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Saturday, September 8, 2012

[mukto-mona] Re: Number of U.S. mosques up 74% since 2000 & Proof of Religious Tolerance & Secularism in USA .....




Obviously, it has been possible, only because USA is a truly secular country, where the freedom of religion is constitutionally guaranteed ....

  

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...." 

 

America is Christian majority country: The majority of Americans (76% to 80%) identify themselves as Christians according to the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS), According to the same survey, other religions (including, for example, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam,  and Hindu) collectively make up about 4% of the adult population, another 15% of the adult population claim no religious affiliation, and 5.2% said they did not know, or they refused to reply [ Barry A. Kosmin and Ariela Keysar (2009). "AMERICAN RELIGIOUS IDENTIFICATION SURVEY (ARIS) 2008" (PDF). Hartford, Connecticut, USA: Trinity College. Retrieved 2009-04-01].


The rise of US mosques since 2000, definitely proves the overall religious tolerance of American people, in-spite of adverse propaganda by certain ultra-reactionary groups.

 

The so-called Ground Zero mosque, where proponents of religious freedom clashed with conservative politicians and the families of few 9/11 victims for nearly two years, finally opened without controversy (September 21, 2011). A mosque at the edge of Ground Zero is  much more than a house of worship. It is the ultimate expression of the freedom of religion and secularism, that people enjoy in America. 


On Sat, Sep 8, 2012 at 9:47 PM, Mohiuddin Anwar <mohiuddin@netzero.net> wrote:

Very good and encouraging news indeed for American muslims.

 

Number of U.S. mosques up 74% since 2000

By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY


 
WASHINGTON � The number of Islamic places of worship in the United States soared 74% in the past decade.
  • Imam Omar Abu Namous, right, leads a prayer service at the Islamic Center of New York. A new study finds New York has more mosques than any other state in the U.S.
    2002 photo by Joe Kohen, AP
    Imam Omar Abu Namous, right, leads a prayer service at the Islamic Center of New York. A new study finds New York has more mosques than any other state in the U.S.
2002 photo by Joe Kohen, AP
Imam Omar Abu Namous, right, leads a prayer service at the Islamic Center of New York. A new study finds New York has more mosques than any other state in the U.S.
While protests against new mosques in New York, Tennessee and California made headlines, the overall number of mosques quietly rose from 1,209 in 2000 to 2,106 in 2010.
And most of their leaders say American society is not hostile to Islam, according to a comprehensive census ofU.S. mosques and survey of imams, mosque presidents and board members released Wednesday.
"This is a very healthy community," said lead researcher and study author Ihsan Bagby, an associate professor of Islamic studies at the University of Kentucky.
They're also very engaged: The study finds "98% of mosque leaders say Muslims should be involved in American institutions and 91% agree that Muslims should be involved in politics."
The study � The American Mosque 2011 � was sponsored by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research (Hartford Seminary), the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, as well as the nation's largest Islamic civic and religious groups, including the Islamic Society of North America and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Muslims feared being "marginalized, demonized and isolated" after 9/11, said Safaa Zarzour, secretary general of the Islamic Society. But the new study shows they have "kept their eyes on the prize � becoming part of mainstream America."
Major findings include:
�States with the most mosques are New York (257), California (246) and Texas (166).
�Most mosques are in cities, but 28% were in suburban sites in 2010, up from 16% in 2000.
�Mosques are ethnically diverse. The major participants are South Asians, Arabs and African Americans, with growing numbers of new immigrants including Somalis, West Africans and Iraqis. The study did not include Nation of Islam mosques because it is a separate religion.
�Most mosque leaders (87%) say "radicalism and extremism" are not increasing among Muslim youth, "in their own experience." They say the greater challenge is "attracting and keeping them close to the mosque."
All religious groups should be worried about losing their youth, said David Roozen, who directs the Hartford Institute, which overseas an every-decade look at the growth and health of U.S. religious congregations, Faith Communities Today.
Islam will continue to grow, he said, and the old summation of American religion -- Protestant, Catholic, Jew � may soon be revised. But it won't be Protestant, Catholic Muslim, Roozen said.
"The fastest growing group of all is those with no religion," Roozen said.
Although the study does not claim to say how many Muslims are in the USA, Bagby estimates there are 2.6 million "mosque participants" � people who have attended prayers for Eid (a major holy day) or Friday prayers or were considered participants by the mosque leader survey.
Bagby says he reached the number by taking mosque attendance reported by the leadership and multiplying the average number of attendees by the number of mosques.
Bagby's report concludes, "If there are 2.6 million Muslims who pray the Eid prayer, then the total Muslim population should be closer to estimates (by Bagby) of up to 7 million."
No other survey projects even 3 million Muslims in the USA.
For example, a 2010 survey on global Muslim population by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life found there were 2.6 million Muslims, including adults and children, in the country. And a 2011 survey by the same research group found 2.75 million Muslims, including 1.8 million adults.
Bagby disputes other studies, saying they underestimate because they are based on random phone interviews and many Muslims, particularly immigrants, will not discuss their religion with a stranger on the phone.
However, the Pew research, which included phone interviews in four languages, also synthesized data from the Census Bureau and immigration authorities. Pew used country-of-birth information with data from surveys on the percentage of people from each country, or group of countries, who belong to various faiths.



