MUSLIM POLITICS
Maharashtra: Shahabuddin's Advice to Ulema Council, Bombay, 3 February, 1996
Idraak has been kind enough to send me newspaper clippings relating to the meeting of the prominent Muslims of Bombay organized by your Council on 20 January, 1996. Although no definite decision has been taken, it is indeed a good initiative which should be emulated in all parts of the country.
I would like to place my personal view before the Council that on the whole it shall not be beneficial for the Muslim community to support any political party or front in the country, as a whole, or in any State, as a whole. Every party has got a base and strength in some Constituencies and not all. Therefore, while the Muslim voters may help its candidate in winning a seat in a Constituency where it is strong, Muslim votes will be wasted where it does not have a base or does not have adequate strength of its own.
If there were a direct fight throughout the country or even in any State between the BJP and its allies and a national secular alliance, the situation will be different. Then the Muslims can safely vote for the candidates of the secular alliance. But no such secular alliance is likely to come into existence or be operational for the coming general election. Thus the secular parties will be under- cutting each other and helping the BJP to win, because of the division of secular votes.
Muslims have legitimate grievances even against the secular parties and there is no secular party whose conduct is without blemish or which has consistently stood by the Muslim community, made their problem a part of its agenda and undertaken programmes of action for resolving those problems. Even then the future of the Muslim community in the country lies in the secular order and in strengthening the representatives of secular parties in the State legislatures and the Parliament.
From the Muslim point of view, the main issue in the coming elections is Hindutva versus Secularism. Therefore, the Muslim community must first define its political objective: to stop the march of the Hindutva forces led by BJP to Delhi. This implies that the Muslim community must contribute decisively to defeat BJP in as many as constituencies as possible.
In our system, even one vote more or less can mean defeat or victory. Therefore, the Muslim masses have to be made conscious of the importance of their votes even in Constituencies where they form a small percentage of the electorate.
Secondly, we must understand that there is a contradiction in the interest of the community and that of a political party. The political party may lose a constituency but the votes it secures will be added to its total at the State level for its recognition as a State or National Party. This may happen even if it does not win a single seat in the State and, in fact, by taking away a part of the Muslim votes it helps the BJP to win all the seats. This may be an extreme scenario but it must be kept in view. The time is gone when the Muslim should use their vote to reward this or that leader or party. They should vote with a fixed purpose. This can be done only at the Constituency level.
Thirdly, the Muslims have to ensure that their votes are not divided or scattered among more than one candidate. So that it can be effective in deciding the outcome or contribute to the victory of a secular candidate.
The only option for the Muslim electorate is to vote massively and unitedly for a secular candidate - a candidate of anyone of the secular parties, which has a base in that constituency and which is the main adversary of the BJP in that constituency and, given the Muslim support, would be in a position to defeat the BJP candidate.
I would, therefore, suggest that for every constituency in Maharashtra, the Ulema Council, along with other Muslim organizations and individuals, should set up small consultative committees to persuade the candidates which do not have a chance of winning that constituency to retire from the field, select the candidate who has the best chance to defeat the BJP candidate, whatever his political party or alliance, and then advise the community to vote for him, for the survival of the secular democratic order in the country.
The task may be difficult but if the constituency level Consultative Committees consist of individuals who have no personal axe to grind or who are got involved in party politics, does its home work, it is not impossible.
Radiance on Muslim Political Strategy, 1950-1971
Muslim political parties have drawn a blank in the recent mid-term polls, almost everywhere in India except in Kerala, Madras and West Bengal. This is something which Muslim leadership must give very serious thought to.
The failure of Muslim political parties to win even a single seat in this vast area, is in fact the failure of the third political experiment in post-independence India. The first experiment consisted in their blind support to the Congress party. But in 1967 the Muslims felt that the Congress did not pay adequate attention to their real grievances. Hence, they decided to discard the Congress, for once, and to try those candidates belonging to non- Congress parties. But once these candidates were elected to the Parliament, they quite forgot all their promises to the Muslim community.
The third and the last experiment was made in the recent polls. Muslim political organizations put up their own candidates in the hope of winning at least a few seats with the help of Muslim votes.This latest experiment has also failed not merely because of the 'Indira wave but also because, unlike Kerala and West Bengal, there was not a single constituency in this area where Muslim votes were in a majority.
