JEDDAH, 6 July 2005 — The return of the minority community to the Congress fold has in many ways changed the socio-political fabric of India. The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance is in power for over a year now, and the minorities are secure in the knowledge that the government in the center will not persecute them.
It is this feeling of security that has led to progressive governance on the part of the government with the minorities in India ready to contribute their share so that both can benefit, said Qurban Ali, a consultant with Doordarshan TV. He had earlier made a name for himself during his long stint with the BBC.
Muslims and Christians were at the receiving end during the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata party (BJP)-led government in India, he said. “The minorities were insecure during the BJP rule. The country saw worst type of persecution during this period. The killing of the missionary Graham Staines in Orissa and the verbal volleys against churches drew the Christians ire, but left them insecure, while Muslims were equally perturbed and confused about their status after the Gujarat genocide,” Qurban Ali said.
Qurban Ali lauded the UPA for not only charting the country’s progress, but also managing to win the minorities’ confidence in such a short time. “The government’s decision to reconstitute Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), efforts to desaffronize the educational institutions and curriculum, reservation for Muslims in Andhra Pradesh and in Aligarh Muslim University are some of the measures by the Congress-led UPA government that helped woo the minorities.”
When reminded there was opposition in certain sections over the quota system in AMU, he said, “We are a democratic country and people are free to express their opinion. Academics and analysts can debate the pros and cons of this decision but one thing is clear that the Muslims have welcomed this decision.” The only way the minorities benefited from BJP rule, he said, was during this period the otherwise complacent Muslim community did some introspection and decided to unite to oust this government at the first available opportunity.
“Not only that the community was a mute witness to the massacre of Muslims in Gujarat, it also felt marginalized in every walk of life be it education or jobs. They felt if the BJP comes back to power it would continue to implement its divisive policies more vigorously. Hence, the 2004 parliamentary elections were crucial for the minorities, particularly Muslims. They voted tactfully and booted the party of communalism and hatred out of power.”
Qurban Ali has covered the demolition of Babri Mosque in Ayodhya on Dec. 6, 1992, and the events thereafter. On Babri Mosque, he said this one event changed the course of the Indian politics. It had a great impact on the Muslims. They became restless and disenchanted because the party in power at the center was Congress, which watched while Ayodhya was in uproar. Though the BJP and its hardcore allies were behind the demolition, Muslims were angry with the Congress for not saving the mosque, he said.
“The Muslims punished the Congress. Though in my opinion, Congress was not to blame for it. But Muslims — bruised and cheated — deserted the party to punish it and started propping up leaders like Lalu Prasad and Mulayam.” When asked why Muslims are returning to the Congress fold, he said, “This is the most sensible and political decision. They have realized that regional chieftains alone cannot stop BJP. The regional power brokers don’t have an all-India support base. No secular formation was possible by keeping Congress out of power. So, they tactically started aligning with the Congress which paid dividends.”
He added, the presence of Left parties, Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD and Sharad Pawar’s NCP in the ruling coalition has made it a truly secular alliance. Nobody can question the secular credentials of these parties.
On BJP leader L.K. Advani’s recent comment on Pakistan’s founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the following resignation fiasco, he said, “In 2004, the BJP lost power and in 2005 it lost face.” The erstwhile Jan Sangh, the precursor to the BJP, contested the 1950 election on the issue of Hindu Port Bill, then they made cow slaughter an election plank and finally they blasted Babri Masjid-Ramjanambhoomi controversy out of proportion. Even then they failed to get an all-India appeal in a predominantly Hindu country. Their vote percentage has remained between 20-25 percent. The BJP has realized they cannot become an all-India party only on Hindu agendas. They now wish to remold themselves into a party with which even secular Hindus would like to be identified with, a party which Muslims would also look at as an alternative. So, now Advani is trying to change his image.
“Advani’s love for Jinnah is an attempt to secularize his highly saffronized image, and in the process, to please Muslims. But Advani forgot one basic fact that Jinnah was never an ideal of Indian Muslims. Indian Muslims rejected Jinnah during pre-independence elections and finally in 1947. The presence of over 16 crore Muslims in India proves that,” Qurban Ali said, adding that even Hindus of India have realized that Ramjanambhoomi is not their priority as many eye economic growth and prosperity and have no time for such divisive issues. When asked what’s the biggest problem facing by Indian Muslims, he said: “Lack of education.”
“Nothing short of a movement for the academic advancement of the community is needed. Modernization of religious schools is also needed because still these schools provide education to a large chunk of Muslims. But they should add some professional and vocational courses also to their curriculum to make their education relevant to today’s job market,” he said. He was optimistic that upcoming Bihar Assembly elections will give another blow to BJP where secular forces under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Lalu, will triumph.
“It will be a landslide for the secular forces this time.” He also dispelled the notion that Doordarshan has failed to establish itself in the Indian market. “This is a wrong notion that Doordarshan has failed. It’s a public broadcaster and its prime objective is to reach the maximum number of people. I can confidently say that Doordarshan has 80 percent share of Indian viewership. The remaining 20 percent is shared by over 100 private channels.”