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[mukto-mona] Padma Bridge niye kobita



You may like it:



পদ্মা সেতু নিয়ে কবিতা

লিখেছেন নয়ন খান ০৯ সেপ্টেম্বর ২০১২, রাত ০৩:৩৪



আমাদের পদ্মা নদী চলে বাঁকে বাঁকে,
সেতু করার আশা দিয়ে বিশ্ব ব্যাংক ডাকে।
গাড়ী নিয়ে যাবে আবুল কালকিনি বাড়ী,
সিনা উঁচু করে দিবে পদ্মা সেতু পাড়ি।

পার হয়ে যায় দিন পার হয় রাত,
আচমকা বিনা মেঘে যেন বজ্রপাত।
কমিশন চেয়ে আবুল করল কি ভুল,
টাকা দেয়না বিশ্বব্যাংক একি হুল স্থুল।

গ্যাঁক গ্যাঁক করে উঠে সুরঞ্জিতের ঝাঁক,
রাতে উঠে থেকে থেকে ওবায়দুলের হাঁক।

তীরে তীরে ছেলেমেয়ে টিফিনের কালে,
গামছায় সূধা ভরি সদনেতে ঢালে।
সকালে বিকালে কভু বাজার হলে পরে,
আঁচল ছাড়িয়ে তারা চাঁদার টাকা তোলে।

সারা দেশে লীগে লীগে পড়ে যায় সাড়া,
প্রয়োজনে কিডনী নাকি বেঁচে দিবে তারা।

পেটের শিশুটিও কান করে খাড়া,
ভূমিষ্ঠ হইয়া বলে, এ কোন ফাঁড়া!!

(সংগৃহীত) 




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[mukto-mona] Your friend Dhirendra Panda Panda wants to tell you something



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[mukto-mona] November Election: Disappointing News for Rush Limbaugh Fans



The U.S. presidential election is less than 60 days from now. Both the Tampa and Charlotte conventions are history now. In a new Reuters/Ipsos poll released today (September 8, 2012) Obama-Biden ticket is gaining popularity among American voters despite a disappointing job growth stat published a day ago. A majority of American voters now agree that the job growth will be anemic going forward notwithstanding an economic meltdown brought on by George W. Bush's presidency in 2008. The tax code favored by Republicans since 2000 has helped the greedy rich at the expense of the middle class and poor folks. Americans are now cognizance of this truth and they don't want to put a Wall Street vulture by the name Mitt Romney to the White House.  This is the same guy who does not want to pay a fair tax. Some even say he is a tax dodger.

In my view, as election time nears, more and more American voters of independent streak would side with the Democrats and will defeat the God-fearing Republicans. In this day and age of fast Internet, it is becoming very difficult to engage in disinformation and misinformation campaign. The fact-Check folks are ever alert now telling the media who is spreading lies and dirt.

In 2008, a small but vocal minority of Mukto-Mona forum opposed the candidacy of Obama by falsely thinking that Obama was a closet Muslim.  Obama's middle name gave them a jolt. One of the M-M forum-goers even made some boastful comment to the effect that his American friends in New York City have told him that a black man is unelectable for the highest political position. How wrong was he?

I am very surprised that these folks are very quiet these days. One of them is however very critical of Michelle Obama.

Incidentally, Mrs. Obama is the most radical First Lady this nation had ever witnessed. She took a shovel and helped dig the dirt in the backyard of White House with the help of kids and turned a small plot into a beautiful community garden.

