India: Whittling down the 15 points for the minorities (Mustafa Khan)

The man who made the remark on December 19, 2007 that Muslims don’t deserve any of 15% reservation under Sachar commission recommendations because that would come in the path of development of the country had withheld it from reaching the poor and deserving underprivileged Muslims for twelve years as long as he was chief minister of the state of Gujarat. He told the National Development Council in Delhi: “The 15 Point Programme that focuses on earmarking certain outlays of the various developmental schemes and programmes of the government of India amongst the eligible beneficiaries based on their minority status should be reviewed in the interest of maintaining the social fabrics of the nation. Such discrimination, amongst the eligible beneficiaries, for flow of funds based on minority status, will not help the cause if taking the people of India together on the path of development.” A constant grouse that became leitmotif of his public meetings and rallies was his familiar target, those who are hum panch and hamare pachees, we five and ours 25. It depicted the fertility and polygamy of the Muslim community by universalizing the misconceived practice of the Muslim community. But so was the populism fervor that his audience lustily cheered him for what he was uttering. He also called the community members as eye sore as most of them are using grease and other lubricants to repair the vehicles on the sides of roads and their attire is generally stained.

The Muslims were important component of the development of Gujarat whose roads became a fascination for one and all. The expensive cars and trucks that carry the merchandise from place to place within the state and all across the country and beyond helped Gujarat acquire its wealth and fame. But to the chief minister the community remained unwanted and undesirable. Their meager income was not enough for them even to imagine sending their children to the elite institutions of repute. The chief minister had grudge to sanction the relief in the form of stipend or scholarship that other states including the ones under BJP rule were distributing to the minorities.

Almost eight years have passed and the government has woken up that there are Muslims in Benares who are skilled weavers. Because of their poverty they are losing their skills in weaving and taking to other fields for livelihood. This realization came to the rulers after Modi won the 2014 election from the town with sizable Muslim population. Even this did not open eyes of the rulers. But on December 10, 2014 the Rajya Sabha was rocked by the news that there were Muslims in Agra who were forced to convert by VHP and Bajrang Dal. That day the “forcible conversion” of Muslims forced the Modi sarkar to push for drawing plan for the socio economic development of the minorities. It said that the ministry for minority affairs was working with Prime Minister’s office for the upliftment of the minorities in a 15 point programme to raise their socio-economic condition.

There was hardly any paper which carried the news except Asian Age of December 11, 2014. It makes a mockery of our democracy that its largest minority doesn’t deserve any mention in the mainstream newspapers. Michael Ignatieffe says that democracy is the system of government where the minority has a secure place of their own.

However, the question of some relief or help to the downtrodden Muslims remains unresolved because Modi government is now newly drawing up plans as a ruse to sideline the uproar over forcible conversion of Muslims in Agra, or deflect attention from it. The previous government of Manmohan Singh had dome pioneering work credit worthy. The note Guidelines for the Implementation of Prime Minister’s New 15 Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities is very clear about what it aims at. The president of India called it “programme specific intervention” in his speech on February 25, 2005 and the Prime Minister also echoed it in his speech on Independence Day 2005 when he spoke of “definite goals which are to be achieved in a specific time frame” for improving the lot of the minorities.

A cursory look will show that it is too little too late to achieve anything under the new dispensation. The focus on Madarsa is strange because the Muslims need better education in science, technology, commerce rather than the traditional Madarsa syllabus. Madarsas are for traditional religious teaching. They can accommodate primary and secondary school education up to matriculation. The teachers in Madarsa are already specialized in their fields. Research in and teaching of religion is different from teaching practical subjects and natural sciences and technology subjects, management courses, engineering, etc. if Modi sarkar is drawing a plan it should open the portals of higher education in specialized streams for the minorities.

The New 15 Point of the previous government under Manmohan Singh has already provided pre matric and post matric scholarships. The objectives make it clear that it is right attempt to help particularly the last point:

2. The objectives of the programme are as follows:-
a) Enhancing opportunities for education.

b) Ensuring an equitable share for minorities in economic activities and employment, through existing and new schemes, enhanced credit support for self-employment, and recruitment to State and Central Government jobs.

c) Improving the conditions of living of minorities by ensuring an appropriate share for them in infrastructure development schemes.

d) Prevention and control of communal disharmony and violence.

The section d) will be an anathema to the new government because those who have manufactured riots and caused communal disharmony have been rewarded with ministerial posts (Sanjive Baliyan, Giriraj Singh, Sakshi Maharaj, Sadhvi Jyoti) and others are on the way.

The social upliftment of Muslims will require a change in the attitude of fellow citizens of the country. Boycotting Muslims, not allowing them to live in better housing societies, objecting to their food habits as an excuse to deprive them of better living condition will have to go. The rote learning that the students are used to will have to be replaced by critical thinking and these must come to the majority community also. In her book The Clash Within Martha Nussbaum has underscored this point. Almost impossible to achieve for ameliorating the condition of Muslims in India is preventing communal violence. How could Modi do it as the PM when as the CM he instructed his police not to come in the way of the irate Hindus wreaking havoc on Muslims in their anger to take revenge of the train burning in February 2002? How could communal violence be prevented when Modi used Arun Jaitley to prevent the passing of the bill on communally targeted killing of members of minorities? How could law take its courses when Modi sarkar has voluminous record of obstructing justice? His advocate general Tushar Mehta sabotaged the cases from within instead of defending the innocent people who suffered in the pogroms. Modi punished those police officers who were honest and upright and awarded those who were pliant in cover up. By mere drawing up plan for the betterment of the minorities will not take place unless there is change of attitude. Bal Thackeray claimed that it was he and his party cadres who taught Gujarat and Modi how to deal with Muslims. When Sachar commission recommendations were accepted by the central government Thackeray sent a letter through his son Uddhav to the then PM Manmohan Singh threatening civil conflict if the recommendations were accepted.

Even worse is the continuing momentum of teasing and provocation of Muslims by calling them as haramzada, accusing Muslims with love jihad and a host of other such matters.

The New 15 points also emphasize “development projects in minority concentration areas.” The new policy Modi is drawing does not say anything regarding it. By “sensitizing the law enforcement agencies” regarding communal violence is not the solution. The solution lies in the strict and impartial application of the rule of law that is necessary coupled with non interference of the BJP/BD/RSS/VHP leaders/cadets in the administration and dispensation of justice.

The past performance of Modi is a testimony of his ignoring the interest of maintaining the social fabrics of the nation. He had challenged Muslims to have rain in the holy month of Ramzan as he had invoked rain and it came when performing a puja on Narmada river. He rated Muslims killed in the holocaust of 2002 as puppies killed under a car. He distributed 2 lakh for every Hindu killed but only one lakh for Muslims killed in 2002. Such discrimination amongst the legitimate citizens of the country bodes ill. Withholding funds earmarked for Muslims and returning it to the central government in defiant noncompliance will not help the cause if taking the people of India together on the path of development.”