Indian film lyricist and writer Javed Akhtar came under fire on Tuesday after some comments he made on Twitter on Monday about the 67 students from Kashmir who were suspended by Sharda University in Uttar Pradesh for celebrating Pakistan’s victory over India in a cricket match on March 1, in Asia Cup.
Akhtar said that the suspension of the Kashmiri students should not have been revoked, instead they should be rusticated from the varsity and forced to return to the occupied state.
Why the suspension of those 67 Kashmiri students who cheered Pakistan is revoked. They should be rusticated and sent back to Kashmir
— Javed Akhtar (@Javedakhtarjadu) March 10, 2014
NDTV reported on Monday that Swami Vivekanand Subharti University had revoked the suspension and assured the students that they will not be ‘hounded’ once they return to campus.
The Uttar Pradesh government, which had initially filed sedition charges against the students, later withdrew their complaint after human right Groups and media highlighted the issue.
Akhtar's tweet, however, stoked the matter further on social media. It was not long though before he came under heavy criticism for his stance..
@Javedakhtarjadu ...go get a life man..on one hand u say kashmir is integral part of India & on other hand you want to send them back.shame
— Asgar اصغر (@Asgarnisar) March 10, 2014
In response to a tweet asking him to be ashamed for demanding to sent back the students to Kashmir, Akhtar said such people should be ashamed of supporting those who celebrated a defeat of the Indian cricket team and went on to label them as 'traitors.'
@Asgarnisar shame on you that you are standing by those who were celebrating Indian team's defeat . They are traitors .
— Javed Akhtar (@Javedakhtarjadu) March 10, 2014
@Javedakhtarjadu Sir,when British Indian cheers up on indian victory then they should have to send their homeland ?? Agree ?????
— Maqsood Asi (@MaqsoodAsi) March 10, 2014
https://twitter.com/imanupamskl/status/442984716661055488
COMMENTS (68)
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Pakistani should see what they are and what they have done to minority in their country. how they have treated them and what scale of lebirty and human right they have given to minority of their country. They have no moral right to comment on we indian
I think we have taken this debate to a different level. I dont think Javed Akhter said anything wrong; that was a natural reaction. I would be saddened if any Pakistani, irrespective of his/her religious belief, celebrates Indian victory over Pakistan. If Pakistan is out of the competition and India is playing against any other nation, I would probably support Team India and why not. With a hope that one day I would not require a visa to enter the Indian territory, as is the case in Europe, I wish all the emotional people on both the sides the very best.
Not to be surprised. Mr. Akhtar, like millions of Indian muslims, has the compulsion to prove loyalty.
Freedom of expression applies to everyone. Just as students can cheer peacefully for their favorite team, someone like Javed Akhtar can criticize them for their behavior on twitter. He has every right to peacefully express his views as well. People just need to agree to disagree. Not everyone can think alike,
@Sid Wrong. Freedom of expression is a cherished principle in the West, including Britain. You can absolutely criticize the queen and no one would charge you with sedition. In fact, the Guardian newspaper bashes the Queen and the British royal family on a regular basis.
The reason why Javed Akhtar is respected is because he deals with issues fairly. He is not averse to criticizing the Indian government over Gujarat and also has the courage to call out faults with his own community when he sees it. The sedition charges on the Kashmiri students was over the top buy withdrawing scholarships is the prerogative of the government.
It could be only me, but I think Javed Akhtar was being sarcastic... He doesn't seem to be the kind of person who wears his nationalism on his sleeve.
@Khan Shahzaib -"Mr Javaid Akhtar, feeling as always vulnerable, being himself a minority, tried to show his loyalty to India"
No sir... Mr. Javaid Akhtar being a Shia Muslim values the respect and security he gets from the Hindus, compared to extermination his brothers face in Pakistan
@zenab: @Ali: @arsalan:
How can you be muslims first when you are NOT even native muslims but converts? Islam is not your indegenous religion. This show how bankrupt you are about any identity of your own. I have never heard an Arab say that they are muslims first even though they are natives. They always identify themselves as Arabs, NOT muslims.
BTW, "muslim" is merely a religious following, NOT an identity or ethnicity. Anybody can be one!!!!
@Salman Raza: @N.Sid: Since you say that he cannot buy a house in India, so he and his family must be sleeping on the streets.
