Why I Am Not a Muslim
The title of this article could have been "Why I Am Not a Hindu, or "Why I Am Not a Christian", etc.; replacing the word Muslim with the name of any other religious group. If I did not want to make the title sound negative, I could have made it something like "Why I Am an Atheist." But since among the religions of the world, my least preference would be Islam, the religion of the Muslims, I thought the word "Muslim" would fit the title the best.
Avijit da, we are still writing
You already have been informed of the murder of Mr. Avijit Roy, writer and freethinker, by the barbaric attack of Islamist hardliners in Dhaka last week. For our international readers, necessary information on his work and career has already been and will be published by other writers in this website, therefore, I will not add any formal view of his life hereafter. This is for the first time I am writing in Muktomona, and it is a tribute, of course, to my hero - as I used to call him - Avijit da (brother). I knew he would stop someday, but this early? Never I imagined. A sharp pang of sorrow has shot through me on hearing his premature passing away. I cried, I got agitated, but then I decided to speak out. I am writing for Avijit da, I am writing for letting those fanatics know that neither Avijit, nor his ideology is dead.
Brutality of religious fanatics
Another most barbaric, most heinous crime had been committed by religious fanatics in the name of religion in full public view on the street of Dhaka. Dr. Avijit Kumar Roy, a Bioengineer presently working in software engineering in the USA, had been brutally murdered as he and his wife were going home at about 9:00 pm on Thursday, 26 February after attending the Ekushey Book Fair and launching his newly published books. They were attacked by two or three assailants with machetes. The Coroner of the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, only a short distance away from the crime scene, testified that the attack was an act of a professional killer. Two deep rooted stabs at the back of the skull were so severe that the victim died within a short time from severe bleeding. His wife had also been attacked and she is now in critical condition.
A Note of Salute to Avijit Roy
Yesterday, when my wife was reading news from Bangladesh on the internet, she told me that she was reading about the murder of Avijit Roy in Dhaka. I exclaimed to her, "our Avijit?", got on to internet immediately, and started reading the news myself. I felt like I was having a nightmare, did not want to believe the news to be true.
CHHI CHHI
Some brain-dead Islamist bigots have murdered Avijit in Dhaka yesterday. I have no word to condemn this heinous crime perpetuated by these Islamist cowards. When such Islamist cowards failed in intellectual discourse with avijit and when they found that their dogma has been proved hollow by Avijit, they settled the score by murdering him. I wish that these Islamist bigots should be put to some sort of genetic engineering process so that at least their progeny become 'HUMAN BEINGS' and not Islamist bigots. Chhi chhi.... But the two murderers of Avijit only show the tip of ice berg. What humanity should do with millions of such brain-dead Islamists in Bangladesh? Chhi chhi......
A Depraved State
Having observed unremitting political schism, egregious falsification and unbridled corruption by politicians of all shades of colour in Bangladesh for nearly four and half decades, time is now ripe to speak out loud and clear and point out the root cause of national malaise. This is not the country which once inspired and galvanised people of all strands of life to rise up against the repressive, brutal hegemony of Pakistan. People demanded democratic rights, cultural freedom, freedom of expression, and above all a free, fair and honest society where everybody irrespective of creed, colour and religion would live in peace and harmony. What they have got now is exactly the opposite of their demands. But probably people themselves have fundamentally changed and now demanding something else which was not what the country was created for.
THE GEETA" AND VIOLENCE
In an obscure corner of Russia, a local court banned "Geeta" (the famous Hindu Religious Book) last year for being a book which describes and promotes violence. The members of RSS and similar Hindu organizations in India became vocal with protests against that court verdict. But as the said court was far away, Indian Hindu bigots could not engage in violent activities on that issue. Obviously, many Hindus felt hurt for labeling Geeta as a book of violence.
Saraswati Puja at Bangladesh Parliament – It is Progress Indeed
{Postscript from the Author (January 27, 2015): It is a great disappointment that in spite of the initial consent by the Prime Minister and approval by the Speaker, there was actually no Saraswati Puja at the Bangladesh Parliament. I am not sure why the big leaders' approvals were not implemented. But there is no doubt that this reneging pleases and supports the Islamic/Muslim hate-mongers of Bangladesh.}
AFETR THE MASSACRE
Following the tragic massacre of school children in Pakistan on 16.12.2014, the establishment is showing knee jerk reactions. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has labeled the untimely death of students as his personal loss and strongly spoke for withdrawing moratorium on death sentence and pressed for capital punishment of 55 terrorists whose hanging was withheld earlier. Even the Army Chief of Pakistan has urged for summary execution of 3000 terrorists in next 48 hours. Meanwhile two terrorists in death row have been hanged and Pakistani Army has intensified its military action in restive tribal stronghold of TTP. All sane persons would understand the frustration, sadness, anger and reactive state of mind of both civilian and Army chiefs of Pakistan. The country's soul has been shaken by the brutal attack perpetuated in the name of Jihad by the TTP terrorists on the softest possible target, i.e. school children.
THE LAPTOP JIHADI
Mehdi Masroor Biswas, the young Bengali Muslim 'laptop Jihadi' from Kolkata was arrested in Bangalore (India) a couple of days back. Mehdi was working in an MNC there. He comes from a middle class family and has a bachelor degree in electronics. Mekhail Biswas, father of Mehdi, quite reasonably, doubted that it could be a case of 'mistaken identity'. The same reaction we observed from the father of Bangladeshi (Jatrabari, Dhaka) student in US who was arrested as potential terrorist last year. A father cannot think anything bad about his son. No father will first like to accept the fact that his son has advanced stage of 'cancer'. The denial comes naturally. All sensible persons will empathize with Mekhail. But reality is too bitter.