the

muezzin.. preach but dont practice

#muslimman

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

betrayed

during

elections

the Muslim

ethos ..

promises

that taste

like candy

floss ..

betrayed by

their own leaders

is what comes

across ,, found

guilty before

trial ...the community's

loss taken for ride

souls in chaos

living in ghettos

slums jhuggies

the poor ,never

appeased only

double crossed

by power brokers

pimps ,,poetry

of pathos ,,over

the seas of survival

as they turn as they

toss ,,,the muslim

vote punished after

elections Muzzafarnagar

weeps oh what a loss

non existent freebies

useless gloss

#muslimvote

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

charon taraf nafrat ki deewar

har har modi ki pukar ..lagta

hai dar amma mujhko is bar

yeh kaise kal ka intezar

kahan gaya bhaichara aur pyar

dehshat ki ahat ..waqt ki pukar

kaisa anubhav kaisi raftar

#beggarpoet

#firozeshakir

bade arman

se nikle teh

ghar se dene

vote ,, jis paksh

par lagaya thapa

khaiee chot

badkismati ka

alam ..dabe hont

har party ne toda

wada ,,garibon

ka gala ghot

ab jab jate hain

vote dene dil

kehta hai bhai

ghar wapas laut

hath main sab

neta ke hai remote

jab zor se dabaya

agaye note ..hamare

hath main babaji ka

thullu ,, aur dal mot

#elections

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

now is the season

to hook him in

his valuable

vote is important

they make false

promises ..they

will throw him

in the dustbin

once they win

15 years of

one party

blisters on

his withering

skin youth from

his community

as suspects

locked in

living in

ghettos

slums

dreamless

destiny

keeps

hitting him

with a

rolling pin

his fate as

flexible as

corrugated

tin..the muslim

voter betrayed

by the politics

of appeasement

gets nothing

in return a kick

up his regressive

butt his invisible chin

sent round and round

round and round on

on an unforgettable

spin..

politicians of all color diversity

will take him to the dry cleaners

his vote his biggest sin a marker

on his freshly dug grave reads

Bhaijaan Welcome In

i wont be a Muslim vote

i can use my mind use my head

in my constituency nothing much

has changed ..they came got

elected stealthily fled

leaving us we the people

the living dead..

#nota

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

From the northern plains he came

to try his luck in a megalopolis Mumbai

part of its destiny he became ,,slogging

dawn to dusk..adding his humility his

passion a Muslim .. all the same

A political dice on a chessboard of survival

whom does he blame , if the fat satraps in

Uttar Pradesh had built infrastructure created employment ..instead of polarizing

Hindus Muslims .. Muzzafarnagar would

not be in flames .. destroying Lucknow

Tehzeeb Adab with monstrous statues

of Elephants , useless Parks her own

Prime Ministerial aspirations fate could

not tame , megalomaniac a frame within

a frame .. the Muslim Man once a migrant

now a Mumbaikar introspects ,,,politicians

their dividing game ,..Tears on the soul of

Mother India what a shame ..

#muslimvote

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

so this muslim lady decided to vote for progress development and did not vote for you this time ,,,for the poor downtrodden you had no time you got swept away this time ,,dont take the poor muslim voter to be a fool every time ,,you neglected them time and again your apathy , your overconfidence your ghastly crime ,,your paver tiles , your repairing broken down slum toilets was just not enough a thought sublime .. think neta think ,,let this be a lesson in your humility one last time . the hand broke down the clock failed to chime ,,

15 long years

it was taken

for a ride

a pain it

could not

hide .first

the MP

than the MLA

lost out

aborted flight

out of mind

out of sight

where there

is darkness

enter light

you could fool

a few but not

all at the same

time end of fight

congress free

bandra some

much needed

respite progress

development

is the need

of the hour

sounds right

half truths maybe colorful but all truth black and white

even the greatest when they mock mortality fall from a height

99,658 items / 603,921 views

After I had shot the BJP Shivsena Rally , the BSP rally I was informed that Sanjay Dutt was to attend the Samajwadi Pary near Jamatkhana so I immediately rushed there shot these pictures but there was no sign of the star , I came home showered and returned to shoot Sanjay Dutt in absolutele political form in a new power punching avtar, he too spotted me in the crowds and asked me what I was doing here shooting pictures , I had done his costumes for Nitin Manmohans Chal Mere Bhai.. , he did not spare Baba Siddiki in his speeches.. and the Samjwadi Party considers the Congress I and the Democratic Front its greatest enemy and ..they bought in a Mullah who left no stone unturned to brand the Congress anti Muslim party and cited all the incidents that had affected the Muslims directly or indirectly when the Congress was in power..Some of the stuff was virulent and in bad taste by individual speakers , but truthful too, evoking the sad memories of the 93 riots the demolishing of the Babri mosque, the Shrikrishna Report, the encounter killings of innocent Muslims but than this is politics..and here votes will be divided via the two main Muslim contenders against the Congress party, by Rizwan Merchant Samajwadi Party candidate and Rahebar Khan Independent candidate.

