[Jamaat-e-Islami Hind’s people’s manifesto which it has presented for the consideration of political parties and groups, presents a very comprehensive charter of demands, which, if implemented, promises to change the society for the better and lead the nation to progress and prosperity with equal opportunity for all to avail in a peaceful, conflict-free and corruption-free atmosphere. _ Editor]
This people’s manifesto is released by Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. The Jamaat-e-Islami Hind stands for the universal worldview based on belief in One God, belief in the last Messenger of God-Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) as well as His other Messengers and the accountability before God on the Day of Judgment. The Jamaat believes that peaceful living of individuals and equity and justice in the society cannot be established without this.
The Jamaat believes in a political system that is based on ethical values. It envisages a system of governance wherein every citizen enjoys equal opportunities and justice which is free and easily accessible. Jamaat believes that peace and justice are interdependent. So for a peaceful society we need to have our systems strongly founded on the values of justice. The measures enlisted in this manifesto formulate a small step towards the realisation of Jamaat’s vision of a value-based welfare state.
In the coming elections Jamaat-e-Islami Hind will support the alliances or fronts, parties and candidates who commit to implement these demands.
I. Development
- Ensure just distribution of resources among all sections of the society.
- In basic infra-structure development initiative such as roads, bridges etc there should be no role for Public Private Partnership.
- Amend the Land Acquisition Act prohibiting the acquisition of agricultural lands for industrial purposes and mandating the proper compensation for the acquired lands.
- Enact a comprehensive Rehabilitation Act to ensure that:
- the life standard of evicted people improves compared to the previous condition.
- Eviction should be done only after complete and satisfactory rehabilitation.
- Modify the SEZ act including the labour laws, removing the boundless powers vested on Development Commissioners, removing the limitless tax exemptions etc.
- Introduce low price, interest free housing scheme for the poor and middle class.
- Appoint a commission to study the use of land, the landless people and the illegal land grab by various corporate companies and implement its recommendations.
II. Social Justice
- Ensure immediate tabling of Justice Ranganatha Misra Commission report in the Parliament, full implementation of its basic recommendations, namely, 15% reservation for the minorities, with 10% exclusively for the Muslims, along with the unutilized portion of the other 5%, and the deletion of para 3 of the Constitution (SC) Order 1950, issued under Article 341 of the Constitution for the inclusion of Muslims and Christian Dalits in the SC list.
- Repeal draconian laws in the guise of curbing terrorism in all states. e.g. UAPA, MCOCA and Armed forces Special Power Act etc.
- Ensure reservation in public employment and higher education, benefits of social development and flow of resources for the Muslims in proportion to their population and level of backwardness.
- Diversity Index should be introduced as recommended by Sachar Committee in all public and private sectors and all government incentives should be linked with it.
- Establish Equal Opportunity Commission as recommended by Sachar Committee.
- Make sub plans for Muslims in central and state plans and schemes and allocate budgets on par with SC and ST for such sub plans.
- All the allocations and schemes provided for Minorities concentrated districts should be specific to the developments of minorities in that particular region.
- Provide all basic amenities to tribals in Tribal and Forest Land without affecting their culture and customs.
- Ensure development of basic needs and other infrastructure in Kashmir and North Eastern states.
- While allocating tickets for party candidates for Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, Assembly, Council and Municipal elections, it should be ensured that each community gets proportionate representation.
III. Economy
- The interest on loans to farmers, poor entrepreneurs and other micro-credits should be brought to zero percent and a law should be enacted to effectively check the exploitation by private money lenders.
- Minimize the dependence on IMF and World Bank and support and develop a third world alternative to the IMF-World Bank framework
- Explore the opportunities for internal resource mobilization rather than depending more on international loans. Retract unnecessary legislations blocking resource mobilization of states from within the country.
- Interest Free Banking should be included in the banking system which has already been recommended by the high level committee in the financial sector reform (CFSR) of the planning commission headed by Dr. Raghuram Rajan, presently honorary economic advisor to the Prime Minister of India. Banking Regulations Act has to be suitably modified to accommodate this.
IV. Security
- Implement all the directives of Supreme Court of India regarding Police Reforms and reserve 25% positions at all levels of Police force for minorities to ascertain unbiased policing.
- An exclusive Anti-Riot Act should be promulgated that will ensure,
a). Stringent punishment for hate speeches and writings, communal riots, inciting for communal killings and other such crimes.
b). Permanent Tribunal to investigate riots and terror incidents with full judicial powers.
c). Punishment to law and order authorities failing to act honestly and judiciously to control the riots.
- Enact a law to make it mandatory to investigate all deaths in police encounters and custodies through a permanent commission with judicial powers.
- Amend the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act by removing the provisions of detention without bail and 3 years imprisonment for withholding information.
- Enquire by a high level commission all the terrorist activities, explosions and encounters held in last 10 years.
- All those arrested in any case should be undergone trials within a period of one month.
- Those persons acquitted after long time of imprisonment finding no evidence against them should be sufficiently compensated.
- Take actions against those convicted by Sri Krishna Commission and implement the recommendation of the commission.
- Check the human rights violations by the security forces in Kashmir and North Eastern region and punish the perpetrators severely.
V. Women
- A separate quota should be provided to OBC’s and Minorities in the proposed 33% reservations for women in legislature.
- Women should be exempted from working in night shifts in Govt. and private services except in hospitals.
- Enact law to stop the exploitation of female employees in MNCs and Call Centres.
- Stringent laws should be enacted to punish those involved in harassment of women.
- Appoint a commission to study the menace of feticide and social, legal, medical and scientific measures to curb it and implement its recommendations.
- Enact a law to check social misconduct and intolerance towards girl child.
