MERE VOTE BANK? A panel of experts debated whether any govt really cares about Muslims.
New Delhi: With two days to go for Parliament’s winter session, the Rajinder Sachar Committee report - on the condition of Muslims - presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week, could spark off a political storm.
Without recommending reservations for Muslims, the report indicates that the conditions of Muslims in India is worse than OBCs and in some cases deplorable that even the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The report says it wants an equitable distribution of jobs for Muslims and points out that Muslims are underrepresented in government jobs in states like West Bengal and UP.
Incidentally, these are the states led by political parties that had for long championed so called Muslim issues.
So does any government really care for Muslim welfare? That was the big question of debate on CNN-IBN show Face the Nation with Rajdeep Sardesai.
On the expert panel were General Secretary of Samajwadi Party and Rajya Sabha MP, Sayid Siddique, BJP Spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad and the General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee, Satyavrat Chaturvedi.
Congress Confused?
As the pressure grows for Muslim reservations, Satyavrat Chaturvedi is one of the many in the Congress who have come out in support of the Sachar Panel recommendations.
However, the UPA Government also seems to be speaking in different voices.
While Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has said that there is 100 per cent reservation for Muslims and Congress in Andhra Pradesh guaranteeing five per cent reservations for Muslims, Chaturvedi said that the reservation is only for backward Muslims.
“Yes, there should be reservation for backward Muslims and for those Muslims those who are educationally and socially backward. Let’s not forget as to what does the Constitution provides for. The Constitution provides for the reservations and special provisions for development to communities that are on two parameters. One is for the educationally backward and the other for the socially backward. These are the two things that are mandatory,” Chaturvedi said.
But Congress MP Veerappa Moily wants a change in the Constitution. So who among the Congress can be trusted on the issue?
No ‘minor’ issue for BJP, SP
While Congress struggles to find a middle ground, the BJP seems to be very clear at moment. Armed with all ammo, the party is all set to make this a political issue. But isn’t it ironical though that a Report that actually debunked BJP’s minority theory appeasement has now become a tool to target the Congress?
“We have always said that the whole Sachar Committee Report is basically a political exercise. At this underscores one very important factor is namely is the politics of minority welfare has only centred around symbolism, from Imrana to Shah Bano, to Afzal Guru, to that man of Kerala for whose release Congress and CPI have come together,” BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said.
But clearly, if Congress resorted to minority symbolism, BJP also took to minority appeasement.
Prasad went on a defensive and said that the pressure for reservations will mount on the government, come what may. “If reservation based on religion is allowed we will certainly oppose it. And by the way it is also time to reflect inside the community. I have talked about all the symbolism. It will be very critical as to how the government will respond to the pressure of quotas because the reservation for Muslims based upon religion is not permissible,” he said, adding, “Why is polio vaccine administration not being opposed by the communities? These are issues to be addressed. Our Government thinks of their welfare. Don’t mistake us.”
But Sachar Panel’s observation that UP is the worst off among all states has also exposed the shallowness of BJP’s and t he ruling Samajwadi Party’s “minority beneficiaries” claims.
Shahid Siddiqui was quick to jump to the defense. “For once let me speak as a citizen of the country. I congratulate you for refocusing the issue because the issue is not about reservation. The issue is about the backwardness of the Muslims and how should the backwardness be removed. We have to build a national consensus for that,” he said.
On being asked if he accepted that Samajwadi Party had failed in UP, Siddiqui fiercely defended his party. “If you want to turn it into a political debate then it is fine. We have not failed. In two and a half years we have focussed on Muslim education, we have opened two universities and 50 colleges. We have brought them in to Urdu education. There are 10,000 teachers now,” he said
But doesn’t the report still suggest that the UP Muslims are backward? “The report is not about two years but the report is about the last 60 years. Let me tell you it is not the political parties but the whole system, the society and the media, everybody has failed so far as Muslims are concerned. Let’s come to the real issue,” Siddiqui said.
So will the Samajwadi Party push for reservation? “I believe reservation is not the solution to the social problems we have to go beyond reservations because reservations are only about government jobs,” Siddiqui said, adding, “My problem is education about education of Muslims. Muslim backwardness in education has to be removed and for that we have to go much beyond that. We have to go much beyond in the private sector.”
So is this what the Government will focus on as a result of the report? Will it focus much more on minority education?
