The newly elected central panel members of the Riyadh-based Bihar International Society for Welfare and Solidarity (BISWAS) took an oath of affirmation on Thursday asserting their commitment to serve the aims and objectives of the society in right earnest.

BISWAS, a socio-welfare group of expatriate workers representing the north Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern UP, elected Mohammed Mukhtar Khan as president of the society, Shahzad Samdani, vice-president (social welfare) and Mohammad Wakil Ahmed, vice-president (education) while Akhtar-ul-Islam Siddiqui was elected as general secretary and Tarique Noorul Hasan as joint-secretary with Obaidur Rahman as chairman of the society.

While addressing the function, most of the speakers highlighted the priority areas for the community and urged the voluntary organizations from India working in the Kingdom to work in close co-ordination for the welfare of the community.

They expressed concern on the hundreds of Indian workers, many of them from Bihar and UP, who are languishing in local jails for petty offenses. They stressed that as the royal pardon is granted during the holy month of Ramadan all the organizations need to follow up the cases through proper channels for the prisoners’ clemency.

In reference to the upcoming Lok Sabha election in India next month, they maintained that the Muslim representation in the Indian Parliament has been marginalized over the years with the decreasing number of Muslim members of parliament (MPs).

“The number of Muslim MPs elected to the 15th Lok Sabha in 2009 dropped to 28, in sharp contrast to the 14th Lok Sabha in 2004 which had 35 Muslim MPs. Going by the Muslim population in the country, which is 15 percent of the total population, the parliament should have at least 75- 80 representatives in the 543-member Lok Sabha but that appears to be an elusive goal as the numbers of Muslim MPs are steadily falling,” Khan underlined.

Addressing the gathering Ghazanfar Ali Khan, Riyadh Bureau chief of Arab News, urged the community members and the organizations for lobbying with like-minded parties in the country for suitable representation at national and state levels as political empowerment is essential for the economic and educational empowerment of the Muslim community which is lagging far behind in the social indicators.

He also asserted on expanding the dimensions of the Society in terms of work and contributions in order to achieve its vision and missions.

Siddiqui introduced the new panel and asserted that the team will work together to fulfill the aspirations of the community, which has entrusted them with such a huge responsibility.

He also called for eliminating divisiveness among the people on a regional basis as earlier some people were biased toward Bihar.

“Biharis have proved their mettle in every field due to sheer hard work,” he added.

Mohammed Quaiser, president of Tanzeem Hum Hindustani, a premier Indian group, presented a shawl to the BISWAS chairman on the occasion.

The program was attended by community members in large numbers.