VI. Basic Rights
- Right to livelihood should be a legally recognized right of every citizen of the country. For this every citizen will be legally guaranteed for employment throughout the year (for at least one member of each household), food, cloths and shelter , safe drinking water and basic health facilities and access to free treatment.
VII. Health
· Make Right to Health a fundamental Constitutional Right and enact a Right to Healthcare Act under which all Indian citizens can get easily accessible, quality healthcare services.
· Stop privatization of healthcare and abdication of the state's responsibility for health of citizens in the country.
· Raise budget allocation for health to 5 percent of GDP by 2012 and to 10 percent of GDP by 2015; Allocate adequate portion of the health budget to traditional healthcare systems also.
· Provide emergency interest free loans to all needy citizens during illness.
· Enact a Rational Drug Policy that allows the sale of only generic drugs and also limit the patent holding rights on all drugs to a maximum of five years.
· Enact a comprehensive Health regulation Act to stop the malpractices and exploitation by corporate hospitals and to ensure proper mechanism of licensing, regular prescription audits, adherence to standard medical processes, maintenance of proper records and its access to patients and proper geographical distribution of practitioners and institutions.
VIII. Education
- At least 6% of GDP should be spent for education sector.
- To materialise the article 21A of the constitution, enact the Right to Education with necessary amendments in the “Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill 2008” to ensure that free education would be of equitable quality and in the mother tongue of the child, financial obligations to union and states would be clearly spelt and inequality will not be promoted in the system.
- Enact comprehensive law to ensure equity and justice in the admission and fees structure of self financing educational institutions.
- Make the procedures for getting minority status for educational institutions easier.
- Remove all the communally biased contents from school text books of all states.
- Urdu medium schools should be provided with necessary infra-structure and sanction posts.
- No FDI should be allowed in education sector.
- Fees in Universities and colleges should not be hiked.
- Minority status of Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University should be recognised in explicit terms.
- Special measures should be undertaken to provide primary and secondary education to children’s working in cottage and small industries.
- Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya facility will be extended to Minorities and backward classes concentrated areas too.
IX. Agriculture
- Requisite efforts should be made to promote agrarian sector and safeguard the farmers and rural population from exploitation.
- Implement the recommendations of Swaminathan Commission on farmers.
· Allow interest free loans to needy farmers.
- Total ban on Future Trading and Forwarding of agricultural commodities.
- Triple the existing budgetary allocation on agricultural sector.
- Revoke the Indo US knowledge initiative on Agriculture.
- Regulate contract farming by corporate groups.
- Revoke the clauses of Intellectual property rights from seeds.
X. Industries
· Encourage and subsidise low and medium industries especially cottage industries.
· Stop privatization of Public sector industries.
· Stop FDI in retail sector.
· Enact legislation to check the crippling influence of big corporate groups in retail sector which leads to devastation of ordinary retailers.
- Cancel the licenses of all industries causing pollution and recover full damages from them for harm caused to the people and environment.
- Bailout packages should be provided to sinking industries like textiles, diamonds, carpets etc.
XI. Foreign Policy
- India should revive its original non-aligned policy and should back the interests of developing and poor countries in all international forums.
- Repeal the 123 agreement with USA.
- Should condemn Israel’s aggression on innocent Palestinian, demand end of Gaza blockage, recognize Hamas led Govt. as a legitimate democratic government of Palestine, support a separate Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and condemn the racial Zionist policies of Israel.
- Should abolish Indo-Israel strategic alliance. Should not engage Israel in security and defence related matters.
- Should abolish Indo-US strategic alliance. Should condemn the imperialist design of USA, shall demand complete pull out of USA & NATO forces from Iraq and Afghanistan.
- Revive SAARC. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh should sign no war pact and a pact on terror free sub continent. Should promote good and friendly relations with all neighbouring countries.
XI. Public Accountability
- A massive campaign should be launched to effectively check the criminalization of politics and rising corruption in government machinery. For this,
a). Ticket should not be given to any candidate with criminal records, i.e. convicted or charge-sheeted in a court of law. - b). Veerappa Moily Commission’s recommendations regarding bureaucratic reforms and increasing the punishment for bribery should be implemented.
c). Transparency in government functioning should be increased through effective implementation of RTI and e-governance measures.
XII. Culture
- Introduce back bone filter system to check vulgar and obscene contents in the internet.
- Censuring of all feature films should be made stringent to curb the menace of brazen sex and violence.
- Bring legislation to control broadcast media so that the communal and social fabric of the society should not be disturbed.
- Ban the trade and consumption of alcohol completely.
- Implement the anti ragging law strictly.
XIII. Waqf
- The Waqf properties should be organised in a way as to make it more productive and optimum resources generating for their intended purpose. For this;
- a) Waqf Board will be given an autonomous status with full and legally established administrative powers.
- b)Waqf Act should be amended to add the following features.
- Compulsory Survey of all Waqf Properties after pre-defined fixed period and notification of Survey Report in official gazette.
- Make all the information about all the Waqf properties available on internet.
- Compulsory auction if any property is to be given on lease.
- Exemption of Waqf Properties from Land Acquisition Act etc.
- All illegal occupations and encroachments on Waqf properties should be freed.
XIV. Other Reforms
- Bring constitutional provision that no international treaty can be signed without the consent of the parliament.
- Simplify the procedures for OBC certificate.
- Introduce a new fast and easier mechanism to register all voters of the country with photo identity cards so that no body will loose the opportunity of casting their democratic rights.
- Repeal the anti conversion laws in various states.
- End the system of colloquium for selection of judges and introduce merit and reservation based selection of judges.
- Darul Qazas operating in different parts of the country should be provided legal status under ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanism).
- Provide statutory status to NHRC, NCM and NWC.