All the other first ladies of last thirty years such as Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, etc. were all dolled up never venturing out in the backyard of White House. But Michelle Obama is a different breed who dance to hear own tune. She is pushing for changing the food habits of grade school students. Her initiatives to feed the students more vegetables and fruits have been hailed by many nutritionists. Thus, she has a vision for America. Contrast this, if you will, with the demeanor of Anne Romney whose hobby is dressage (an equestrian sport of yesteryears). There is no comparison between Michelle Obama and Anne Romney, really. They exist in different realm!  One is a working mother and the other is a sheltered rich housewife. One is a visionary like her husband and the other is a dull housewife.

I think since it is the season of presidential politics in America, Mukto-Mona forum-goers should discuss endlessly who they support and why they support one candidate over the other.

All the poll results thus far indicate that Obama may beat Romney but there is no guarantee.  Political wind may change very fast.  Debate performance, economic data, etc. may have a profound impact on election results.  Therefore, do not pay much attention to what I write here.  Give your opinion and make this forum rich with your erudite remarks.



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Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: [ History Islam & Beyond . . .] Ali Ibn Abi Talib and Shri Krishna



Mr. Rahman 
Very interesting. Is he the fourth  caliph? I am amused by the similarities. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 5, 2012, at 9:12 AM, qar <qrahman@netscape.net> wrote:

 

Mainstream Muslims do not agree with views shared here. However I did share an article on Sri Krishna. It looked amazingly close to life of prophet Musa (PBUH).

I am attaching the article on Sri Krishna and also an article on similarities between Islam and Hinduism. Hope "Mukto-Mona" members would enjoy reading them.


Shalom!


-----Original Message-----
From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tue, Sep 4, 2012 8:13 am
Subject: [mukto-mona] Fw: [ History Islam & Beyond . . .] Ali Ibn Abi Talib and Shri Krishna

 
FYI
 
--- On Mon, 9/3/12, Mohiuddin Anwar <mohiuddin@netzero.net> wrote:

From: Mohiuddin Anwar <mohiuddin@netzero.net>
Subject: Fw: [ History Islam & Beyond . . .] Ali Ibn Abi Talib and Shri Krishna
To: farida_majid@hotmail.com, syed.aslam3@gmail.com, akhtergolam@gmail.com, jnrsr53@yahoo.com, kamalctgu@gmail.com, jnrsr53@yahoo.com, shahdeeldar@gmail.com
Cc: captchowdhury@yahoo.ca, guhasb@gmail.com
Date: Monday, September 3, 2012, 9:55 PM



---------- Forwarded Message ----------
From: phoolel
To: History Islam <History_Islam@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [ History Islam & Beyond . . .] Ali Ibn Abi Talib and Shri Krishna
Date: Sat, 1 Sep 2012 20:05:36 -0700 (PDT)

 
 From Ismaili shia web page, this comparison is taken.
They add Mawlana before Shri Krisna. These are full of Shiirk.
May Allah swt. save us this fitnah (ameen).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Imâm 'Alî has said: "I speak in every language of the world". In the language of yesterday, the Eternal Imâm spoke as Mawlânâ Shri Krishna; in the language of today, he speaks as Mawlânâ Shâh Karîm.
 
The Songs (Gita) of Shri Krishna and the Sermons (balagha) of Imâm 'Alî:
Human Form – Eternal Essence:

The Creator and the Fashioner:

The Creator and the Destroyer:

The Sustainer and the Provider:
The Judge and the Resurrector:


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               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




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Re: [mukto-mona] RE: [india-unity] Wife beating is good: We need more such justices!



Almighty Allah has advised wife beating in the 'Holy Quran'(IV:35-40).  In it he says, men are the managers of the affairs of women...righteous women are therefore obedient,...and those you fear may be rebellious admonish; banish them to their couches, and beat them."

On Sat, Sep 8, 2012 at 8:02 PM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:
 


The whole issue is a mess. I have a very vivid memory of a case, in which, a Muslim family, one of our neighbors, migrated from Murshidabad, West Bengal, to our village in Bangladesh, used to beat his wife every now and then. They are married for at least 30 years, have 5 children. One early morning, that lady started to cry with unbearable loud tone, which everybody could hear. We were thinking that may be something happened to one of her children. But, it was not so. We learned that her husband given her 'Tin-Talak (divorce)' for resisting his beating, and thrown her out of the house with her little kids. Now, she has no place to go, as her parents' family is in India. I was very young at that time, but – thought - what could be worse, tolerating the beating or getting divorced for resisting it. She had to resort to begging after the divorce.

