The Social Structure Of Indian Muslims

Selected articles presented at a seminar on the social structure of Indian Muslims held at the Hamdard Convention Centre, New Delhi, 22-23 Oct. 1989, sponsored by the Institute of Objective Studies, New Delhi, India.

Study of Kabirnagar, Uttar Pradesh.

Monograph comprising contributions on the system of caste-like social stratification among muslims (Islam) in India - examines social status, social mobility, the role of religion, political power and caste stratification, etc. In various ethnic groups located in different states. Bibliography after each paper and statistical tables.

Contributed essays.

This essay on Indian social structure originally formed a chapter in Volume 1 of The Gazetteer of India: Indian Union, published in 1965. It introduces the reader to the caste system, the village community, religious groups, marriage, kinship and inheritance, and changes in society at the time. M.N. Srinivas is the author.

This Book Studies Caste Herarchy And Social Enequality Among Indian Muslims In Some Detail. Dustjacket Slightly Frayed At The Edges.

The work is unique in the sense that it has not only delved into historical antecedents of the contemporary attitudes of the new generation of Indian Muslims, but has also brought out their adjustment mechanisms and reactions to the demands which are made upon them from a section of the majority. For the understanding of different aspects of behaviour of the minority vis-a-vis the majority, the author has liberally drawn upon the relevant literature of three branches of social sciences, viz., Psychology, Sociology and Political Science. The studies of minority-majority relations elsewhere are referred to for making the reader aware that to a very large extent minorities, wherever they are found, behave in the similar way. Reviews “... The perspective offered by the author in the present study augurs well for the cause of nation-building in the specific context of the persisting and ever elusive communal problem in India.†Prof. Iqbal Narain “The publication is so fascinating that I read more than half by the time I reached Lucknow†. Prof. H.S. Asthana “The first full length study of the mass psychology of the Muslim mind after Mujib’s The Indian Musilms .... Qamar Hasan has used the tools of academic research to study the Muslim factor in Indian Politics... read it because it is a same voice in the madness all around. Tapan Basu, Sunday “The book clearly brings out reactions indicative of fear of domination and urge to dominate ... the book has made a definite contribution in the understanding of inter-and intra-group relationships.†Pramod Kumar “The author must be complimented for his bold and frank revelations about the attitudes of Muslims and Hindus towards each other, their self appraisals and their assessment.†Dr. K. Ravichandra, Review Projector, Vol. VIII, Nos. 10–12 “The causes and cures of the serious problems bedevilling relations between the Muslim minority in India and the Hindu majority badly need studying within a socio-psychological framework. Qamar Hasan is on the right track for a social scientist to throw light on the problems of his people, but he needs to settle on just one frame of reference and typology and then test some bolder hypotheses.’’

With reference to Darbhanga town of North Bihar.

Grounded in the Weberian tradition, Islam and Democracy in South Asia: The Case of Bangladesh presents a critical analysis of the complex relationship between Islam and democracy in South Asia and Bangladesh. The book posits that Islam and democracy are not necessarily incompatible, but that the former has a contributory role in the development of the latter. Islam came to Bengal largely by Sufis and missionaries through peaceful means and hence a moderate form of this religion got rooted in the society. Both militant Islam and militant secularism are equal threats to democracy and pluralism. Like democracy, political Islam has many faces. Political Islam adhering to democratic norms and practices, what the authors call “democratic Islamism,” unlike “militant Islamism,” is not anti-democratic. The book shows that the suppression of democracy and human rights creates avenues for the consolidation of militant Islamism, orthodox Islam, and “Islamic” terrorism, while the “fair play” of democracy results in the decline of anti-democratic form of political Islam.