Translation of a Shia Muslim's speech in India

Submitted by Prashant (United States), Mar 17, 2021 at 17:37

Dear Dr Pipes, Indian politics, like all politics, is very complex. And, when it is mixed with religion it gets even more complex. Finally, add to that the religion of Islam, you ought to be very careful about drawing a final conclusion from anything. With that caveat, a very remarkable speech was made in India by Waseem Rizvi who is a Shia Muslim political leader. He spoke in a mixture of Urdu/Hindi and so I will provide a translation of the speech in the end and provide a link for the people who can understand the languages used in the speech.

Waseem Rizvi asserts that there are 26 verses in Quran that bring unnecessary pride in the people, encourage cruelity against other religions, and are used by Mullahs to turn children into terrorists. Not realizing that Indian Supreme Court may not have any jurisdiction in this matter, Mr Rizvi filed a petition in the SC that these 26 verses be removed from the Quran.

Toward the end of his speech, Mr Rizvi showed some pathos and/or pain. He said that he was being ostracisized by his family and community due to his expressed views. The latter part of his speech may sound a bit melodramatic to the readers but early part of his speech is what a lot of us would like to hear from the Muslims around the world.

Mr Rizvi's thesis, from a Shia point of view, is that there was a conspiracy by Abubakr, Usman and Umr to insert these verses in the Quran and they were never approved by the Shia leader Hazrat Ali. It is entirely possible that Mr Rizvi borrowed a thesis that existed prior to his statement and I am not aware of its existence. Also, I could not find which exact 26 verses Mr Rizvi is objecting to (I hope Q5-33 is one of them).

Indian ruling party of which Mr Rizvi is a member (like a Palestinain supporter of the Likuds), quickly distanced itself from Rizvi's statement. And, the Islamic political machinery in India went into a high gear criticizing him. But that is exactly what we need in the Islamic world. I hope this speech starts a trend because Islam minus cruelity and stubbornness may be a good cause to stand for.

Below is a link to Rizvi's speech in Hindi/Urdu:
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videos/city/lucknow/will-fight-till-my-last-breath-waseem-rizvi-on-his-petition-seeking-removal-of-26-qurans-verses/videoshow/81546859.cms

Here is the complete translation into English:

""
Praise be to Allah. I am a Shia. I am one of those people who
love Allah and the Prophet. I also dislike the people who keeps
enmity with the Prophet. There are 26 verses in Quran that
incite arrogance (pride) in people's mind, that give a message
that takes humans toward tyranny and excesses. These verses are
read by Mullahs to Muslim Children due to which Muslim children
become terrorists.

This is a matter of grave concern regarding Islamic terrorism in
the entire world. It is because of these verses, Islamic
terrorism has spread in the entire world and our country (India)
has also not remained untouched by them. In fact, more problems
are caused by these verses in India (than elsewhere): Injustice
and excesses were done to the Hindus in Kashmir by citing these
verses, they were banished from Kashmir, and their daughters were
raped and burnt alive. This kind of incidences have happened in
many parts of India where people of other religions are killed in
the name of Islam. We often observe that some times in Syria or
some times in Iraq whereever Islamic terrorism is thriving, they
have beheaded people live on TV channels. These beheadings were
done after reciting 'Allah ho Akbar' as slogan. Has a right to
kill these people been given to you? No.

It was a conspiracy by Abu Bakr and Usman to insert these 26
verses in Quran. These cannot be Allah's sayings. God can never
mandate cruelity against anyone. This is a conspiracy under
which these verses were added to Quran, using Abu Bakr, Usman and
Umr as carriers. Today the book codified by Usman has become the
only valid book for us and it is being said that there is no
quran but this.

When Hazrat Ali presented his Quran to the (then) leaders, his
quran was rejected. Our Shia belief is that when Hazrat Ali comes
back to the earth, he will bring this (real) Quran with him.
People should understand that book by Usman that is currently in
use; that is not the correct quran. In it this kind of verses
have been deliberately inserted. That is not Allah's message. I
do not challenge the entire Quran. In the Quran there are many
verses that increase brotherhood among people and that reduce
hatred among them and talk about bringing people close.

Today, when I have raised my voice against this there has been a
major fracas against me. I am alone on one side and the entire
Islamic world is on the other side. But I care less about it.
My brother, my wife, my childern and my relatives are leaving me
and going away. That is why I also do not care if they are
leaving me. I am happy that I am on the side of rights. I also
will that when I die at least four of my friends, who may not
agree with me on this matter but may see that I am speaking for the
truth, will still carry me to the grave. I do not need any
brother of mine or a son or a daughter. There are people who
congratulate me for speaking the rightful thing. They will carry me
to the graveyard. I have no need that any of my friends, sons or
daughters attend my funeral. I will fight my battle till my last
breath and I will fight for as long as I am alive. I might commit
suicide if I see that I am losing this battle but I am not the one to
show my back because I am a lover of Maula Ali.

""

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