... India is the only technologically advanced power that has a significant Islamic tradition. This is a moderate strand much more in sync with the needs of an interdependent world than the fanatical variants now being tested in Afghanistan ...

India is home to the Hanafi school, which stresses moderation and the amicable to co-existence of different faiths. The overwhelming majority of the country's 100-million strong Sunni population follow the Hanafi teachings in preference to sects that promote socio-religious exclusivity. As for the four Shia schools in India, all promote co-existence. This is particularly marked in the case of the Bohras and the Ismailis, both of whom have distinguished themselves by their industry and moderation. Indeed, India can be said to be the epicentre of the moderate strain that is dominant not only here but in a wide arc ranging from Syria, Egypt and Iraq in the west to Malaysia and Indonesia in the east.

Despite the powerful influence of Islam in its heritage, why is there not greater co-operation between Muslim-majority states and India? The answer lies in the incessant propaganda by Islamabad that India is an "anti- Muslim country". Thanks to this, numerous initiatives aimed at joint action have not taken off, to the detriment of both India as well as the Muslim-majority states ...

By their actions, other sections ... who seek to distance India from its cultural cousins are Hindu exclusivists. Had such groups conducted an international agitation against the demolition of dozens of places of worship in Pakistan, their role would have been positive. Instead ... they are seeking to demolish religious structures in Kashi and Mathura. That India is not Pakistan became clear from the outcry that greeted the destruction of the Babari Masjid, as compared to the silence within Pakistan on the marginalisation of the minorities and the organised destruction of their places of worship ... After all, Himsa dooyathe ithi Hindu (Only those who abjure violence are true Hindus). Should the ... Hindu (fanatics) recognise this reality, it would help to turn followers of another great faith away from the fanatics who seek to imprison Muslims in the pit of exclusivism ... New Delhi needs to work towards much greater cultural and business cooperation with this vast region, so as to make it the pivot of the international economy int he coming millennium. This is possible only if syncretic traditions are maintained.

Despite the efforts of fundamentalists of varying  faiths, the odds favour India and the Muslim-majority states working together. Such interpretation will not only spur economic development but will also promote the moderate social attitudes needed to sustain it. The advantages of closer cooperation will soon negate the efforts of the ... fanatics to prevent India from providing its due help in the development of its cultural cousins.                                                                                                                                   (Source: The Times of India, 18 December, 1997)