@Bilal Afzal How she and her father have been living in Mumbai for decades ? That dont surprise you ? Fact is that She could say that its hard to get flats for actors in business area. Its hard to get flats for non vegetarians in strict vegetarian's society. Its hard to get flats for people who have odd working hours and prone to alcohol. If you assume that Muslims cant buy property in India, then you will end up with surprises when you try to know that Muslim actors, businessman etc have been living there in their own houses/flats ! Its easy to assume what suits your mindset, but hard to analyze the causes.
@Salman Raza You are ignoring one fact. They have been living in Mumbai, His Wife, his father in law and all Muslim Actors have been living and owning properties in Mumbai. What part was highlighted (and planted wrong theories) was that it is hard to get Flat in vegetarian society, or society of different culture than Muslims. It will be hard for anyone (whether Muslim or not) to Get Flat in Business society, Jains, Parsees, or Vegetarian or non alcoholic communities. Even Onion-garlic eaters may not get flats in some of areas.
if its like that then i think javed akhter should divorced shabana Aazmi who visited Karachi (Pakistan) last month,,,,
Under fire? 681 retweets? 277 favourites?
@shahid Abbasi m a girl lol.. Even prime minister of india jawaharlal Nehru was Kashmiri. U live in azad kashmir u are bound to sup pak.. no issues.. As far as indian kashmir ..for few separatist u think whole Jammu Kashmir wants pak? Really? Kashmiri hindus want to live in Islamic republic ? Jammu and Kashmir Sikhs ,Buddhist want to live under sharia law u think? How naive is that. I quoted a link above if freedom of speech is there why were 2 political leader jailed in ajk for cheering india? As in UP ,University suspended them for 60 days.. U hav upcoming elections there why would UP politicians risk instability, loosing election for students from other states over a small issue "cudnt control law and order"?Be Kashmiris or gujaratis? The are playing safe. Typical politicians On issue of supporting players... Even I cheer pakistan to win when india is not playing.. England india don't have history three wars,terrorism,kashmir dispute. So that won't coz controversy.. But wen u have certain students supporting a country which we believe is supporting separatist agenda it will cause a major uproar that's a difference. There are many more Kashmiris they weren't suspended know y? Because they suprtd india.. The ones who swung otherwise where viewed as separatist and suspended .
What would happen to those Pakistanis who cheer for Indian Team (while sitting in Pakistan) when Pakistan got defeated?
I certainly disagree with J. Akhtar's stance in this relation. People give credit/applause to the winner team in any game unlike cricket so the students did the same. Nevertheless, the childish- I would say funny rather- act of JA is quiet different and meaningless. Rusticating those students means to create hinders to their education while force them to go back to occupied Kashmir is even not worthwhile.
@zeeshan. My friend.. I am not equating pakistan with india..india is much better honestly u won't know that unless u live among Hindus Muslims Sikhs etc...but because we know indian Muslims ...we understand Pakistanis very well so we cannot hate them.. But I am sorry to say the way ur media exaggerate and uses unparliamentary languages anti Hindu stuff that we are respons for all bad is y u see deep rooted prejudice majority of ull hav against india. My point, I don't believe wat happened to Baloch students is the way entire Pakistanis think.. Same way wat happened in a college in UP how can u blame rest of states 29 states much less whole UP or whole india? Blame UP police. u can't blame whole of india for it.. Every individual..if someone breaks law he is punished.. But y do u question democracy,secularism of india in it? When we hear such illogical arguments we ask questions in same illogical way... Secondly u say we brush under the carpet.. No sir the the link u hav is from indian paper..and ull find it in all india paper we don't hide it. Because we Neva claim we don't hav rotten eggs..what's imp is those rotten eggs are punished ..which we do.. Unlike in pak where u claim "no no this is not possible in pakistan approach it's a conspiracy.."that a difference my friend.
its just a game for gods sake . every one with a mouth seems to be having an opinion on this issue and bent upon 'expressing' it .
They can surely see where they stand, world largest democracy and their most literate people and their mindset..!! I use to be a fan of this guy. Mr Akhtar be ready to send back more students on 21st March :)
I certainly don't agree with JA's stance...It is the beauty of the sportsmanship that whoever wins any game unlike cricket deserves credit and applause..Nevertheless, here the childish act of JA is something different. I am sure a sensible individual will not take any stance in this regard. Rustication of those students from Education is against universal human rights law.
Javed disallowed to rent a flat
@A Paki:
Javed Akhtar is an atheist.