The important question now is what the Muslims are going to do in the future. Will they repeat one or the other of the three previous experiments which have already failed, in the hope that the future may hold something different in store for them? Or will they try to chalk out a fourth course different from all the three that have already failed to deliver the goods?
Insaf Morcha: Charter of Demands To Protect Religious and Linguistic Minorities
1. Establishment of Ministry of Minority Affairs under the Prime Minister and the Introduction of a National Code for Minorities applicable to all Social Groups which constitute a minority at various administrative levels-Union, State, District, Block and Panchayat.
2. Territorial Reorganization of the Union to create 8 Mar 11th A.R. of Minorities Commission for 1988- small States and small districts, Decentralization of Power and Institution of Panchayati Rajs.
3. Introduction of System of proportional representation or reservation in legislature and rotation of existing reservation for SC/ST among all constituencies.
4. Distribution of development and welfare resources of the Central and State Governments, including allocation for poverty alleviation and employment generation schemes, among States and among districts within state, among blocks within districts and among Panchayats within blocks only on population basis.
POLITICAL RIGHTS
5. Exclusion or deletion of name from the electoral rolls only with due process of law.
6. Amendment to the Representation of the People Act to bar appeal to Hinduism or Hindutva or any other religion or religious ideology.
BABARI MASJID
7. Assurance on removal of makeshift temple and restoration of Babari Masjid site to Muslim community, if title thereto is decided in their favor and strict enforcement of Places of Worship (Special Provision) Act.
EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT-RESERVATION
8. Reservation in public employment and higher education for Muslim community as a Backward Class in proportion to population and degree of backwardness, at the central and state levels.
URDU
9. Introduction of Mother Tongue as the Medium of Primary Instruction and as the First Language under the Three Language Formula for Secondary education.
10. Recognition of and equal treatment to Minority
Educational Institutions established under Article 30, by the State as well as the Universities and Examination Boards.
11. Publication of Cross-Tabulated Educational and Economic Statistics relating to all Social Groups as now done for SC and ST.
RELIGIOUS RIGHTS - PERSONAL LAW
12. No imposition of uniform civil code.
(Summary of Parliamentary Proceedings (26 February - 12 March, 1996)
I-RAJYA SABHA
Papers Tabled:
28 Feb: Annual Reports of the National Foundation for Communal Harmony for 1992-93 and 1993-94. A.R. of Animal Welfare Board for 1994-95.
8 Mar: 11th A.R of Minorities Commission for 1988-89.
A.R. of Delhi Urban Arts Commission, 1994-95. A.R. of D.D.A. for 1994-95.
Statutory Resolution:
27 Feb: Resolution on Extension of President's Rule in UP introduced.
Motion of Thanks to President:
28 Feb: Motion moved. M. Afzal and M.A. Samadari 1 Mar: participated. P.M. replied; adopted.
Resolution on International Women's Day
8 Mar: Adopted.
Valedictory Session for Retiring Members:
7 Mar Najma Heptulla, S. Bakht, M.A. Samadari and G.N. Azad participated.
II-Lok Sabha
Papers Tabled:
28 Feb: Annual Reports of the National Foundation for Communal Harmony for 1992-93 and
1993-94
6Mar: Annual Report of Delhi Urban Art Commission for 1994-95
AR. of Khadi and Village Industries Commission for 1994-95.
7 Mar: A.R of Minorities Commission for 1988-89.
8 Mar: AR of Handloom Export Promotion Council for 1994-95.
12 Mar: AR of National Handloom Development Corporation Ltd. for 1994-95.
Motion of Thanks on President's Address:
12 Mar: Moved and discussed. E Ahamed participates.
Government Bill - Introduced:
29 Feb: The Constitution (Scheduled Castes; Order (amendment) Bill, 1996,
Matters under Rule 377:
29 Feb: On need to check violation of Human Rights in the country by J.S. Brar
Private Member's Resolution:
8 Mar: On large scale illegal immigration of people from across the Indo-Bangladesh and the Indo-Pakistan borders- moved by RS. Rawat S. Shahabuddin participates.
Resolution on International Women's Day:
8 Mar: Adopted.