The point of the story is women are so dependent on men in those societies that it is hard to think what's good for them. The solution is obviously – self-reliance of women, and we are nowhere near there.  What could we do in the mean time? I have no opinion in this case, except to say that the judge may be weighing on the consequences of the woman after the punishment of her husband. I know – law does not care about the consequences, but – the interpretation of the law may consider it knowingly or unknowingly.

Jiten Roy
--- On Fri, 9/7/12, Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com> wrote:


From: Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com>
Subject: [mukto-mona] RE: [india-unity] Wife beating is good: We need more such justices!
To: "india-unity@yahoogroups.com" <india-unity@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Friday, September 7, 2012, 2:53 PM


 
             The instance of the Hon'ble Justice making those obscene remarks are unacceptable and, to echo the the letter-writers' point, downright unconstitutional.
  I have heard that wife-beating cases in US Family Courts do not fare much better and the offenders end up receiving a slap-on-the-wrist treatment. Anybody who thinks misogyny is not a global problem is mistaken.  It is an on-going struggle, alas!

               Farida

NB.  Who are the signatories of this excellently written letter?  This should be widely distributed.

To: india-unity@yahoogroups.com
From: ggjey1@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 7 Sep 2012 11:56:56 -0400
Subject: [india-unity] Wife beating is good: We need more such justices!

 

To

The Hon'ble Chief Justice

High Court of Karnataka

 

 

Hon'ble Chief Justice Shri Vikramjit Sen,

 

We are writing to you in the context of the recent media reports regarding Hon'ble Justice Bhaktavatsala's verbal comments in open Court. We are bringing these comments to your notice because they do not seem to be in consonance with the oath Justice Bhaktavatsala has taken under Article 219 to 'bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India and to duly and faithfully and to the best of my ability, knowledge, and judgment perform the duties of my office without fear and favour, affection or ill-will and to uphold the Constitution and the laws.' The comments attributed to J. Bhaktavatsala are deeply offensive to all right thinking people, lower the dignity and agency of women who constitute literally half the population of this country and betray animus towards women.

 

It has been reported that J. Bhaktavatsala in open court has observed as follwos:

 

1) According to media reports on August 31 2012 Justice Bhaktavatsala stated to a woman litigant in a divorce matter, "Women suffer in all marriages. You are married with two children, and know what it means to suffer as a woman. Yesterday, there was a techie couple who reconciled for the sake of their child. Your husband is doing good business, he will take care of you. Why are you still talking about his beatings? I know you have undergone pain. But that is nothing in front of what you undergo as a woman. I have not undergone such pain. But Madam (Justice BS Indrakala) has."

The Court asked the woman if her parents were present, at which her father walked up to the bench. The judge was reported to have remarked in open court, "Ask your father if he has never beaten your mother!" When the woman said her husband would beat her in the open, in front of everyone, Justice Bhaktavatsala remarked that it was she who was bringing it out in the open. The court was told that the husband would beat her in the middle of the night and had thrown her out of the house.

When the woman's advocate produced photographs showing her swollen face after the beatings, the court said, "You have to adjust. Are you just behind money? There is nothing in your case to argue on merits. You have to give him a divorce or go with him. Have you read about actor Darshan. He spent 30 days in jail after beating his wife. But they are living together now. What is on your mind and what is on your agenda?" The court directed the couple to go out and talk to each other. (Bangalore Mirror, August 31,2012)

 

2) In another case, a young  female advocate was citing the allegations against the husband, Justice Bhaktavatsala stopped her midway and asked, "Are you married?" When she replied in the negative, the judge said, "You are unfit to argue this case. You do not know real life. Why are you arguing like this? He is your (client's) partner, not a stranger. Family matters should be argued only by married people, not spinsters. You should only watch. Bachelors and spinsters watching family court proceedings will start thinking if there is any need to marry at all. Marriage is not like a public transport system. You better get married and you will get very good experience to argue such cases."