“If you go by the revelations that come about the education of Muslims, in my view, it would be better if this awareness reaches to more Muslims. I would however, want to say that in any nation, it has been many years in India though, but in America, England and many nations which free nations, there has not been a complete development of communities. The blacks are yet to be developed. Scotland had to make a separate Parliament because of this due to reasons very similar. So I would like to tell one thing and that is we had tried but we realised that our efforts were not bearing results. The need is now to approach the issue differently and find out where we have failed. It is not about failing in UP and other states. We really need a new approach to address the issue if we want to bring the backward communities at par with other communities,” Chaturvedi said.
Equal Opportunities, Unequal Argument
When asked if Congress will be ready to consider an Equal Opportunities Commission for the Muslims, Ravi Shankar Prasad said the BJP will cross the bridge when it comes to it.
“We will only respond when the (our) Government formally comes. But let me make only make one point here after hearing Mr Siddiqui and Chaturvedi. If there has to be a new focus, a focus beyond the pelf of vote bank and real consideration of their empowerment, we are all for that. Muslims are a part of India,” he said.
When repeatedly asked, Prasad also reluctantly responded by saying, “I have my serious reservations if it is confined to Muslims alone, because equal opportunities is denied to many people. The question of equality is important here but I must add one fact. For instance has the Sachar Committee has considered proportional representation in jails also. Is it fair?” he asked.
However, Siddiqui vehemently stated that Congress was in favour of an Equal Opportunities Commission. “In England we have Racial Equal Opportunity Commission which has done wonders for Asian communities. It has done wonders for the Black Americans in the United States. What we are talking about in every given area including business or private sector of geographical areas,” he said
“Equal Opportunities Commission is one very good suggestion that should be considered by all parties. By our experiences of the past we have learnt one thing, we thought that perhaps resources will be equitably distributed to all the communities on the country, but our past experience has shown that this did not happen. The budget was given for educational purpose,” he added.
Meanwhile, Prasad also said that the Sachar recommendation of having a Muslim in every employment panel was dangerous “I am objecting to one Sachar Committee recommendation that every employment must have a Muslim on the board. That is dangerous because with SCs and the STs will want the same tomorrow. They will say, ‘my case should go to a judge,’” Prasad said.
Replying to this argument, But Siddiqui came up with a rather statesman-like argument. “BJP wants Muslims to come up. And I believe that unless they (BJP) understand and also come with us, we will not be able to solve the problem, we have to take everybody,” he said.
So, ultimately what is the future of the report? In the end, will this Report become another tool to push for vote-bank politics?
“My fair sight is that every group - the Hindu communalist, the Muslim communalist, the so called secularist - everybody will garner votes and ultimately and this Report will be dissolved,” Siddiqui said. But he also said the Congress will ensure that this eventuality doesn’t happen. “It is a double-edged sword hanging on the heads of the Muslims and unfortunately we will not let that happen because we want a national debate and a national consensus on the issue. I don’t want to be reduced to reservation, I want everybody to discuss,” he said.
But the fear is that this will be a talking shock up to the UP election and after that it will be buried like the Gopal Singh Report and like other reports that have been buried in some dusty bureaucratic cupboard.
How serious is the Government now on moving in the direction as the Prime Minister said, ‘A fair share for Muslims’?
“Let me assure in the first place that the Commission has not been instituted just a few weeks or a few months back. It was instituted as soon as the Government came to power. And it is almost two-and-a-half years later that this Committee has come up with the Report,” Chaturvedi said, adding, “ Fifteen per cent of the country has the minority population which consists of the Muslims, Sikhs, Christisns, Jains, Boudhs, Parsis and so on. For all these minority communities now what is required that will work is that, it can be pondered upon whether we should have unity targeted budget allocations so that there is a equitable apportion distribution of public assets and public resources.”
Ravi Shankar Prasad had a few suggestions to make. “Community-based budgeting is a bad idea as it has tenuous implications. As to the question of what should be done? Well, modernise the madrassas, give them computers, give training to the teachers. Secondly, make artisan banks as there are many artisans among the Muslims. They can be trained and facilities and this is how the empowerment will being. We are all here for the development of Muslims,” he said, also assuring the Opposition will not adjourn Parliament on the issue.
At the end of the show, some very constructive suggestions did come up. It is now for time to tell whether the debate will continue in Parliament in the same constructive spirit or will the minority card be made a political tool to settle scores.
SMS Poll Results:
Does any government really care for Muslim welfare?
Yes: 37 per cent
No: 63 per cent
Source: IBN LIVE