Terrorism has no religion

Mehak Gupta Grover
Terrorism – a term that horrifies and aims at imposing fear. It is an act of violence that is unlawful and has an objective of exacting revenge, intimidating or influencing an audience.  It is one of the most serious security challenges that we face in the world today. It is an act on society, on establishment and on safety. India is one of the worst victims of terrorism.  The father of the nation, two prime ministers and thousands of innocent people were killed by practitioners of violence over the years. People responsible for it lose their credibility as anything other than monsters the moment they agree to hurt someone.
Terrorism is not a person. It is an act of crime. So how can terrorism be associated with religion? It has no religion, race, gender or nationality. “ The object of terrorism is terrorism; the object of oppression is oppression;  the object of torture is torture; the object of murder is murder; the object of power is power.” How can we have a war on terrorism when war itself is terrorism?
Holy war, suicide bombing, fighting for faith and killing in the name of God- from crusaders to terrorists, from sacred shrines to New York City,  history is tainted by a grave disease afflicting humankind. While all religions of the world call for Love, Freedom of Belief, Tolerance, Peace, many of the terrorist’s acts are committed in this world by people who call themselves religious and attribute their horrendous acts to religion. True religion forbids the killing of the innocent people. The terrorist organisations who kill innocent people are actually plain murderers.Terrorism has no religion and it never will. Religion is about God and being the best human one can be. Terrorism does not please any God and does not make any man a better man. The spread of hatred and violence following terrorist attacks is much like being punched in the face by the world and a bit more by humanity.
Mahatma Gandhi truly said –
“ GOD HAS NO RELIGION.”
The mention of religion and terrorism is not new in today’s world. Religion has been used to show terror to its followers and non- followers. It has been used to make people turn against each other.  There are two sets of terrorists – secular and religious ones. Secular terrorists give warnings, try to avoid casualties and are committed to just violence.  On the other hand, religious terrorists thrive on mass murders and are committed to mass violence. But why religion is made the target? Because people follow religion blindly. This creates an avenue for the terrorists to create mass movements and form alliances. There are unlimited number of followers of religion and hence creates numbers for such movements.
Why don’t people use their brains? How can a particular religion be blamed for all the terrorist attacks? Imagine, if all the people of a particular religion are actually terrorists  or suicide bombers, we all would be DEAD! Why don’t people open their eyes and realise the difference between the whole religion and a group of people committing horrible acts under religious names. If we still can’t understand then we are probably the part of the problem where our answer to violence is more violence. We should not let our emotions overcome our logic. Love of God is not reserved for people of religious sects that cling to an exclusive belief of ‘salvation’. Infact, his love flows to the charitable, righteous, benevolent,  and the just- those who recognise their accountability and work towards being good.
Allah says in Quran-
“ Whosoever kills an innocent human being, it shall be as if he has killed all mankind; and whosoever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he has saved the life of all mankind.”
Terrorism has No religion, but simply personify evil. In the West, Africa and Asia, tens of thousands of people have suffered on account of scrouge of terrorism. Nearly 300 people killed in 1993 serial blast in Mumbai belong to all religions and castes. Barbaric bloodshed happened during Paris attack, 2015; Terrorists storm Bacha Khan University, Pakistan, 2015. Still we believe terrorism belongs to a particular religion? Terrorists are ruthless and wait for an opportunity to strike fear in the hearts of innocent citizens. Such elements can be defeated only if the nation stands united against them. This unity and fight against terrorism will be weakened if terrorists are given religious labels.
In order to defeat terrorism, don’t be terrorised. Don’t let fear rule our life. Man should be judged by his deeds, not race or religion. No religion preaches such teachings as killing or terrorism.
Let’s all remember, amidst pain and fear, terrorism has no religion.
Extremism is a brand of madness, not faith!
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