ISIS Whispers In God바카라�s Own Country

Somewhere in a small town in Kerala, a woman cries inconsolably. We are ushered into a modest house, with nothing to suggest there are Gulf remittances flowing in. The windows are shut tight, the dark brown curtains hang ghoulishly and the door is quic­kly bolted before Cynthia* melts into a pool of sorrow, recalling her daughter. Tabitha* had been studying in a Gulf country since last August and walked out of a friend바카라�s place where she was staying on March 20 this year, leaving behind only a handwritten note. Embellished with Arabic phrases and Quranic quotes, the note is a declaration to her parents that she conver­ted to Islam of her own free will and so they should not worry about her.

Tabitha바카라�s note left her Christian parents stunned, but after chatting with her over phone and WhatsApp, they agreed to let her practise the faith of her choice and asked her to return. But her replies were terse, indicating she didn바카라�t want to return to a family that did not believe in Islam. Later, her parents learnt she was being helped by a Bahrain-based organisation called Discover Islam Society (DIS), which supports those who wish to convert to Islam or have recently converted in the Gulf. Interestingly, the two Indian languages in which the DIS website off­ers written material for Islamic studies are Telugu and Malayalam.

When Tabitha바카라�s father requested DIS for a meeting with his daughter, he was blindfolded and taken to a shed where she came to meet him. Sporting a ­hijab, she was accompanied by two men who stayed through the meeting. The fat­her claims she was covered in dust and seemed to be on the verge of tears. This meeting, instead of assuaging the parents바카라� fears, made them terribly worried about their daughter. Then, on May 20, Tabitha, now Mariyam, filed a police complaint in the Gulf country where she was living, accusing her parents of harassing her. She also switched off her phone, making it impossible for her parents to speak with her. All that they know since then is that she is staying in a Muslim home and may marry someone from the faith in the days to come.

Mariyam바카라�s parents claim they had no idea of her desire to convert to Islam or any relationship with a Muslim man. They say the change she has undergone since is so thoroughgoing that they can바카라�t even recognise her voice anymore. 바카라�When she came to India last December and stayed here for a month, she said nothing to suggest she wanted to change her religion,바카라� says Cynthia. 바카라�And just two months later, we got that note. How did she decide so fast? We used to be a close-knit family, but now she has turned ­indifferent towards us. She speaks to us as if we are the devil. I believe her messages to us were full of lies.바카라�

The Islamic concept of taqiyya, which justifies deceiving non-believers who persecute believers, seems to have come in handy for propagating the faith. Some parents feel their converted daughters hate them and see no problem in lying to them. They not only leave behind their parents, but also refuse to be tied down by non-Muslim husbands or even their own children.

Last June, two women바카라�Merrin and Nimisha, who became Mariyam and Fat­hima, respectively, after embracing Islam바카라�left Kerala to join Islamic militants in Afghanistan. With them were their husbands바카라�Bestin Vincent and Bexin Vincent바카라�who too had converted from Christianity and become Yahya and Isha, respectively. Nimisha, who hailed from Thiruvananthapuram and was enr­olled in a Bachelor of Dental Surgery programme in Kasaragod, had converted allegedly to marry a Muslim, who, however, refused to marry her after the conversion. According to her mother Bindu K., the 바카라�conversion centre바카라� then found Nimisha another neo-convert바카라�Bexin. 바카라�They were married after just four days of acquaintance,바카라� says Bindu.

Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court too has come into the picture. On May 24, the court, exercising parens patriate jur­isdiction (바카라�the monarch or any other aut­hority regarded as the legal protector of citizens unable to protect themselves바카라�), annulled the marriage of a 24-year-old medical student, Akhila, with Shafin Jahan, a member of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI). Akhila had converted to Islam before the marriage and assumed a new name바카라�Hadiya. The judgment drew a lot of flak for infringing on the rights of a woman, whose right to choose her spouse and follow her religious beliefs is guaranteed by the Constitution of India. The court seemed to have been disturbed by the fact that the marriage had been arranged by a 바카라�conversion centre바카라� and concealed from Akhila바카라�s parents, leading it to believe that she married Jahan바카라�바카라�an accused in a criminal case, apart from being associa­ted with persons having extremist links,바카라� according to the verdict바카라�as a means to transfer her guardianship from her fat­her to Jahan, in order to avoid returning to her parents바카라� home. The court said the marriage was also a way to get her out of the country and ordered that Akhila be sent back to her parents.

According to lawyer P. Rajendran, it was also found that 바카라�A.S. Sainaba and the Sathya Sarani Trust (in Malappuram) had tried to deceive the court even as a habeas corpus writ (filed by Akhila바카라�s father K.M. Ashokan to bring her back home) was being heard바카라�. 바카라�Though the court was Akhila바카라�s custodian, the organisation and Sainaba had failed to inform the court of her marriage,바카라� says Rajendran. 바카라�Also, going by ­Jahan바카라�s Facebook posts, he had visited the ­Yemen border. He also had links with Mansi Buraq, an ISIS agent arrested by the NIA last ­Oct­ober and accused of conspiring to wage war on the country.바카라� The court was also surprised by how she and ­Sainaba, who had modest incomes, managed to hire expensive lawyers.

