UP Muslim political outfits impede democratization process: They are oblivious of the issue of social justice
By Dr. Mohammad Sajjad
A significant aspect of the UP assembly polls 2012 is mushrooming of Muslim political outfits, something unusual in the political history of north Indian Muslims in post independence period. These outfits however seem to be out of touch with the ground social realities. With relative non-occurrence of communal violence in recent past, the heterogeneities within the Muslim societies have got the opportunities to manifest themselves. Of all these heterogeneities, caste (biradri) is the biggest practised social reality, besides the maslaki (sub-sectarian, most importantly intra-sunni, Barelwi-Deobandi divide) ones. Ever since the selective implementation of the Mandal Report in the 1990s, the debate of social justice has attained centre-stage and no political party, howsoever some of them having their core support among the upper castes can afford to oppose it anymore.
The Muslim outfits of UP seem to be conveniently sidestepping this vital factor. During the colonial period, at least the Ansaris were politically mobilized and their organizational headquarters, founded in 1925, was located in Kanpur (UP). It was however, stronger in Bihar under the leadership of Abdul Qaiyum Ansari (1905-74). This legacy continued in the post-independence Bihar. With the weakening of the ruling Congress due to [upper] caste-based factionalism and the rise of anti-Congress politics, more particularly the Socialists, the hegemony of upper caste came to be challenged and the Karpuri Thakur-led government (1977-80) of Bihar implemented Mungerilal report (1971-76) which also made a relatively more judicious arrangement of splitting the cake of reservation in public employment and educational institutions along upper and lower Other Backward Classes (OBCs): 12% for the lower and 8% for the upper OBCs; in the 1990s, (after Mandal’s 27%), 17% for the lower and 10% for the upper OBCs. This pre-empted the chunk of the cake being taken away by the upper OBCs. Out of 41 ‘castes’ of Mulsims in Bihar, 37 are included as the OBCs. Moreover, this practise of splitting the cake was extended by the Nitish Kumar led administration in Bihar in the Panchayati Raj Institutions not only for the OBCs but also for the Scheduled Castes (Dalits and Maha Dalits). In the 1990s, the movement gained strength in Bihar under the leadership of Dr Ejaz Ali and Ali Anwar Ansari. They demand inclusion of Dalit Muslims into the list of the Scheduled Castes. As of now this facility remains confined only to the Hindus, a blatant case of religious discrimination in the secular constitution.
Muslim outfits in UP are not championing social justice issues. [TCN Photo]
Both UP with over 18% of the electorates being Muslims, as well as the West Bengal with over 25% of them being Muslims (ruled by the Left for more than three decades) have kept large number of Muslim groups (castes) out of the list of the OBCs. In UP, out of more than 65 such groups, only less than 40 are included as the OBCs. This inclusion with segregation and splitting up of the lower and upper OBC quota (Bihar Model) will no longer need any religion exclusive sub-quota. Surprisingly hardly any Muslim outfit of UP is showing any degree of concern with these kinds of legitimate aspirations of the Pasmanda-Dalit Muslims. Consequently, the under-representation of the Muslims in public employment and education is proportionately far more in West Bengal and UP than in Bihar. The drop-out rate of the Muslim students is higher in the two provinces in contrast with Bihar. This is pretty clear from the Sachar Report (2005). In short, the urge of democratization among the Muslim communities remains un-addressed even by these newly emerging Muslim outfits. Do they wish to pursue the emotive identity politics of religious exclusivism which may degenerate into the politics of religious reaction? Even the Peace Party of Dr Ayub, a Gorakhpur (Bhojpuri speaking district of eastern UP) based surgeon, who is said to be from a Pasmanda caste, refrains from identifying himself with this politics of social justice. In UP the feudal character of Muslim politics hampered the cause of Urdu, unlike Bihar, where constitutional politics of democratic mobilizations informed by liberal-secular ideas during 1951-89, succeeded in extracting considerable state favours for Urdu, which provided government jobs as teachers and translators.
As to the political assertion of the Barelwis (Sufi shrines), they have largest following among the occupational castes, but almost all the sufi shrines with huge (unaccounted) money, are under the control of the Ashrafs. The Muslim-owned media, mostly Urdu, hardly pay any attention to such issues. Most often, they censor even the irregularities of the Waqf and the minority educational institutions.
By choosing to ignore the issue of Pasmanda-Dalit Muslims, the Muslim outfits are most likely to suffer from other weaknesses. There are unmistakable signs of personality clashes between the leaders of different Muslim outfits, as also among the leaders within a particular Muslim outfit. They are therefore unlikely to succeed in stitching together a united front. Even if they do, such a united front of the Muslims will have to strike either a pre-poll coalition or seat-adjustment with any one of the dominant parties (SP, BSP, Congress; none of these parties have got Pasmanda Muslim face among their high leadership). Failing which they will prove to be mere spoilers, and in that case, even the BJP may emerge as beneficiary/ dark horse on many seats.
These Muslim outfits are wilfully suffering from other big limitation: woeful lack of any promising futuristic, sustainable, concrete economic programmes for specific sectors. Most of the Muslim caste-groups survive as artisans and craftsmen. Studies and surveys have testified that these craftsmen in Bhadohi (carpet), Lucknow (chikan clothes embroidery), Muradabad (brass wares) and Aligarh (lock industry), don’t have sufficient state facilities helping them to improve their economic status. Credit facilities through public finances, and other necessary helps are not forthcoming from the state. The health and education facilities are denied to them, whereas the state is too prompt in installing police thanas in Muslim settlements, and hospitals, schools, nationalized banks’ branches are to be found very rarely. The agenda of rural distress, and unemployment, flood control, and industrialization-food-processing and agro-based (more particularly in eastern UP) are few such issues which are awaited to be pursued by these Muslim political outfits. They have hardly been raising any such issue with adequate force of people’s mobilization. All these symptoms indicate only one thing: selected individuals are desperate to grab power for their absolute self-promotion, rather than promoting genuine and concrete issues of the common people in a liberal, secular, inclusive language of politics through democratic mobilization of the masses.
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Mohammad Sajjad is Asstt. Prof. at Centre of Advanced Study in History, Aligarh Muslim University.