Gujarat Director-General of Police S. S. Khandwawala, the second Muslim to occupy the State’s top police post, has come out in favour of the Muslims in the country chanting “Vande Mataram.”
Mr. Khandwawala has written an article in a local newspaper in favour of the national song and said chanting of Vande Mataram was not against Islam.
When Islam said “the heaven is beneath your mother’s feet” and asks the Muslims to respect all religions and “be honest and loyal to the land where you live,” chanting of “Vande Mataram” could not be un-Islamic, he said.
“Every Muslim who offers namaaz touches his forehead to the ground, the land. Mother Earth gives us food, in her lap we sleep when we die. As the Prophet said, there is nothing wrong in respecting and saluting the motherland,” he said.
He advised Muslims to avoid controversies on such issues and try to remain an integral part of the Indian society. “We Muslims should try to avoid disputes and controversies and instead focus on educating our children. If every Muslim does this, we will all mix up well with the Indian society,” he said.
