The Turkish Peace — Page 3
3 B ritish government, the [Muslims of India] fought with them against a country that identifies itself with Islam, and took up arms against it under a religious requirement and for the sake of establishing peace. But as soon as the war ended and British-Turkish relations were resumed, the natural sympathy of the Muslims was rekindled. Currently, there is no religious obligation preventing them from identifying with the Turkish cause. It is true that the whole of the Muslim world looks upon the future of Turkey with a degree of sorrow and misgiving. It is also the case that dissolving the Turkish government or curtailing its powers would be a source of anguish for them. But, at the same time, it would be wrong to suggest that their grief stems from the fact that the Sultan of Turkey is the Khalifatul- Muslimeen as there are many Muslims who do not accept him as such, yet still harbour sympathy for him. Apart from this, in my estimation, at such a time as when the material grandeur and glory of Islam is threatened, making the case for Turkey in a manner that only permits people of a certain standing and persuasion to rally around its [cause] is politically mistaken. A great number of Indian Muslims are Shias, and as such, they do not accept the Sultan of Turkey as