Wow... media definitely creates chaos over nothing :P Firstly, A Muslim is a Muslim first and everything afterwards. One thing that we need to understand here that all the Muslims of world does not belong to Pakistan and they owe their loyalties to whatever their country is. So, all the Muslims that are loyal to India are NOT bad Muslims... But yes, Kashmir is a disputed area and that poor nation is already being oppressed a lot. Now, Indian and Pakistani both needs to understand this that Kashmiries have their own feelings. Some of them may cheer Pakistan and some of them may like India more. So, please stop this hate speech, abuses and all horrible comments. If both of the nations really love Kashmir and Kashmiris than leave their occupied land and let them decide their alliance/freedom.
@Raj - USA: Your thoughts are right, We don't have right to enforce our ideology on you. We think we are Muslim first, and you should not have any problem with that. Whenever someone does something to ridicule Islam or Muslims, World says he can not be punished/banned to do so as he has freedom of speech/expression. Similarly these students have freedom of speech/expression, why they are being treated like this in world's largest democracy.
Rustication and sedition charges(if actually happened) is morally wrong and is legally unsustainable in India. Mr Javed Akhtar has his own views which I feel are flawed as is the shouting of "Pakistan Zindabad" in an Indian University campus. Cheering a better cricket team is perfectly acceptable in a civilised society and indeed shows a sportsman like spirit. Indians and Pakistanis in UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all cheer their 'home' teams without any reaction from the politicians, police or crowds at the matches. Equally, Pakistani TV shows were out of order to do their shows on this event without waiting for the reality to emerge. Grow up people of Pakistan and India.
I don't think the Kashmir students should be rusticated. But their scholarships should definitely be looked at - if they are availing it.
@tani I belong to Azad kashmir,proud to be part of Pakistan.Infact i m Pakistani .Please get a life .in Pakistan we have freedom of speech .In pakistan there is no such thing ,nawaz sharif Primeminister of Pakistan is Kashmiri.We kashmiri want to live with Pakistan. As far as supporting teams during cricket is concerned many of us like dhoni so we cheer UP for him.Does it mean university expel us??This is discrimination bro .sports have no boundaries.INDIAN in england support indian cricket team does it mean those indians should be send back to india
@Salman Raza: You just nailed it.
That shows the cruel mentality of so-called Muslim Indians.I guess he's the same guy who had not been given permission to buy property in India.if Pakistan wins the t20 match i'm afraid what would happen to these People?
@Raj - USA: First In sha ALLAH Pakistan will never fail to Talibans, they have ceased fire from the day our jets bombarded them lolz.. On the other hand if there is a day in history when Indian Muslims decide to go against India, then India will be shattered from inside within days. But loyalty is in the blood of Muslims by birth. So leave that point.
We are Muslims first where ever we are, that's our pride. This is who we are this is what we do. In last, Kashmir will never be a part of India, victory against India and celebrations in Kashmir is the enough proof of what Kashmiris want.
Shame on such people. I am living in Indian occupied Kashmir, and I always support Pakistan. I even support the merger of Kashmir with Pakistan. Charge us with sedition if you dare, and you will see where Kashmir's sons and daughters stand.
I pity Muslims in India who are continuously in the state of demonstrating explicitly that they are loyal to India, through direct/indirect ways. And for that they have to curse Pakistan more than the fellow Indians of different religion. What Javed said is just another example of that phenomena
Lets see what happens when Pakistani Kashmiris cheer for India in lahore. Or Pakistani jews cheer for Israel in peshawar.
I wonder if they will be given same treatment what pakistan wants india to give.
It is funny how people comment out of their ignorance. One, Javed Akhtar is an open atheist so he does not have to prove his loyalty to India as a Muslim. Second, the students were expelled not because they cheered for Pakistan but because this act incited violence considering the match was being watched in the common room of a hostel. Imagine this situation in a hostel of a Pakistani university! Wouldn't it have resulted in a fight? Still I disagree with Javed Akhtar's comments. As an atheist and a secular, and above all a poet, ,he should have refrained from passing such remarks.
@Tani interesting that only INDIAN reported the news, no news in any media or international media.
@bilal afzal so shabana azmi is living on trees in mumbai? Do you even know the amount of properties she,her husband,sons have? and how much crores worth it is? Do u even know how much worth hundred crores srk,aamir,salman,sohail etc has in mumbai? Let me ask a question .. Will u rent a guy your home if he eats pigs at your place? If no does that make u anti Christian or more of sensitive to ur religious beliefs? I was refused a flat in Jain colony being a vegetarian that too... Not because I am Hindu but coz I eat onions and carrot ..Jains along with veg don't eat uprooted veggies it's sin for them..So Jains are are Anti Hindus? Foriegn actor lauren gotlieb couldn't get apartment in mumbai ..she wasn't a Muslim why didn't she get? Because she was foreigner no documents and they wanted guarantees ull pay not do wild parties and get media into their building as she's Celeb. U won't find any of these reservation in middle class or upper class properties. On elite class properties they have all lot of narkas... Don't want actors with stalking media etc..but ur media distorts facts and acts like these people live on trees.
