Muslim Political Awareness Forum organised a seminar on “Educational Problems and Our Responsibilities” at Mumtaz P.G. Collage, Lucknow in which educationists and social workers discussed the educational problems of the Muslim minority.
Addressing the seminar as Chief Guest,Dr.ShakeelSamdaniof Aligarh Muslim University said that without reservation of seats in jobs and admissions the progress of Muslims in India is not possible. The Sachar Committee has already exposed that the government failed to uplift the Muslimssocially, educationally, economically and politically. Muslims are at the lowest level and claims of their progress and development are totally false. This is due to the discrimination at every level by the successive governments.
Dr.Samdani was speaking on ‘Reservation of Muslims in Educational Institutions’. After reviewing the High Court and Supreme Court judgementsduring the last six decades, he said that at the national level no reservation was given to the backward classes including Muslims up to 1992. After 1992, for the first time in the history of independent India, the backward classes were given reservation in central services in which large numbers of Muslims were also included. Of course, reservation was available in some states in services as well as in educational institutions. In 2005, by the 93rd Amendment to the constitution, the benefit of reservation was extended to OBCs in educational institutions including private institutions. But private minority educational institutions were exempted from the purview of OBC reservation.
Dr.Samdani further said that the Muslims should try to get maximum benefit from 27% OBC quota and they should continue their efforts to get their separate quota within 27% OBC quota. Muslims should also try to get their institutions declared as ‘minority institutions’. They should apply for declaring their institutions to the National Commission for Minorities Educational Institutionsset up by the government and take help from Chairman Justice M S ASiddiqi.
Dr Samdaniadvised the Muslims to make more efforts in comparison to the majority community. They must develop political awareness so that they can get political advantage of the democracy. He asked the Muslim community to put maximum pressure on the state as well as central government for granting them reservation before the next LokSabha election scheduled to be held in 2014.
Presiding over the seminar, Convener of Muslim Political Awareness Forum Dr. M. Anis said that the problems of the Muslims are more than others that is why a serious discussion is necessary. To weaken Urdu as medium of instruction was a political conspiracy against Muslims and that is why new generation of Muslims is becoming more unaware about their culture and history. He said that it is a part conspiracy to force the Muslim students for ‘Surya Namaskar’ and singing ‘vandematram’ in schools.
Maulana Jahangir Qasmi said Islam has given much importance to education and the Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) has exhorted the Muslims to acquire knowledge and there is no age limit for acquiring it. Er. KhaliqUzZaman (Delhi) spoke on the ‘Problems of Education in Textbooks’.