The problem within

For six decades, Muslims in india have been battling issues of Poverty, Unemployment, Social Stigmas and Ghettoisation. However, with the dawn of the New Era, there is hope

For six decades, Muslims in india have been battling issues of Poverty, Unemployment, Social Stigmas and Ghettoisation. However, with the dawn of the New Era, there is hope

The issues are real enough. The Sachar Committee Report simply confirms what the community has known for a long time Indian Muslims are far behind the mainstream on almost any measure of development; education, employment or entrepreneurship.

A subtle but very tangible discrimination only ensures that the problem will get worse, not better.

It is clearly not in national interest to have a large backward and disgruntled minority who turn to religious zealots as a last resort when the state fails them.

And to this extent Muslims have a right to demand quick and effective resolution of the real issues that face the community from the Indian nation.

Misled and Betrayed

But there is another problem within the community. For too long the Indian Mussalman has been misled and betrayed by those who claim to lead him.

Political dalals make self serving deals with politicians of all stripes, bartering the self respect of the community and its votes for personal gain.

Prayers Of Joy: Muslims offer the early morning Eid-ul-Fitr prayer at the Jama Masjid mosque in New Delhi yesterday. Muslims across the nation celebrated Eid that marks the end of the holy month of Ramzan, after the sighting of the new crescent moon.

Aa Galey Lag Jaa: Children greet each other in Mominpura, Pune yesterday.

Celebration: Young girls have a field day at the Jama Masjid in New Delhi.

Mubarak Ho: Dressed in white the young accompanied the elders to mosques in Patiala.

For the past month they have been busy organising iftaar parties where they lavishly perch silly fur hats on political operators and sing paeans of praise to the annadaata.

None of this benefits the community in any way, but the politician gets his votes and the dalal his scraps of pelf and power.

On the other end of the spectrum, the bearded ones hysterically raise issues of no real significance to the community to draw attention to themselves for much of the same rewards.

No clear benefits

Let it be said; the Shah Bano judgement, the ridiculous insistence on the right to triple talaq and even the Babri Masjid are issues of little real benefit to the community.

But the politicised ulema are pandered to by the political establishment and build their little fiefdoms on the platform of 'community leadership'.

Indian Muslims can and should be part of the effort to build a strong and secular nation.

For this to happen, all Indians need to unite behind the effort to bring them into the mainstream and the state must work intelligently to find reasonable solutions to the real problems which Justice Sachar has defined.

However, at the same time, the community must work on the problem within to unmask the brokers and religious obscurantists who claim to lead them and work determinedly to take Indian Muslims out of the dark and into the light.

The writer is Managing Director of MiD DAY Multimedia Ltd

The Sachar Committee Report

The Rajinder Sachar Committee, appointed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was a high level committee for preparation of a report on the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community in India.

The Committee prepared a 403-page report that was tabled in Parliament on 30 November 2006 20 months after obtaining the terms of reference from the PMO.

According to the Sachar Committee Report the status of Indian Muslims in education, literacy, mean household income, employment and entrepreneurship is deplorable and below the condition of Scheduled Castes and Tribes.

The report has a number of recommendations to mainstream Indian Muslims and suggests the adoption of suitable mechanisms to ensure equity and equality of opportunity of Muslims in residential, work and educational spaces.

For full report go to:
https://minorityaffairs.gov.in/newsite/sachar/sachar.asp