Did Manmohan, Sonia lend credence to Tauheed Jamaat, prime suspect of Sri Lanka serial blast?

Sunday was a black day for Christians in Sri Lanka as they unexpectedly confronted the serial bomb blast that took a toll of over 300 people and scores were injured. Though no organization has claimed responsibility for this dastardly act, the Sri Lankan authorities have since named the National Tauheed Jamaat -- an extremist organization on the island -- as responsible for the horrific acts of terror.

A faction of this organization is also active in Tamil Nadu bearing the same name and surprisingly its name is connected with terror acts according to the newspaper reports.

According to the Times of India report, the Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat General Secretyary E Mohammad has said that there was no link with National Tauheed Jamaat of Sri Lanka but it is an open secret that Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat and Sri Lanka’s National Tauheed Jamaat are complimentary to each other and this organization was established in 2003 in Tamil Nadu.

According to Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat General Secretary E Mohammad the organization does conduct social service activities such as blood donation, relief activities, etc. The Sri Lankan Tauheed Jamaat President Abdul Gafar Shisam said that they cooperate with Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat in social activities and run campaign against terrorism.

The Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat runs orphanages, old age homes, helps students with their education, teaches Islam and also has 800 prayer halls across the state.

However, an FIR was lodged against the Tawheed Jamat’s one faction active in Tamil Nadu in October 2017. It was alleged that this organization converted some Christians to Islam by force.

The same organization in 2010 called on the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi in connection with their demand for reservation to Muslims as per the recommendations of the Justice Ranganath Misra Commission.

According to the reports the Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat had organized a massive rally of Muslims in Chennai. The impact of that huge rally was felt by the then UPA government at the centre and the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, UPA Chairperson decided to meet their leaders.

Both the leaders had 15 minute meeting with the representatives of the Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat separately. After the meetings they assured the Jamaat leaders that the government would do the needful in the matter at the earliest. On other hand the Jamaat leaders claimed that the PM and Sonia Gandhi were so impressed by the show of the strength by the Muslims under Jamaat’s leadership that they on their own invited the Jamaat leaders for meeting.

Both the leaders had promised the Tauheed Jamaat leaders that the government will do the needful in the matter at the earliest. Maulvi Zainul Abideen presented to both PM and Sonia a copy of English translation of Holy Quran and his book “Mohamed (PBUH) the Man Supreme”.

However, the name Tauheed is used by many an Islamic organizations and the name mean ‘One God’. But the extremists use this word as fundamentalist expression. Tamil Nadu Tauheed Jamaat’s General Secretary E Mohammad accepted to having a sister organization in Sri Lanka called Sri Lanka Tauheed Jamaat, but hastened to clarify that they have no relation whatsoever with the National Tauheed Jamaat.

“The blasts in Lanka are against our ideology. They say Islamists have done it. They are naming the National Tauheed Jamaat. We don't know who they are. We have nothing to do with them,” he said.