@ ajk. He doesn't need to prove he's already indian and patriot..it's funny how Pakistanis cannot digest indian Muslims being indian first.
Secondly your own azad kashmir follows same policy and has infact has jailed them here's the source http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Backing-India-lands-PoK-leaders-in-jail/articleshow/8009074.cms?referral=PM And explain targeting Baloch students incident for speaking Baloch then raise question about democracy in india.. ET if you are truly believe in freedom of speech u will publish this.
@AJK: @Khan Shahzaib: At his age and the fame he has earned, he need not prove anything. If he had felt otherwise in his hearts, he would have just kept quiet and would not have came out on his own as no one ever asked him on this.
In India everyone is an Indian first and muslim or hindu next. In Pakistan everyone is a muslim first, and in most cases, muslim next also. It is the result of decades of teachings in schools and homes.
I am not saying this on my own. I have heard many TV anchors and Pakistani intellectuals who come on TV talk shows say this with pride. In one TV talk show where Orya Maqbool Jan and Ansar Abbasi were the guests, Ansar Abbasi asked Paras Kursheed who was anchoring the show if she considers herself to be a muslim first or a Pakistani first. She replied proudly and instantaneously, that she considers herself a muslim first. Ansar Abbasi said that all Pakistanis feel that way only and it is the right thing to do.
India is proud of many of its muslims like Javed Akhtar, Aamir Khan, and the rest of the over 200 million muslims in India, who consider themselves Indians first. In fact, on many occasions they are more patriotic than the hindus. It is these brave and patriotic muslims who fight Pakistan army in Kashmir and it is only for these brave and patriotic muslims that India does not have any worry that taliban influence may spread to India even if Pakistan falls to the talibans.
He wanted to prove he is Pro Indian
People like Javed simply get older but hardly ever grow up.
With his shallow remarks he has unmasked a narrow-minded and pseudo intellectual.
Mr Javaid Akhtar, feeling as always vulnerable, being himself a minority, tried to show his loyalty to India.
Wow. These are surprisingly childish views from Javed Akhtar. Are we sure this is his actual Twitter account?
Everyone has a right to celebrate the victory of his own home country. So do all those Kashmiris from Indian occupied Kashmir! If Indians had some self-respect then they would have freed Kashmir after watching how Kashmiris are supporting Pakistan in every match!
They can take Kashmir from Pakistan but they can never take Pakistan from Kashmir!
Reality of Indians!!!
This is an apt example of an old Hippocratic analyst.
regards,
What Javed should have pointed out that it was not the cheering which qualifies them to get rusticated but the insult they did to the land which feeds. In Britain you can cheer Indian team, but try anything to say against the Queen and England, lets see how tolerant they are.
Article 19(1)(a) of Indian Constitution says that all citizens have the right to freedom of speech and expression. Sedition requires evidence of incitement to violence. On the contrary a case should be registered against this pseudo learned person for asking for the rustication of the students and inciting vioence.
according to wikipedia Javed Akhtar is an Atheist!
Its so shameful. And these are the people who hold the banner of the tolerant Indian democracy.
I am really disappointed and did not expect this from him of all the people.
of course muslims in india HAVE TO support india even when india is wrong... Don't you remember when shahrukh khan said that Pakistani players should be allowed in IPL and shivsena held protests and told SRK to leave india and go live in Pakistan. That's what indians do.
Such diatribe from educated liberals and learned leftists is uncalled for and surprising. Why the Muslims in India have to prove their loyalty and patriotism time and again...cheering for a cricket player or for that matter a cricketing team can't be termed as sedition. Every individual has the right to choose...in any context of life.
JA always have foot in mouth disease. I also cheer for Pakistani team if they play well. It is all about who play well that given day. It is not like ISI is playing, then it is different matter. Any way he is trying to support SP party. Just imagine it been happened in any BJP ruled state then his statement could be different.
Survival Instinct of Javed
The funny part is Even after all this bravado, he still wont be sble to buy a flat in Mumbai.
No Mr.Akhthar...They should be sent back to the land of pure..
Thanks anyway!!!