Protesting the verdict, the Muslim Ekopana Samithi, said to be close to the Popular Front of India (PFI) and SDPI, took to the streets on June 5, leading to arrests of at least six protesters. The next day, the organisation enforced a 바카라�dawn-to-dusk hartal바카라� in Ernakulam. Malayalam writer M.N. Karassery too said he was disappointed with the way the court interfered with the right of a citizen. He called it 바카라�an injustice and a violation of democratic rights바카라�.

P. Koya, editor of Malayalam newspaper Thejas, said to be close to PFI, calls the verdict 바카라�biased바카라�. 바카라�It is in violation of the woman바카라�s rights,바카라� he says. 바카라�She app­eared in court first after her father filed the habeas corpus writ and was allowed to go. Later, the father filed another hab­eas corpus alleging ISIS links etc. Her husband had met her through a matrimonial site. And yet the court nullified the marriage. In a country where living together is not illegal, an adult woman has been forcefully sent back to her parents by the police and is literally under house arrest with CCTV surveillance.바카라�

Akhila was studying for a Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery in Shivaraj Homeopathy Medical College in Salem, Tamil Nadu. She is said to have been influenced by her friends바카라�Jaseena and Faseena바카라�and their father Aboobacker before she decided to convert to Islam. On January 7 last year, she left the college without finishing her term as house surgeon바카라�or informing her parents바카라�to join Sathya Sarani to learn about Islam. In Malappuram, she stayed with Sainaba. That바카라�s when her father filed the first habeas corpus writ in the high court, which disposed of the case saying she, an adult, was free to live wherever she wanted. However, an interim order was passed to keep her under surveillance and not allow her to leave the country. She was also asked to produce proof of doing a course at Satya Sarani.

On August 17, 2016, Ashokan filed ano­ther writ petition on the ground that his daughter had expressed desire to go to Syria to look after sheep. He also submitted to the court the messages from his daughter that he had recorded. But when the case was taken up, the court was informed that she had been taken to an undisclosed location. When she subsequently appeared in the court, the court expressed disapproval of her staying with Sainaba. On December 19, Akhila gave an affidavit saying she would go back to Salem and complete her studies. But, on December 21, her next court appearance, she was already a married woman. Her wedding with Jahan had been conducted in Sainbaba바카라�s house.

Sathya Sarani also figured in anot­her case involving a country counsellor with a private firm in Palakkad who left home last June without informing her parents. When she바카라�a Hindu woman, then 21바카라�showed interest in Islam, she was int­roduced to Noufal, who started talking to her on the phone. 바카라�He was the perfect gentleman,바카라� the woman says. 바카라�He wan­ted me to get married, but I wasn바카라�t int­erested then. I was more attracted to ­Islam. He used to explain religious matters to me, and it truly meant a lot as no one had tried to clarify my doubts regarding the religion I was born into.바카라� Noufal also apparently advised her to travel to Yemen to learn about the 바카라�true, untarnished form of Islam바카라�.

Md Basheer C.P., former chairman of Sathya Sarani, however, insists no such woman from Palakkad had ever app­roached them and that he had ­never heard of Noufal before news reports mentioned him. The woman, who is in hiding, says she had not heard of ISIS when she left home. Her father app­roached the police, who traced her to the house of a woman named Farzana. 바카라�The police told me that 22 people had left the country to join the ISIS and described the atrocities committed by them,바카라� she recalls. 바카라�When I mentioned this at Sathya Sarani, the people there said these were stories cooked up by Christians and Jews in the western countries. I got scared as I did not want to commit a crime in the name of any rel­igion and decided to return. I had a new name, Ayesha, but had not conver­ted to Islam. Later, at home, I was counselled by teachers of the Arsha Vidya Samajam. That바카라�s how I gradually began to appreciate my own religion.바카라�

바카라�The neo-converts are usually between 20 to 30 years of age, sensitive and confused,바카라� says C.K. Mohanan, legal counsel of the woman바카라�s father. 바카라�Then they are ali­enated from their family, so they cannot go back home. Many have converted for love, but, in these instances, there was no pre-marital relationship between the partners. These women are willing to go to any extent to remain in the religion they have embraced, even if it means marrying a stranger outside the community they were born into.바카라�

In 2016, the Indian Express reported that 바카라�data on conversion obtained by the police from various conversion centres shows that 5,793 people have embraced Islam in the last five years바카라�. According to Arsha Vidya Samajam director K.R. Manoj, nearly 100 people approach them every month 바카라�to get deradicalised or ret­urn to the Hindu fold바카라�. 바카라�Since 2009, at least 3,000 people who had converted to Islam or Christianity have come to us. We gradually bring them back to the Hindu fold. They are usually well-versed in their new religion, so we need to know those religions well in order to debate with them. I have studied comparative religion and our staff are competent at pointing out fallacies in other religions.바카라�

