Book Review

A Guide to Uplift Minorities
Social Service Wing, Jamaat-e Islami Hind, D-317 Dawat Nagar, Abul Fazl Enclave, Okhla, Jamia Nagar, New Delhi 110025 [www.jamaateislamihind.org]
Price:  Rs. 100
Pages: 207
Reviewed by: Yoginder Sikand

Despite the fact that the Indian Muslims taken together are, on the basis of almost all socio-economic indicators, among the most marginalized and deprived communities in India, the state as well as Muslim elites have done little to address the plight of the community’s poor. A good indication of this is the fact that there are relatively few Muslim-run NGOs in the country which work on development-related issues. In contrast, the vast majority of Muslim NGOs that do exist focus almost wholly on religious education alone. This book is a must for social activists involved in community work among Muslims in the country. Based on meticulous research, it details various programmes and schemes that Indian Muslim organisations involved in development work can apply for, from a host of sources. It provides step-by-step guidance on how to register an NGO and maintain it professionally, network with other groups working in the same or similar fields and raise funds for development projects. It provides detailed information about various schemes and programmes commissioned by the Central government for minorities and other ‘weaker’ sections, as well as general schemes for which few Muslim NGOs have hitherto applied, possibly for lack of information and awareness. In addition, it lists a number of international donor and development agencies, including Western as well as foreign Muslim organisations, that fund development projects.The information contained in this handy guide book is presented in a very readable and easily accessible mode and will prove of immense use to Muslim groups seeking to engage in community work on a range of fronts and the now revamped social service wing of the Jamaat-e Islami Hind deserves kudos for this work. If the book were to be translated into Urdu, Hindi and various regional languages it could be even more effective. If the publishers might later consider a second edition of the book, its value could be enhanced by listing selected reliable non-Muslim NGOs working on various issues that Muslim NGOs could possibly partner with for common purposes and goals.

Pseudo-Messianic Movements in Contemporary Muslim South Asia
By Yoginder Sikand  
Global Media Publications
Year of Publication: 2008

Messianic hopes and expectations are common to almost all religions. Jews expect the Messiah to arrive to re-establish their temple in Jerusalem; Christians pray for Jesus to return to earth in his ‘Second Coming’; Hindus believe that Kalki, the tenth and last avatar of Vishnu, would appear just before the end of times; and the advent of the Imam Mahdi, who will usher in the end of the world, is a cardinal tenet of the faith of Shia and many Sunni Muslims.

The messianic figure that almost all religions expect to arrive some time towards the end of the world is generally portrayed as representing the forces of good, as an agent of God and as eventually vanquishing, in a war of global and cosmic proportions, the forces of evil. Almost the entire limited corpus of writings on pseudo-messianic movements in Muslim South Asia consists of historical surveys of such movements in the ‘medieval’ period.

It is hoped that this book, by focusing on three such movements that emerged in twentieth century Muslim South Asia and which are still alive, will add to our understanding of pseudo-messianic movements in Muslim environments, in particular, and messianism in general. Given the fact that messianic expectations and claims have now assumed such importance in global politics (the clash between certain Jewish, Christian and Islamic forces in West Asia, each driven by their own messianic visions, being the best example), more intensive studies on the phenomenon and often frightening implications of contemporary messianic movements and trends in all religious environments are called for.

Millat Educational Directory-Gujarat 2007 & All India Directory of
Muslim Colleges Engineering, Medical, Management
Published by: Modern Educational & Social Organisation. 102, Alfatah Palace, Opp. Sir J.J. English School, Saiyedwada, Surat-395003.
Price: Rs 50 & 60
Compiled by Saiyed Mohammed Ali
Email:mjsaiyed@yahoo.com. Ph: 09825611661

After the communal riots of 1992, Muslims from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and some other states, realised their real position and existence. They started various social and educational movements to regain their original position. unfortunately in Gujarat, although having a better economic position compared to other states, no remarkable work has been done.

To initiate such educational awareness movements in Gujarat, the modern Educational and social organisation, based in Surat has surveyed Muslim managed schools, libraries, orphanages, media (journalism), Scholarship giving Institutions, hostels and general hospitals throughout Gujarat. This has taken the form of the Millat educational Directory- Gujarat 2007. It has been compiled by Saiyed Mohammed Ali.

Translated with an introduction by Maulana Wahidud-din Khan
Explanatory notes translated and edited by:
Farida Khanam & Saniya-snain Khan

(Maulana Wahiddudin Khan) , born in 1925 at Azamgarh is an Islamic spiritual scholar who is well versed in both classical Islamic learning and modern science. In the course of his research, the Maulana came to the conclusion that the need of the hour was to present Islamic teachings in the style and language of the present day. Keeping this ideal consistently before him, he has written over 200 books on Islam. The latest is the translation of the Quran.

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