(Bangalore Mirror,  August 10, 2012)

 

Our concern is that these comments apart from lowering the dignity of the High Court of Karnataka are also indicative of a judicial mindset which leads to judicial pronouncements which are not in keeping with the Constitution. In particular, the Constitution protects intimate choices with respect to one's partner transcending barriers of caste, class and religion, regardless of parental opposition. In Writ Petition (HC) No.67/2011, Avinash v. State of Karnataka, J. Bhaktavatsala has expressed his strong opinion against love marriages and by extension the choices made by young women about whom to marry are summarily brushed aside as choices made because of 'hormonal imbalances'. To quote from the judgment;

"In our opinion, the girls below the age of 21 years are not capable of forming a rational judgment as to suitability of the boy, who is in love. It is relevant to mention that those girls, who are suffering from harmonal imbalance easily fall prey to the boys and fall in love, marry and repent at leisure. The parents of the girl are interested in selecting a suitable boy and see that the girl leads a happy married life. Since the Hindu Marriage Act does not deal with love marriages, in our view, it is a high time that the Parliament shall take note of the sufferings and turmoil of such girls and their parents and amend the law suitably. We perpetuate our memory as to the episode of the famous Telugu Cine actor Sri Chiranjivi's daughter's love marriage. Hence, we suggest that in the case of love affair of a girl, who is below the age of 21 years, there shall be a condition that the parents of the girl should approve the marriage, otherwise such marriages shall be declared void or voidable."

In particular, Justice Bhaktavatsala's above mentioned judicial pronouncement undermines the very idea of India as a nation in which all persons are free to form consensual intimate relationships with others of their choice regardless of narrow considerations of gender, caste, religion and class. If India is to indeed move beyond being a society riven by sharp divisions of caste and religion, the antidote lies in the choices made by young people to love across these narrow domestic walls, regardless of parental opposition.

As Dr. Ambedkar noted:

I am convinced that the real remedy is inter-marriage. Fusion of blood can alone create the feeling of being kith and kin, and unless this feeling of kinship, of being kindred, becomes paramount, the separatist feeling- the feeling of being aliens- created by Caste will not vanish.

                                                                                      (Annihilation of Caste)

 

The citizens of India look to the Court to protect their right to equality, dignity and liberty. Judges must keep this constitutional mandate in mind of being the protectors of the Constitution, even as they perform their duty  to interpret the law. Thus judges do not have a free reign to give expression to their own private morality or even the morality of the wider public, but rather have a duty to interpret the law in the light of the Constitution. Judges are bound by what the Founding Father of the Indian Constitution, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar describes as constitutional morality.  Dr. Ambedkar quoted Grote, the historian of Greece, who had said:

"The diffusion of constitutional morality, not merely among the majority of any community but throughout the whole, is an indispensable condition of government at once free and peaceable; since even any powerful and obstinate minority may render the working of a free institution impracticable without being strong enough to conquer the ascendancy for themselves."

After quoting Grote, Dr. Ambedkar added:

"While everybody recognised the necessity of diffusion of constitutional morality for the peaceful working of the democratic constitution, there are two things interconnected with it which are not, unfortunately, generally recognised. One is that the form of administration must be appropriate to and in the same sense as the form of the Constitution. The other is that it is perfectly possible to pervert the Constitution, without changing its form by merely changing its form of administration and to make it inconsistent and opposed to the spirit of the Constitution. ......The question is, can we presume such a diffusion of constitutional morality? Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it. Democracy in India is only a top dressing on an Indian soil which is essentially undemocratic."

 [Constitutional Assembly Debates: Official Reports Vol.VII: November 4, 1948, page 38],

 

 J. Bhaktavatsala in making those above statements, has clearly overstepped the bounds and limits of constitutional morality as described by Dr. Ambedkar. We are extraordinarily disappointed and let down by the fact that a high constitutional functionary has through his reported comments and judicial pronouncements betrayed the enormous trust vested in him. There are serious apprehensions that in the constitutionally mandated area of non-discrimination on grounds of gender, J. Bhaktavatsala will not decide in accordance with the constitution but rather in accordance with his private morality.

 

We ask that you consider strong action in your capacity as a Chief Justice to send out the message that no Judge can so easily betray the mandate of the Constitution to ensure equality of gender. Judges have a duty to protect the mandate of Article 14 of the constitution which guarantees equality and non-discrimination and Article 15 which guarantees that there shall be no discrimination on the basis of gender. Justice Bhaktavatsala's comments and action in court in condoning violence against women, in requiring that unmarried women are not capable of arguing matrimonial cases and comments even about Justice Indrakala, his sister Judge are extremely gender biased and discriminating against women. This bias against women is reflected not only in his statements in court but also in his judgments. Gender bias is ordinarily defined as a tendency to think about people primarily on the basis of their sex. In the judicial system, gender bias results in decisions or actions that are based upon preconceived notions of sexual roles rather than on fair and impartial appraisals of any situation. Gender bias must be eliminated in the judicial system not only because it influences the perception of women in the courtroom, but also because it undermines the manner in which courts apply the law and thus affects the substantive rights of the parties.

