MUMBAI: The country's Muslim leaders say they're allied with secular forces and don't need a foreign, jihadist outfit like al-Qaida to fight for them. Denouncing the creation of AQ's wing in the Indian subcontinent, clerics, progressive activists and community leaders said AQ is a terror group and can't be friends of Muslims, either in India or anywhere else.

“Muslims in India believe in the Constitution that guarantees freedom to preach and practise their religion. We're self-sufficient and can solve our problems within the Indian framework. We don't need AQ,“ said Maulana Mehmood Daryabi, general secretary, All India Ulema Council.Some activists said AQ had earlier declared India among its “enemies“. “India with its large Muslim population is an ideal territory for terrorist outfits to target. I'm optimistic AQ won't get much traction here. The overwhelming majority of Muslims don't accept AQ ideology ,“ said Javed Anand of Muslims for Secular Democracy (MSD), a think tank.Anand added this is the time Muslim religious leaders must denounce jihadist groups like AQ and ISIS.“Al-Qaida cannot be our friend. They're not even true Muslims. They kill innocents. They damage Islam, for they carry out carnage in the name of Islam. If they try to entice our youth, they'll be repulsed. They're enemies of Muslims and we don't need their sympathy ,“ said M A Khalid of All India Milli Council. Commentators within the community aren't surprised that AQ is trying to entice some Muslim youth to its so-called jihad, but are confident that barring some misguided youth like the four Kalyan boys who allegedly joined ISIS in Syria, Muslims will never get attracted to jihadist cause.“Our best allies are secular Hindus. They've fought our battles whenever injustice has been done to minorities. AQ has no credibility to find a foothold in India,“ said Urdu columnist Hasan Kamal. Kamal urged Indian Muslims, especially clerics, to speak out against the dangerous designs of al-Qaida and ISIS. “They should rise against AQ's attempt to entrap them in their dangerous terror game,“ added Kamal.Abdul Hafeez Farroqui of Jamaat-e-Islami (Hind) said AQ would give communal forces another reason to further polarize Indian society. “There's no reason for Indian Muslims to be influenced by al-Qaida ideology ,“ said Farooqui.