By TCN News,
Lucknow: A delegation of Zakat Foundation of India (ZFI) led by its President, Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood had a long but frank discussion in Lucknow with the Bahujan Samaj Party General Secretary Satish Mishra. Through a PowerPoint presentation Dr Mahmood explained that the basic cause of denial of justice to Muslims is their abject under-representation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. He said that as per census Muslims constitute 13.4% at the national level. Hence in a Lok Sabha of 542 members there should be 73 Muslims. But since 1952 till date in all the Lok Sabhas the average number of Muslims has been less than 27.
The situation in state assemblies is either equally bad or even worse. The main reason for this injustice is that predominantly Muslim constituencies are reserved for Scheduled Castes even though SC percentage there is insignificant. On the other hand, those constituencies where Muslims are not much visible but where SC percentage is quite substantial are not reserved. For example, in Assam, the Karimganj lok sabha constituency has 52% Muslims (as per census) and 13% SC population but it is reserved for SCs. Yet, Jorhat and Dibrugarh are not reserved even though Muslim population there is only 5%. Likewise, Bahraich assembly constituency is reserved for SCs while it has 35% Muslims and only 16% SCs. But Rae Bareli is not reserved while there SCs are 30% with only 6% Muslims. State after state this trend continues.
L-R: SM Shakil, VP ZFI, Syed Husain, ex addl advocate general of UP, Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood, President, ZFI, Satish Mishra, General Secretary, BSP, Mumtaz Najmi, Secretary, ZFI.
Satish Mishra assured ZFI that after the Lok Sabha elections 2014 this matter will be immediately be taken up and new Delimitation Commission shall be appointed with specific directions to remove these anomalies within a given timeframe, as suggested by the Sachar Committee. Others in the ZFI delegation included the Vice President of ZFI SM Shakil and the Secretary Mumtaz Najmi.
Besides, the BSP General Secretary promised to forcefully take up and get implemented the following long pending Muslim welfare programs:
Institution of Alternation Admission Criteria for admission in colleges and universities as recommended by Sachar Committee so that academic merit is considered upto 60% and the remaining 40% is covered by the backwardness and lack of resources of the applicants;
creation of time-bound fast track courts to try terror allegations;
compensation of Rs fifty lakh to each person who is found by the court as not guilty of terror allegations;
enactment of anti-communal violence law; evolving mechanism to nominate Muslims to public positions of authority;
out of the reservation to be made for minorities, internally earmarking 2/3rd for Muslims as they comprise 73% of all minorities;
like Scheduled Castes, creating special component for Muslims in the plan / budget; for the 15-point minority welfare program enhancing budget from 15% to 19% as minorities comprise 19% of the total national population;
for planning of infrastructure schemes and their implementation for minorities, making village & ward as units rather than district or block;
scrapping the limited competitive examination for recruiting 1400 additional IPS officers;
establishing Indian Waqf Service;
upgrading the post of Secretary, Central Waqf Council to at least Joint Secretary to Govt of India;
canceling the provision of prior approval of waqf lease by state government; mandatory leasing put of waqf properties at not below the current fare market rate;
time bound vacation of Waqf properties by Govt and others;
publicizing Madarsa scheme in Urdu and other languages;
establishing equivalence between Madarsa and other education;
restoration of minority status of AMU;
giving option for interest-free finance in the banking sector;
getting Central Urdu Teachers Scheme implemented in states;
establishing Equal Opportunity Commission;
instituting incentive schemes based on diversity index;
involving Muslim beneficiary groups in planning and oversight of projects;
and benefiting the whole Muslim community – not only a few individuals.
Dr. Zafar Mahmood also told Satish Mishra that the ZFI representatives are not interested in taking any personal advantage for themselves or for their relatives either now or in future.