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At least 400 members of the low caste (Dalit) community in the southern
Indian state of Tamil Nadu, say they are planning to convert to Islam, because
of what they describe as persistent unfair treatment by their higher caste
Hindu neighbors. In the latest incident, the Dalit leaders are angry that high-

er caste Hindus in their village, near Kanchipuram have refused to allow a re-
ligious procession to pass through the streets where they live.
… The dalit community says they are not being coerced into converting to
Islam, but they want to because in Islam everyone is treated equally. 34

The reality that can be recognized so easily even by these people
who have no in-depth knowledge of the Islamic faith is exceedingly im-
portant: whereas the superstitious Hindu religion oversees the rule of a
cruel social system of caste segregation that sanctions the oppression of
the poor by the rich and the weak by the strong, the Islamic morality
commands justice, to do good, to act in goodwill, to respect the rights of
other people, and to maintain devotion and compassion towards others.
Therefore, in a society in which Islamic morality rules, people will at al-
ways side with the truth, will not compromise on honesty, and will in-
variably opt for righteousness. Allah says the following in the Surat Al-

Ma’ida:
You who have faith! Show integrity for the sake of Allah, bearing
witness with justice. Do not let hatred for a people incite you into not
being just. Be just. That is closer to heedfulness. Have fear of Allah.
Allah is aware of what you do. (Surat al-Ma’ida: 8)
Allah clearly reveals true justice in great detail in the Qur’an and in-
forms us that if true Qur’anic morality is practiced in society, injustice
cannot prevail and people will live in peace and happiness. In the Indian

society which we have examined thus far, and also in many other coun-
tries of the world, people suffer from great injustices because of the col-
or of their skin, because of their religious denomination or because of

Islam And Far Eastern Religions