Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) politburo member MA Baby has stirred controversy with a Facebook post where he compared former communist dictators and tyrants with Islam’s prophet Mohammed. The CPM leader wrote that many of these ‘revolutionary leaders’ were ‘modern-day prophets’ but it has left many of those he tried to please, fuming. 

Basically, Baby was trying to cozy up to Muslims using their yearly fasting during Ramzan. He claimed that Ramzan fasting reminds him of ‘great’ communists leaders like Engels, Marx, Lenin, and Che Guevara, amongst others. Baby added that the practice of fasting during the ongoing month of Ramzan shows the ‘egalitarianism (social equality) in Islam’.

“There are some very humane ideas behind most of the religious traditions. In my view, fasting rituals are mainly purifying the mind and body. Most religions have this kind of fasting. This is the time when Navaratri Vratham is happening in North India. And the time when Christians are looking to fast before Easter. Those who fast during Ramzan are reminded of crores of people around the world who are starving by the extreme circumstances that created social and economic inequality,” he wrote. 

Baby said that many of Mohammed’s ideas are actually similar to the communist ideology. MA Baby said that all prophets in their time were as committed to human goodness and human equality as possible. The CPM leader added that many revolutionary leaders were modern-day prophets.

Notably missing from his Facebook post is the name of one of the biggest mass murderers that modern society has known, the Russian dictator, Joseph Stalin. Stalin’s rule triggered famines that killed millions of his own countrymen just like Churchill did in Bharat.

Baby’s rant was mainly directed at poverty and hunger, something that the central government under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi has combatted very effectively in Bharat during a devastating global pandemic. It became pretty evident during the recent pandemic lockdown when each and every citizen in Bharat received free rations for several months. Apparently, the success of this social-welfare delivery by a nationalist government has not registered with the communists.  

Baby claimed that egalitarianism is exactly what ‘great communist leaders’ have fought for in their respective countries. He reminded that there is a slogan that was heard during the beginning days of communism in Kerala under the leadership of NC Sekhar, EMS Namboothiripad, P. Krishnapillai, coined by K. Damodaran that was first chanted by the beedi workers. It said that their aim is to create an egalitarian society in Bharat.

Baby claimed that the slogan was adapted from “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) opposes the killing of those who want to be paid before their sweat has dried.” The slogan was first raised in a communist protest, said MA Baby. Incidentally, Beedi workers are mainly found in and around the Kannur district of Kerala and is an industry that thrives on poverty and discrimination. 

“Fasting promotes the idea of ​​a world of equality. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) taught that one should eat only after making sure that no one around is hungry. It conveys to man the concept of an egalitarian(social equality) society. Everyone should share what they have. That is why Zakat is an integral part of fasting”, added Baby.

Zakat is an Islamic concept referring to the obligation that every Muslim has to donate a certain proportion of wealth each year to ‘charitable causes’. Unfortunately, often times the Zakat that ordinary Muslims donate to their neighborhood mosque or Jamaat gets routed to radical causes, including terror.

An extension of Zakat is the concept of Halal, wherein Muslims are told that it is obligatory for them to only purchase products certified Halal by the ulema. This becomes yet another means of keeping ordinary Muslims under control of the clergy, and it is also an effective tool to dominate the economy. All suppliers are forced to get the annual Halal certification, and in the meat industry non-Muslims are virtually barred from employment. Over time, Halal products become mainstream and even non-Muslims are left with no option but to buy those. In essence, Halal is a form of economic discrimination against non-Muslims and extracts a sort of jizya tax (Halal certificiation fees) from them. This is what Islamists really have in mind when they talk about ‘egalitarianism’.  

Baby tried his best not to sound overly-minoritarian by adding that Jesus offered five loaves of bread to five thousand people but pointed out that the Akshaya Pathra (pot) is part of Indian ‘mythology’ that works on the same principles. He claimed that actually, the Akshaya pot means the earth and that it puts forward the very idea of ​​an egalitarian law.  

The communist leader also praised the taste and aroma of the dishes that Muslims prepare while breaking the fast and claimed that the experience is worth special mention. Green communism seems to have reached a full circle and even Christians like Baby are now falling in line. His post is a perfect example of how self-avowed atheists are now scampering for Muslim votes.

Islamists who opposed his comparisons said they are waiting for the fasting period to end before they reply to Baby. They have also opposed the comparison of their prophet to ‘kafirs’ like Marx, Lenin and EMS Namboothiripad.

Baby’s post can also be considered an indicator of how communists in Bharat are realizing the limits of their ideology, and their shrinking political footprint. For hardened followers of their atheist prophet Marx, who had stated “religion is the opium of the masses”, to actually praise religious practices and ideas is an astounding U-turn. However, the egalitarianism that Baby harped on, both of the communist and Abrahamic religious fundamentalist variety, is an illusion. At their heart, these are totalitarian ideologies which exclude the non-believer and dislike differences. They also stifle individual enterprise and free thought and promote violence in pursuit of the ‘ideal society’.

The true model of social harmony is seen in a Dharmic society, where people appreciate diversity and work together in pursuit of common good. A Dharmic society neither demonizes wealth creators, nor worships them – it follows the mantra laid down in the Vedas: Sat Hasta Samahara, Sahastra Hasta Sankira, which translates as generate wealth with 100 hands and share it with 1000 hands. Dharma understands that humans have different abilities and interests, but the goals of human life or purushartha are same for all: artha, kama, dharma, moksha, and recommends that each person should follow her/his svadharma in pursuit of these goals.