Yes everything is being to corner the powerful Muslim vote by all parties , this area JJ Colony Nargis Dutt Nagar , Compund , Transit Camp , the various Muslim pockets holds the key to the elusive chair of politics...

Rizwan Merchant a cogent speaker head of the various Dargah trusteeships, also an advocate appealed to the pubic to give another Muslim a chance to lead them instead of Baba Siddiki..and he too cited cogent reasons citing the powerful politician builder lobby that had taken the Muslim slum dweller for a ride.. to make fast bucks , the builder and the politician hand in glove became richer - while the poor slum dweller suffered..as this is a powerful predominant Muslim locality ..they went out to appease their political cause and to highlight Abu Azim as the mass leader of the Muslims..The meeting ended before 10 pm the cut off time set by the Election Commission.

Yes the Muslim Vote certainly matters .. the poor brow beaten Muslim of the slum .. is overnight an important persona in this Human Comedy called Politics..

It was what I heard and saw , but shot impartially as a photographer documenting the angst of the people in the background of the assembly election fever..vote or dont vote the Muslim is caught between the devil and the deep sea.

But vote he must on 13 October 2009 .. the most important and significant right of his , he must cast his vote impartially , elect a responsible person to form a responsible government...he must forget that he is only a Muslim and as an Indian as a Mumbaikar of Amchi Mumbai remove all blinkers that misguide his thought his mind and his vision..

His vote can change all our destinies too..

Jai Maharashtra.

says this little kid

giving me a wink

than with the stench

his eyes blink .

his parents are

helpless they

voted a party

at all three

levels a vote

jinxed ..

who will

clean the

mess

no one

thinks

now once

again time

has come

to be inked

who to vote

congress ncpa

bjp shivsena

independent

others or right

to reject all

of them is

it the

only wise

thing ?

#bandrabazar

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

north indian muslim of uttar pradesh

caught in a vortex of deceit between

two parties such was his fate ..he voted

considering them gods but he was used

by their devious machinations hook line

sinker and bait ..trampled sometimes

under the dead weight of an elephant

or taken for a ride on a cycle ..he got

akkal very late now perhaps he has

attained freedom from dire straits

one nation one country beyond

caste color creed or state ..

acche din ane wale hain..he dreams

of peace hope harmony ..he waits

#beggarpoet

#firozeshakir

17 May 2014

the first suspect

for chaos on the

soul of humanity

dead or alive

wanted .. he is

human like

others but

on his character

dubious evidence

planted..mercilessly

taunted ,, never

left in peace

illogically haunted

#muslimvote

#firozeshakir

#beggarpoet

what

appeasement

you say ..

65 years

the muslim poor

have become

beggars ..

their dreams

blown away

politically

used

abused

misused

in every way

targeted

for all the

wrong reasons

for evil deeds of few

everyone has to pay

leaderless hopeless

dark clouds on the horizon

of peace hope harmony

turning gray ... allah

provides .. a prayer

of thanks they say

#muslimvote

#beggarpoet

#firozeshakir

held in the hands

of the divisive elements

as remote .used abused

his faith in the system kept

him afloat he waited for

the elections to give a

resounding reply ,he fought

the politicians realized this

time the muslim vote was not

for sale it could not be bought

was this by chance a cosmic

plot .progress development

as the plank a lesson to those

power thirsty monsters he taught

history angry overwrought ,

uprooted the seat of power

please note after 15 long years

a congress free bandra is

what he wished what he got ,

hey netaji please fool me not

.

All India Students Association (AI'SA)I 02-11-2002 .

\ll IIIII.

I "I 11111111 Election Puljllc Meetlna.

I.

'-.,' ( ), ,., k.ll Speakers · Radhlka Menon, lnteshar Ahmad .

Mahendra Prakash, R. John Suresh .

Guest Speol!ec Pranay Krishna Srivastava, Ex-President. JNUSu .

CTonight) 9 : 30 PM02nd Nov. 2002Kaveri Mess .

Can 'Pragmatic' Secularism Challenge 'Programmatic' Communal Fascism? .

The Gujarat polls have finally been declared. Democratic voices all over India will want the people of Gujarat to take the case of .

we find the genocide and the plight of the terrorised mmorities missing from the mainstream agenda of the polls. Ooth Modi. and h1s state-sponsored communal genocide to the 'people's court' of elections. and punish its perpetrator. Modi,with crushing defeat. Unfortunately, .

opponent andformer RSS-mate.Vaghela of the Cngress. are competing for the Hindu votebank. Far from asking the people for a mandate .

against the RSS, Vaghela has been publicly remi11ding the RSS of how it has supported the Congress in the past, and appealmg to the .

RSS to do so once again. After the worst communal pogrom in recent history, if both the BJP and the main "opposition force", the .

Congress, compete to woo the organisation which masterminded the pogrom, we are forced to ask what has gone wrong with .

Indian secularism and democracy? Is the existing model of secularism too V.'eak to fight communal fascism? .

Recall that Bhag:-it Singh wrote that "only a separation of religion and state could be the foundation of a secular democracy. But .

