Does Indian Muslim not share the Pak-Arab Islamic sentiments against the West and America in particular? The article explains that it is easy to misguide a Muslim living in a closed society.
Why there are no Indian Muslims in al Qaeda?
Or Indian Muslims reject the common sentiments shared by Pak-Arab Muslims?
Why are there no Indian Muslims in al Qaeda? There are no easy answers. But there are two probable reasons. One is the assurance of a level-playing field for all citizens in India because of the success of the democratic system. The other is the absence of American influence on Indian policy all through the Cold War years and, to a large extent, even now.
To start with the second, it has been observed that a majority of the terrorists come from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Egypt and some of the North African countries. What is common about these countries is the lack of a genuine democracy, despite the adherence to form, and longstanding virtual patron-client links with the US. What is more, these two factors are interconnected.
A basic reason why the military or feudal autocrats control these countries is that the US propped them up to serve its economic and diplomatic interests. It was either the presence of oil or their utility as frontline states against the Soviet Union that guided the Americans.
As is known, Osama bin Laden, a Saudi millionaire, was an American ally when his band of fundamentalists fought the Soviets in Afghanistan. It is the cynical use of these countries by Washington that built up a reservoir of resentment among large sections of their people against the US.
This anger may have become all the more intense because there were no democratic outlets - no parliament, opposition parties, a free press and a free judiciary - to let off steam.
The difference between India and these countries is obvious. India’s ‘noisy democracy’, as an American newspaper recently put it, ensures that all segments of public opinion - anti-US, pro-US, neutral - are routinely aired.
Besides, during the Cold War, India was regarded by the US and the West as being in the anti-American camp despite its claims to be non-aligned. This perception gave India a certain dignified status in the eyes of its own people since the Western world was still seen as being engaged in a colonial enterprise.
The pro-American countries seemingly lacked this sense of self-esteem, as was evident from the title of one of America’s favourite dictator Ayub Khan’s book, “Friends, Not Masters”.
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