NEW DELHI: Admitting that Muslims were underrepresented in India’s administration, Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahamed said the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had not done enough to bridge the “alienation” of the country’s largest minority community and demanded reservation and special recruitment to bring them “at par.”
Ahamed, who earlier this week was nominated president of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), said the government needed to take steps to bring Muslims at par with other social groups.
“This is perhaps the most friendly government of the minorities. But it’s not addressing the entire problems of the minorities,” Ahamed, whose IUML is a member of the Congress-led UPA and whose chief support base is in Kerala, told IANS in an interview.
Ahamed, 70, said the Justice Rajinder Sachar Committee’s recommendations and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s 15-point program to ensure equal socioeconomic opportunities to Muslims in India were not enough. “We welcome the recommendations as also the prime minister’s ... 15-point program to guarantee the representation of minorities... I am of the view it is not sufficient,” said the lawyer-turned-politician.
The Sachar Committee, appointed by the Singh government, compiled an exhaustive report on the social, economic and educational status of the nearly 145 million Muslims in India. India is home to the world’s third largest Muslim population after Indonesia and Pakistan.
The 403-page report, tabled in Parliament in 2006, revealed the poor development indices of the Muslims and suggested recommendations to better their condition.
Ahamed explained that the distressed condition of the Indian Muslim was due to “lack of positive and affirmative action” on the part of successive Indian governments. He said suggestions to improve the lot of the Dalits and tribals were not seen as “narrow-mindedness”, but when it came to Muslims, the picture was different.
Ahamed said: “We (IUML) firmly believe that only reservation for (the Muslim) community will give them at least (some) representation. Speeches alone won’t uplift the minorities. These should be put into practice to do away with their social negligence.
“Without giving Muslims a reservation, how will you bring the minority communities at par?’ he asked. “Until and unless the state guarantees special reservation, and if possible special recruitment (for government jobs), minorities won’t have adequate representation (in governance),” Ahamed told IANS.