.

this principled and firm definition of secularism was never embraced by the Indian state. Netas of all hues who give lip-service to slogans .

intended as as public, political gestures. This illustrates the basic contradiction and weakness inherent in the secularism practiced by the of secularism. always visited Godman. If they were to do so as a private act of worship, there would be no problem. but these visits were .

R:ght from the start, despite Nehru's secular image, Hindu majoritarian agendas easily found a voice wihtin the Indian state. The .

self-professedly secular parties. .

first Indian govt. made it its business to "correct historical wrongs and rebuild the Somnath Mandir, and gave Its silent support when the .

.

'Ramlalla' was secretly and illegally installed in the Sabri Masjid. .

The boundanes between state and religion were further blurred when the Congress, under Indira, junked 'Socialist' populism and .

mass unrest. The BJP often accuses the Congress of "appeasing a Muslimvote bank". The truth is that the Congress regimes of Indira, began implementing blatantly anti-people economic policies. For Indira Gandhi, the 'Hindu card' came in handy to deflect and redirect Rajlv and later Rao worked hard to manufacture a Hindu vote bank. Indira's cry of "Hindutva 1n danger at the VHP's Ekatmata Yagna against conversions in 1981, the anti-Pak jingoism she whipped up after the 1971 war, and shrill slogans against the "lSI" bogey, Rajiv's permission for shilanyas at the Masjid site, his flagging off of his 1989 election campa1gn from Faizabad with the sloganof Ram Rajya -all were deliberate atempts to create and consolidate a Hindu base. Across parties, anti-Pak jingoism and fighting the 'lSI' bogey became .

the touchstone of nationalism rather than opposition to the imperialist diktats to the Indian economy and polity. When the Indian psyche had been infected with this perverse notion of nationalism, it was easy for the BJP to take it a step forward and target Muslims. portraying them as the counterpart of Pakistan within India. Andthus Indian minorities were condemned being targets of constant suspicion .

In the '90s, when the Congress could no longer command enough credibility to rule, the ruling class looked for a party which could .

on popular protest The BJP, with its fascist str.ategies of whipping up Hindutva frenzy combined with its commitment to pro-US carry through IMF-WB policies, deflect mass anger against these policies in some other direction, and command support for crackdowns .

economic policies, emerged as the natural choice for the ruling class. .

Remember that whether it was Nazism in Germany between the World Wars or neo-Nazi revivals in Eastern Europe of the '90s, fascism thrives during economic crises and recessions : channeling the unre~t and anger towards the mythical 'Other' of Jews/blacks/ .

Muslims etc. .

The BJP's communalism is a means to an end, not an end in Itself. The BJP's role Is not simply to engineer riots :it engineers riots, whips up anti-Pak, anti-Muslim jingoism, itbrings In POTO, precisely to build aconsensus for a hard state thatcan Implement .

Imperialist economic policies. So the BJP's rise is firmly rooted in the political economy of our times. It follows that only a robust assertion of economic and political Independence against Imperialism, of uncompromising democracy that guarantees citizens' .

rights, can be the basis of a battle agflnst communal fascism. .

Parties like the Congress, which are as committed to the anti-people liberalization as the BJP, cannot truly challenge communal .

fascism. The CPI {M} which relies on the Congressto challenge BJP theorlses that the Congress' communal acts are occasional deviations, .

communalisms of the Congress infected the Indian psyche with communal ideas, and eroded the seuclar, democratic values, 'pragmat1c' communallsms which are less serious than the 'programmatic' communalism of the BJP. But the fact Is that the 'pragmatic' .

thus helping to create a fertile ground for the BJP to grow. Unfortunately, the commitment of the Congress. and even the CPI (M), to .

. ; democratic rights, pro-people ecconomic pohctes and seoulansm, are merely 'pragmatic' -they are restricted to empty slogans. In states .

'terrsts'. Such aweak model of ·secular democraticopposition' cannot check the growth and spread of communal fascism. Programmatic ruled by them, these parties tmplement hberalizat1on and black laws of the POTA-variety, and like the BJP, brand political opponents as communal fascism can only be fought by an equally programmatic, consistent and uncompromising secularism and democracy. .

SIS .

Afterall, "programmatic" communa.llsm cannot be defeated by "pragmatic" seoularism. a .

Aadltya Swaroop.

Abdul Wahid.

AISA Centnl Punel fur JNlJSU SSS Ganesh Manjhl.

Ashok K. Dwivedl Adltya Goenka .

Pre.\·idcml Radblka Menon. Mona Dus . R11jnh R11nj11n .

Vice ? res1dcmt lnteshar Ahmad Pawun Kumllr Patel Rakesh Kaushik .

Gen. Sccy. Mubendr11 Pnkush Pb. Newton SLngb Satyendra Kumar .

.

Jt. Secy. R. Jobo Suresh Kumur· Satya Venkata Slddhardha Kumar D. .

Dhrub Kumar Sin2b. For Central Campai}t{n Committee, A.JS4. J.N. U. .

.