 

In the interest of upholding the principles of our Constitution, we would request the following:

1.      That J. Bhaktavatsala issue an unconditional public apology for his gender biased and offensive remarks.

2.      That the all appeals from the judgments of the Family Court classified as MFA(FC) are removed from J. Bhaktavatsala's docket. 

3.      Set up a Commission to look at gender bias within the judiciary in Karnataka

 

We would also request you to take serious note of these comments and ensure that in your capacity as the Chief Justice, no judge of the Karnataka High Court again gives any room for such gross insensitivity to all forms of discrimination based on gender.

 

 




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Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima



"Yeah, this is the real Taslima. I have been saying this all along."

You have been saying many things but that does not mean you should be gloating now. The lady might be speaking truth? We just do not know. It is rather a very sad situation for Taslima who can't go back to her own country of birth. That is a big problem!
 
-SD 

 
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

From: qar <qrahman@netscape.net>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, September 7, 2012 5:01 PM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima

 
Now, this scandal with Sunil makes me throw up. She has basically lost everything, period!

>>>>>>>>>>>> She was a "Glory seeker" and she would not stop at anything until she gets some attention.

Yeah, this is the real Taslima. I have been saying this all along.

Truth is always stronger than falsehood.

Shalom!!


-----Original Message-----
From: Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thu, Sep 6, 2012 5:26 am
Subject: Re: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima

 
Initially Taslima was a brave woman but I do not know what happened to this lady? Obviously, she did not grow with the age even though she got so much support from some great writers and famous personalities. Now, this scandal with Sunil makes me throw up. She has basically lost everything, period!
She will do more harm to the minorities if she writes another LAJJA. I am totally stunned.
-SD

 
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 4, 2012 9:06 PM
Subject: Fw: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima

 


It's not unusual that a writer will seek publicity for selling his/her book. Every writer does that. I am trying to understand why so much anger at Taslima. I read her book Lajjya, which is about persecution of religious minorities. People say everything is a big lie, probably because they haven't experienced it themselves. I witnessed persecution of minorities myself.  So, I see that book from a very different angle from them.
Jiten Roy
--- On Tue, 9/4/12, Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Cc: "jnrsr53@yahoo.com" <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
Date: Tuesday, September 4, 2012, 8:31 PM

I Think she wants to sell her book. The motive is very clear. Whether Sunil has done it or not, who cares? The lady is beyond her prime and most likely, suffering from menopausal syndrome. All the juices have vanished the least to say.
This could be a good lesson for that fat idiot!
-SD

 
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 4, 2012 7:34 PM
Subject: [mukto-mona] Fw: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima

 
I know there are people who will never believe anything she said or wrote. But, it is quite surprising that some women are also testifying against her sexual harassment allegation. The question is how do they know for sure? Isn't it odd, and something to think about who may be lying here. How can anyone know about what happened between these two individuals? This type of incident does not happen with everybody. I don't know what happened. Why people are so eager to refute her allegation. Something to think about – isn't it?
 
I remember when she was ousted from West Bengal to some other state in India, she was accusing Sunil Ganguli for the ban of her book, and her ouster from West Bengal. Her argument was that - her book contained inferences of multiple sexual encounters with Sunil Ganguli, and to cover that up Sunil Ganguli orchestrated the ban on her book and her ouster from West Bengal. Really, no one knows, but these two individuals, if everything was consensual or exploitation or molestation. It is possible that - she may have exploited him. Who knows?
 
You may say why is she saying these things again now? She already said why? Now, Sunil Ganguli is  the President of the Sahitya Academy, who worked for banning her book. It's a quite plausible explanation - isn't it?
 