Asked about forceful conversions, Bash­eer dismisses it as 바카라�RSS propaganda바카라�, saying there have been none in Sathya Sarani since it was established in 1994. 바카라�It runs a two-month course for men and women who want to study about Islam,바카라� he says. 바카라�The current batch has 50-odd students, of whom nearly 30 are Hindu or Christian. They may have heard about Islam from their friends or on the internet. We are transparent about our teachings and functioning. Anyone can come and see what we do. Off­icials come here every month to exa­mine the details of the students and submit a report. Indian citizens have the right to embrace and propagate any religion. People are converting to all relig­i­ons, not just Islam. If you check the gove­rnment gazette, you will see how many people are converting and to which religions.바카라�

An intelligence source, however, claims that literature on Islamic Res­earch Foundation (IRF) chief Zakir Naik can be found with 바카라�95 per cent of the fundamentalists바카라�. 바카라�Naik is a big influence,바카라� he says. For instance, the Palakkad woman says she was an 바카라�ardent fan바카라�. 바카라�When I heard him, it was the first time I was listening to any religious preacher,바카라� she recalls. Last July, Arshid Qureshi, PRO at IRF바카라�s Mumbai office, was arres­ted by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad and the Kerala Police. He was accused of recruiting youngsters from Kerala for the ISIS. Qureshi had allege­dly converted Bestin, Bexin and Merrin, who went to Afghanistan last June. In a written statement to the police, Merrin바카라�s brother Ebin Jacob alleged that Qureshi had tried to convert him too.

In another case that hit the headlines last year, computer engineer ­Abdul Ras­hid Abdullah and his wife Sonia Sebastian alias Ayesha, an MBA, who were working with Peace Educational Foundation (PEF), an organisation that runs 10 schools in Kerala, were accused of 바카라�radicalising바카라� 22 youth from Pada­nna, Palakkad and Trikarippur. Abdullah had allegedly arranged the marriage ­between Nimisha and Bexin.

PEF was founded by M.M. Akbar in 2006 as a 바카라�Muslim initiative in education바카라�. Outlook tried to contact Akbar, but his office said he was travelling abroad. Head of Operations Md Ameer admits Abdullah had worked with PEF as a head of the department for four years, but clarified that the alleged ISIS links had nothing to do with the foundation.

Similarly, Basheer insists nobody from the Sarani had joined any unlawful org­anisation, quickly adding the organisation cannot be blamed if someone does. 바카라�We are responsible for the students only during the time they study here. We can바카라�t take responsibility for what they do later. We teach the basic tenets of Islam, its ideology and values. Anyone can see our syllabus,바카라� he says. Koya agrees, and says the Sarani cannot be mixed up with 바카라�a section of Salafis who go to Yemen바카라�.

Asked if Sathya Sarani encourages marriage among its students, Basheer says, 바카라�Men and women have separate hostels and little chance to meet. We don바카라�t encourage marriages among them. In most cases, they find partners from outside. There have been rare instan­ces where we arranged a marriage when they couldn바카라�t find anyone on their own.바카라�

On June 4, it was exactly a year since Nimisha바카라�s mother had last heard from her. 바카라�She had sent us feelers thrice, ind­icating her wish to return,바카라� she says. 바카라�When she came home once ­after converting in 2013, I called her Fathima. But she told me to call her Chinnuz. I don바카라�t know where she is now. There were times when she wanted to buy a salwar kameez but wouldn바카라�t, saying what바카라�s the use of wearing something beautiful u­nder the purdah. She was a brilliant student but, after she started donning the hijab, she had to stop going to college because she would be called a 바카라�terrorist바카라�.바카라�

According to Mohanan, the converted women get so isolated after marriage that they don바카라�t want to go back home even if the marriage fails. 바카라�Perhaps they fear they would be killed if they leave Islam. After all, the penalty for apostasy is death. That바카라�s why they say they went on their own and wish to continue as Muslims,바카라� says the lawyer. There is also the threat of extremist groups attacking people critical of Islam. In 2010, PFI act­ivists cut off the hand of T.J. Joseph, a Malayalam professor, for allegedly setting a question that insul­ted the Prop­het. 바카라�These violent acts scare people,바카라� says Manoj.  바카라�The protest march against the Akhila verdict was meant to create fear in people바카라�s minds. We are seeing how people are radicalised in stages. They are first told that what their parents do is wrong, and later that the laws of the land are not in tandem with Islam. That바카라�s when they get ready to wage war on the country.바카라� Nimisha바카라�s mother says she hears her Muslim friends say 바카라�she has now reached paradise바카라�.

But refuting the allegation that the ­Sarani alienates students from their parents, Basheer says the parents do come and meet the students 바카라�every day, after working hours, from 4 pm to dusk. Only those parents who are at ­loggerheads with their children do not come to meet them.바카라�

(*Names changed to protect identity)