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An all-female rock band in Kashmir has decided to disband following threats of violence on social media and a fatwa from a senior local Muslim cleric.
The three teenage members of Pragaash (which translates as Light) told local reporters in India's only Muslim majority state that they were sorry if "the people" were unhappy with their music and that, in order to respect the religious ruling issued by Grand Mufti Mohammad Bashiruddin at the weekend, would no longer play.
The cleric, who has a history of controversy, had said Pragaash, the first all-female rock band in the contested state, was against "Islamic teachings" and suggested that such "behaviour" contributed to rising sexual assaults in India.
"Muftisaab has said our music is un-Islamic. We respect him and the people of Kashmir … and their opinion. That is why we have quit,'' one unnamed band-member, whose face was obscured in broadcast footage, told Times Now television.
The affair has revealed deep tensions in Kashmir, which was split between India and Pakistan when the two nations gained independence from Britain in 1947. As elsewhere in India many young people in the state are adopting lifestyles which challenge the values and authority of conservatives.
The Kashmir cultural clash comes in the aftermath of the rape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapist in December in Delhi. The full trial of the five men accused of the crime opened on Tuesday at a newly established "fast track court" in the Indian capital. A juvenile will face separate proceedings.
Both Hindu and Muslim conservatives blamed the attack on "westernisation", outraging those who believe a widespread and deeply rooted culture of misogyny is a major factor behind the current wave of sexual violence in India.
But the situation in Kashmir is complicated by other factors including the inroads made by more rigorous strands of Islamic practice, often influenced by hardline thought in Pakistan and the Gulf, in recent decades. Previously Kashmir, which has a long tradition of female singing and music-making, was known for its folksy, tolerant religious culture. A vicious insurgency in the state through the 1990s and into the following decade, caused tens of thousands of deaths. Now violence is rare but a new puritanism is still strong.
The decision of Pragaash has also raised broader fears over freedom of expression in India. In the last two weeks an exhibition showing nudes was forced to close temporarily by Hindu rightwingers, a spy film dealing with Islamic terrorism was banned in the state of Tamil Nadu, the Indian-born author Salman Rushdie was barred from Kolkata and criminal complaints were registered against an academic who claimed those who rank lowest among India's caste system were responsible for most corruption.
One minister spoke of an atmosphere of "competitive intolerance".
"The challenge for us as a society is got to be to find the right balance that leans more towards freedom and not towards repression," said Shashi Tharoor, minister for human resource development and a writer.
But the Indian government has repeatedly been criticised by campaigners for its efforts to control online activity as well as for frequently failing to protect the outspoken.
"Freedom of expression is still seen as something of a western idea and not a priority for the Indian state. Secularism [in India] … means not the absence of religion but the accommodation of many gods. If there is the slightest risk of antagonising ... voters, then who cares about artists?" said Manu Joseph, a novelist and commentator.
Last year Rushdie, whose 1988 novel The Satanic Verses led to a fatwa from the Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini calling for the murder of the author, was forced to pull out of the Jaipur literary festival after threats from Muslim groups.
The members of Pragaash have, however, received support from the elected chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, who has ordered police to trace those who posted threats of violence against the band, formed three months ago, on Facebook.
"Shame on those who claim freedom of speech via social media and then … threaten girls who have the right to choose to sing," he tweeted. "I hope these talented young girls will not let a handful of morons silence them.". (Guardian-uk)
An all-female rock band in Kashmir has decided to disband following threats of violence on social media and a fatwa from a senior local Muslim cleric.
The three teenage members of Pragaash (which translates as Light) told local reporters in India's only Muslim majority state that they were sorry if "the people" were unhappy with their music and that, in order to respect the religious ruling issued by Grand Mufti Mohammad Bashiruddin at the weekend, would no longer play.
The cleric, who has a history of controversy, had said Pragaash, the first all-female rock band in the contested state, was against "Islamic teachings" and suggested that such "behaviour" contributed to rising sexual assaults in India.
"Muftisaab has said our music is un-Islamic. We respect him and the people of Kashmir … and their opinion. That is why we have quit,'' one unnamed band-member, whose face was obscured in broadcast footage, told Times Now television.
The affair has revealed deep tensions in Kashmir, which was split between India and Pakistan when the two nations gained independence from Britain in 1947. As elsewhere in India many young people in the state are adopting lifestyles which challenge the values and authority of conservatives.
The Kashmir cultural clash comes in the aftermath of the rape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapist in December in Delhi. The full trial of the five men accused of the crime opened on Tuesday at a newly established "fast track court" in the Indian capital. A juvenile will face separate proceedings.
Both Hindu and Muslim conservatives blamed the attack on "westernisation", outraging those who believe a widespread and deeply rooted culture of misogyny is a major factor behind the current wave of sexual violence in India.
But the situation in Kashmir is complicated by other factors including the inroads made by more rigorous strands of Islamic practice, often influenced by hardline thought in Pakistan and the Gulf, in recent decades. Previously Kashmir, which has a long tradition of female singing and music-making, was known for its folksy, tolerant religious culture. A vicious insurgency in the state through the 1990s and into the following decade, caused tens of thousands of deaths. Now violence is rare but a new puritanism is still strong.
The decision of Pragaash has also raised broader fears over freedom of expression in India. In the last two weeks an exhibition showing nudes was forced to close temporarily by Hindu rightwingers, a spy film dealing with Islamic terrorism was banned in the state of Tamil Nadu, the Indian-born author Salman Rushdie was barred from Kolkata and criminal complaints were registered against an academic who claimed those who rank lowest among India's caste system were responsible for most corruption.
One minister spoke of an atmosphere of "competitive intolerance".
"The challenge for us as a society is got to be to find the right balance that leans more towards freedom and not towards repression," said Shashi Tharoor, minister for human resource development and a writer.
But the Indian government has repeatedly been criticised by campaigners for its efforts to control online activity as well as for frequently failing to protect the outspoken.
"Freedom of expression is still seen as something of a western idea and not a priority for the Indian state. Secularism [in India] … means not the absence of religion but the accommodation of many gods. If there is the slightest risk of antagonising ... voters, then who cares about artists?" said Manu Joseph, a novelist and commentator.
Last year Rushdie, whose 1988 novel The Satanic Verses led to a fatwa from the Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini calling for the murder of the author, was forced to pull out of the Jaipur literary festival after threats from Muslim groups.
The members of Pragaash have, however, received support from the elected chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, who has ordered police to trace those who posted threats of violence against the band, formed three months ago, on Facebook.
"Shame on those who claim freedom of speech via social media and then … threaten girls who have the right to choose to sing," he tweeted. "I hope these talented young girls will not let a handful of morons silence them.". (Guardian-uk)
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