By TCN News,
New Delhi: A delegation of leaders of muslin organisations met Congress President Mrs. Sonia Gandhi in presence of Mr. Ahmed Patel, political advisor to congress President. Navaid Hamid, one of the members of the delegation told TwoCircles.ne that they had a frank and heart to heart discussions about the UPA’s tenure & shared the expectations, grievances, failures and demands of the Muslims.
The delegation submitted a memorandum that listed twelve Muslim-specific issues. Text of the memorandum is below.
“The congress President was very warm & receptive in sharing party’s achievement & shortcomings & difficulties of Govt. with the members of the delegation,” said Hamid.
Other delegation members included Maulana Asghar Imam Mehndi Salafi, General Secretary, Jamiat e Ahle Hadith; Anis Ansari, V.C. Khwaja Moinudddin Chishti Urdu Arabic Farsi University., Lucknow; Farid Shaikh, Aman Committee, Mumbai; Navaid Hamid, General Secretary, MOEMIN & Peoples’ Integration Council; Nusrat Ali, General Secretary, Jamaat i Islami Hind; Dr. Zafrul Islam Khan, President, All India Muslim Majlis e Mushawarat.
Text of the memorandum
DELEGATION OF MUSLIM COMMUNITY LEADERS
c/o Movement for Empowerment of Muslim Indian(MOEMIN),
# 2143, Dawai Tola, Qasim Jan Street, Delhi – 110 006
Tel.: 9811643929
12 March 2014
Smt. Sonia Gandhi
Hon’ble Chairperson, UPA
New Delhi
Respected Madam,
Thank you for giving us time to meet you and place before you our thoughts about some of the most pressing demands of the Muslim community.
To start with, please allow us to say that UPA-I had started with a good and promising note to take care of the needs and demands of the marginalised Muslim community.
Appointment of the Sachar Committee and acceptance of its report was a landmark in this direction but soon the momentum was lost and UPA-II presented a case of a totally lost and dissipated opportunity. Though a lot of welfare schemes to empower Muslims were announced but we sincerely thinks that beuraucratic hurdles had failed the good intentions of the government to large extent as there was no effective implementation & effective monitoring mechanism. The Ministry of Minority Affairs took least interst in constituting a proper monitoring committee and most of the allocation for the welfare schemes were returned unspent year after year.
The community has also seen the decision of the government for releasing the 123 Waqf properties in Delhi , which was long standing demand of Muslims community, with relief and gratitude.
But we are also pained to say that the goodwill on both sides – the Congress and the Muslim community – suffered complete disconnect during the past few years.
There is a large perception that Government continued to disregard the community’s concerns over the arrests of thousands of its innocent youths on trumped up terror charges despite umpteen acquittals during this period after the accused had spent in some cases even 18 years in prison.
Since we wish Congress well and we still consider it a secular and broad-based party and we wish to be part of the struggle against the advancing deluge of communalism and fascism, we will be willing to support the Congress in general and appeal to the community to vote for alliance led by Congress if some of the basic demands of the community is taken in due consideration and included in the commitment of the party as part of its manifesto.
a. General issues: The Congress Party should be committed at both Central and state levels to ensure that the Muslim community receives its due share, according it its population ratio at village/ward/block levels, in all welfare schemes and benefits for the poor like housing, food, work, education etc. This should be ensured by creating both strong implementation as well as monitoring mechanisms on village/ward/block levels to ensure that these benefits reach the community in proportion to its ratio in the population at the local level. Where possible, schemes should be made for all poor and marginalised sections, e.g., the Equal Opportunities Commission should not be only for minorities or Muslims. Instead, it should cover all marginalised segments. Likewise, health and right to livelihood should be for all deserving sections.
b. Muslim-specific issues: We request that Congress Party should clearly commit itself to ensure the fulfillment of the following demands to be implemented within a time frame after assuming power after general elections:
1. Holistic implementation of the recommendations of the XII five-year plan vis-à-vis minorities in the country;
2. Commitment to enact the Anti-Communal Violence Act without dilution, including the provision to bar indicted individuals and political parties from contesting elections.
3. Implementation of Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission recommendations;
4. Commitment for inclusion of Dalit Christians & Dalit Muslims in the ambit of reservation for SCs under Art. 341 by withdrawing the unconstitutional and unjust 1950 Presidential Order.
5. Repeal of UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) and AFPSA, and commitment not to surreptitiously insert UAPA’s draconian provisions in any other law; banning torture in all forms.
6.a Release on bail of innocent youth arrested in terror charges in all cases where chargesheet is not filed within the stipulated 180 days, and dropping of charges where cases are not filed within two years of arrest, and unconditional release after four years if charges were not proved in a court of law within that period (an screening committee could do this as earlier in TADA cases);
b. Setting up of fast-track courts for all terror cases and ensuring that judges of such courts do not have burden of other cases.
c. Payment of a compensation of five lakh rupees per year of incarceration where a terror-accused is acquitted by a court of law.
d. Prosecution of all officers who implicated an acquitted victim in a terror case, tortured him and obtained false confession from him under duress.
6. Appoitnment of Delimitation Commission to look into the grievances of the Muslim community for deserving the Muslim concentrated constituencies.
7. Ensure a sub-plan in the budget for Muslims at par with the sub-plan for SCs/STs, taking into account the ratio of Muslims in the country’s population.
8. Return all waqf properties to respective waqf boards and ensure that respectable Muslim scholars and personalities are appointed on these boards.
9. Re-inclusion of Arabic and Persian in the competitive examinations held under the aegis of UPSC.
11.Accelerate the introduction of Islamic or ethical banking and finance facilities as per the recommendation of the Raghuram Rajan Committee on Financial Reforms.
12. Reforms in the Police Act to replace the colonial Police Act to make it peoples friendly and accountable.
Maulana Asghar Imam Mehndi Salafi, General Secretary, Jamiat e Ahle Hadith
Anis Ansari, V.C. Khwaja Moinudddin Chishti Urdu Arabic Farsi University., Lucknow
Farid Shaikh, Aman Committee, Mumbai
Navaid Hamid, General Secretary, MOEMIN & Peoples’ Integration Council
Nusrat Ali, General Secretary, Jamaat i Islami Hind
Dr. Zafrul Islam Khan, President, All India Muslim Majlis e Mushawarat