Jiten Roy

--- On Tue, 9/4/12, Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Fw: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima
To: "Mohiuddin Anwar" <mohiuddin@netzero.net>
Cc: farida_majid@hotmail.com, jnrsr53@yahoo.com, kamalctgu@gmail.com, subimal@yahoo.com, guhasb@gmail.com, unitycouncilusa@gmail.com, pressministerwash@yahoo.com, muhanajm@yahoo.com, srbanunz@gmail.com, aanis06@yahoo.com, manik195709@yahoo.com, americanbangladeshi@googlegroups.com, farid2002hossain@hotmail.com, "bangladesh-progressives googlegroups" <bangladesh-progressives@googlegroups.com>
Date: Tuesday, September 4, 2012, 9:45 AM

That would not surprise me considering the man needing Scotch whisky and women' company for his daily urge to compose few paragraphs of his commercial writings.
-SD  

On Mon, Sep 3, 2012 at 5:51 PM, Mohiuddin Anwar <mohiuddin@netzero.net> wrote:


---------- Forwarded Message ----------
From: Isha Khan <bdmailer@gmail.com>
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: [Dahuk]: Sunil molested me:Taslima
Date: Mon, 3 Sep 2012 22:48:34 +0600

 
Taslima tweets: Sunil molested me



Controversial writer Taslima Nasreen accused noted Indian writer Sunil Gangopadhyay on Monday of sexually harassing her.Taslima, who has been prevented by authorities from returning to Bangladesh for 18 years, brought the accusation on Twitter saying Sunil had "sexually harassed" her and many other young female authors and poets.

Sunil brushed off the allegations. He told bdnews24.com, "I am not giving a damn about this (allegation). She had said such things against several people in the past after coming to Kolkata . I am busy with my own work."

In her Twitter post, Taslima said on Monday: "My previous four tweets are only to prove that Sunil G is now lying in the media that he did not support the banning of Dwikhandito."

The third of her five autobiographical novels, Dwikhandito or Split in two, had touched off rowdy protests and a series of street fights in Kolkata in November 2007, forcing nervous West Bengal state authorities to ask her to get out of the city. Taslima decided to take out the pages of the book that had controversial remarks a month later.

When approached by bdnews24.com, Sunil Gangopadhyay said, " I am not taking this (allegations) seriously. She said these things against several persons at numerous times before after coming to Kolkata . I am busy with my own works."

The award-winning feminist writer tweeted: "Sunil Gangopadhyay is for book banning. He sexually harassed me & many other women. He is the President of the Sahitya Akademi. Shame shame!"

Further: "Sunil Gangopadhyay asked former WB govt to ban my book Dwikhandita. Now he is speaking against book banning. Such a hypocrite!� No Bengali has courage to tear off the mask of writer Sunil Gangopadhyay, the hypocrite and women abuser."

Taslima got a good deal of response to her tweet, prompting her to tweet back on Monday.One of her tweets read: "Reason Sunil Ganguly behind to ban my book, I was tearing off the masks of women abusers lyk (like) him. Sunil Gangapadhyay was the mastermind behind banning of my book Dwikhandita and my banishment from West Bengal."

In response, Sunil told The Statesman: "Why is she speaking out so late?" He said he isn't on Twitter, nor does he give any importance to such "baseless allegations".

"People tend to criticise good works more and praise less. I don't want to react on (to) this as it would give unnecessary importance to her blabber," he said.
There were diverse reactions to Taslima's tweet. One tweet asked why she is often the subject of alleged sexual harassment.

Taslima angered conservative Muslims with her writings and fled Bangladesh in 1994 after radical Muslims demanded her execution.She has been living in exile for the last 18 years after a fatwa was issued against her in Bangladesh for her writings criticising Islam.

Taslima, who had been in Kolkata since 2003, became a hot political issue for New Delhi with the Hindu nationalist opposition accusing the government of pandering to Muslim minorities by trying to get her out of the country.

She fled Bangladesh for the first time in 1994 when a court said she had "deliberately and maliciously" hurt Muslims' religious feelings with her Bengali-language novel "Lajja", or "Shame", which is about riots between Muslims and Hindus.

Several of her books have been banned in India and Bangladesh. The European Parliament awarded her the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought in 1994.
http://bdnews24.com/details.php?id=231529&cid=2
 
 


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--
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS








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****************************************************
Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
Call For Articles:

http://mukto-mona.com/wordpress/?p=68

http://mukto-mona.com/banga_blog/?p=585

****************************************************

VISIT MUKTO-MONA WEB-SITE : http://www.mukto-mona.com/

****************************************************

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".
               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




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Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
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