T-shirt row on campus, debate in AMU: Islam and modern living

‘‘T-shirt is unislamic,’’ said a student. Countered another: ‘‘But there was no T-shirt when Islam began. Scriptures only talk about how a woman should cover herself, there is nothing specifically about the T-shirt or veil. It also talks about how men should dress — which we don’t abide by.’’

Within these four walls, these students were reinterpreting Islam — ijtihad as it is called – for a modern living. Noman Hyder, a political science student, says such discussions are increasingly frequent on the campus, prompted by global and local events in close succession.

They agreed on a ‘‘fundamental faith’’ in Islam and the need for change but differed on what was ‘‘fundamental’’ and the extent of change. Sajjad, for instance, drew attention to the fact that the Prophet had opposed the burqa in his discussions with companions. He, however, insists he is only quoting Moroccan author Fatma Mernissi. Minhajuddin thinks since the Prophet had conceded to the companions’ opinion, that is a closed chapter. But these are questions they need to answer every now and then.

‘‘Muslims perceive themselves as being under watch, and events reinforce this perception. I went to the national archives in Delhi. After seeing my identity card, I was searched everyday, whereas my Hindu friends were not,’’ said Aziz Faisal. ‘‘Have you ever seen a news report about an Irish, Sikh or Tamil terrorist mentioning the school he went to? Any report on Muslim terrorist is not complete without the madarsa he went to.’’

There is, however, consensus that ‘‘mere learning of the holy books is not the knowledge Allah wants his followers to earn’’. ‘‘True, Muslims must learn wordly subjects too. Too much emphasis on deen at the cost of duniya has put us backward,’’ they admit.

President of AMUSU, Abdul Hafeez Gandhi, perhaps, represents the majority view. ‘‘AMU is after all, a Muslim university and women are expected to abide by Islamic norms. Many parents send their girls here, confident of its character.’’

At the end of the debate, students concluded that the movement is forward. After all, ‘‘radio and TV were declared haraam initially’’.