On Tuesday evening, script writer and lyricist Javed Akhtar was awarded the Richard Dawkins Award. “Javed Akhtar is the 2020 Richard Dawkins Award winner and I could not be more pleased. The Center for Inquiry, on whose board I sit, has designated him this year's recipient for his courageous public stands on behalf of atheism, rationality, and freethought,” Richard Dawkins tweeted on Tuesday.
However, Dawkins, one of the leading atheist voices in the world, has time and time again shown that Islam is his least favourite religion. On one occasion, he said the sound of church bells were better than the chant of ‘Allah-u-Akbar’, and on the other, he tweeted, “"To obey Allah's command as written in the Quran.' So you'd better not object or you'll be accused of Islamophobia & Cambridge will de-platform you. (Justifiable) Islamophobia is poles apart from (bigoted) Muslimophobia. Muslims are Islam's main victims."
As a result, his giving the award raises questions about his previous stance on 'pro-Muslim liberals'
Meanwhile, as Akhtar has been praised for winning the award, there is a section of society questioning the rationale behind bestowing upon him this honour, with claims that his atheism is ‘selective’.
The argument comes from the fact that on March 30, Akhtar had supported Tahir Mehmood, the ex-chairman of the minority commission’s request to issue a fatwa to close all mosques till the corona crisis ends. Supporting this, Akhtar suggested that Indian mosques be closed as well.
However, a section of Twitter began calling out Akhtar for his supporting a fatwa, rather than looking at the shutting down of mosques, suggesting that if he claimed to be a atheist, then backing a fatwa was not necessary, as the fatwa means a directive.
The lyricist and screenwriter was also called out for criticizing the Delhi police for only sealing a house belonging to a man named ‘Tahir’ during the Delhi riots. “So many killed, so many injured, so many houses burned, so many shops looted so many people turned destitute, but police has sealed only one house and looking for his owner. Incidentally his name is Tahir. Hats off to the consistency of the Delhi police,” Akhtar had tweeted, drawing a lot of flak.
While Akhtar continues to maintain that he is a rational thinker, and people suggest that his writings rather than his tweets are better proof of his embracing atheism, he isn’t the only Muslim atheist. According to a Firstpost article, India has witnessed a movement called the ‘ex-Muslim’ movement, where a number of Indians, who have expressed dismay at the number of suicide bombings, have renounced Islam, and describe themselves as ex-Muslims, atheists and/or cultural Muslims.
While Akhtar may be more famous than his other Indian counterparts, given that he has had international exposure thanks to his Bollywood connection, it is important to know that there have been rational thinkers in India such as Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, who were assassinated, as well as TJ Joseph, the Kerala teacher whose hand was chopped off by religious extremists.
Akhtar can celebrate his achievement, but we’re not too sure if India is ready to handle rationality in the larger scheme of things.
