If the UPA govt does not pass the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence Bill and Waqf Bill in the coming monsoon session of Parliament, it will be a great injustice to minorities, especially Muslims, and the UPA government especially Congress will have to bear severe consequences of this failure. This is the last opportunity for the Congress to pass these two crucial Bills and if it fails this time, it will not be spared.
This statement was made by Dr. Shakeel Samdani, President Sir Syed Awareness Forum while presiding over the monthly meeting of the Forum on 28 July. He said that in the wake of Sachar Committee recommendations only scholarships have been released and some development work has been undertaken in some Muslim concentration districts, rest there is only hype about it and no sincere steps have been taken in this regard.
He also said that the economic condition of Muslims hasn’t changed. No serious effort has been made to raise their representation in Parliament and State Assemblies. The issue of reservation for Muslims has been side-lined. Moreover, the recommendations of Ranganath Misra Commission have been kept at bay.The government has failed to submit the affidavit related to Article 341 in the Supreme Court, which was ordered by the court in the beginning of 2011.This shows the indifferent attitude and apathy of the government with regard to Muslim issues.
Dr. Samdani stressed that Congress should not take Muslim votes for granted and shouldn’t think that they will get Muslim votes by projecting the ‘fear of Modi’. Muslims are having suitable options other than Congress in at least ten states constituting about 300 seats of Lok Sabha from U.P., Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir.
Prof. M. Saud Alam Qasmi, Dean, Faculty of Theology, Aligarh Muslim University said that Congress should sincerely strive for the smooth passage of Communal Violence Bill. This will not only benefit the Muslims of India but also strengthen communal harmony and solidarity in the country. If this Bill is not passed in this session of the Parliament then it will be treated as cheating the Muslims and will also weaken the internal security of the country. Likewise, the Waqf Bill should also be passed in its true spirit, keeping in view the suggestions and amendments made by the responsible organisations, especially All India Muslim Personal Law Board.
Maulana Obaid Iqbal Asim said that it seems that after nine years of continuous power, Congress is moving towards dictatorship and the testimony to the fact is that in spite of continuous and sincere efforts of Muslim organisations and Milli leaders, Congress is not ready to solve the problems of Muslims seriously. And because of this, the Waqf Bill has been halted by the government for a long time on one pretext or the other in spite of serious efforts made by All India Muslim Personal Law Board in this regard. He demanded that in the coming session of Parliament not only these two Bills should be passed but concrete steps be taken to improve the standard of living of Muslims.
Secretary of the Forum, MansoorIlahi said that the Forum is committed to the cause of Muslims and deprived sections of the society. He said Muslim youth will not sit idle and will stand up under the banner of the Forum to fight for the cause of Muslims, the downtrodden and weaker sections of the society.
Mr. Naseem Shahid, President Regional Urdu Teachers Association; Mr.Aslam Ansari, Vice President, Aligarh Udyog Vayapar Partinidhi Mandal; Er. Pervez Ansari, Manager Hidayat-E-Anwar Madarsa; Nizamuddin, President, Aligarh Madarsa Association; Najam Abbasi, Asst. Manager, Indian Bank;Shoeb Ali, Former Cabinet member, AMUSU; and Ziauddin Ahmad also spoke on this occasion.