WOMEN RESERVATION BILL Will the Govt. Respect Muslim Standpoint?

WOMEN RESERVATION BILL Will the Govt. Respect Muslim Standpoint?

Written by

DR. S. Ausaf Saied Vasfi

Published on

August 10, 2022

DR. S. AUSAF SAIED VASFI discusses the politics of reservation in the light of ongoing debate on Women’s Reservation Bill, and asks the Government whether Muslims’ demand of reservation is tantamount to stepping on the toes of other countrymen.

It looks as if the less-than-worthy inheritors have picked up only bad points from the otherwise brilliant legacy of the late lamented, Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru, who would miss no opportunity to advise the nation: Muslims should receive their due in the country, or Urdu should get its proper place in the national life, or Muslim Personal Law should not be changed until and unless the Muslim themselves demand so. He would speak these brave words with passion in public meetings and even in Parliament. But his cabinet never passed any resolution to that effect, nor any of his colleagues ever introduced a Bill to ensure fairplay for the beleaguered minority, nor did he ever emphasise the legal need for that. The result was: the minority remained in good humour and that, perhaps was intended. So do, regularly and punctually, the Congressmen today. They even appoint Commissions and Committees to find out the Muslim problems, but rarely care to implement their recommendations.

Before dealing with the treatment meted out to the valuable recommendations of the panels, let us try to find out the impact of the 108th Constitution Amendment Bill, passed by the Rajya Sabha on Feb 8. Also known as the Women’s Reservation Bill, it has to cross a few hurdles. But suppose it has been passed and the President has put her seal and signature on it, will this ‘historic’, ‘path-breaking’ measure ensure a safe journey to an unescorted woman from Kashmir to Kanyakumari or Kerala to Kutch? Will this measure put a dead stop to female foeticide? Will this measure put a dead stop to dowry deaths? Will this measure grant a married woman her share in the property of her parents? Will this measure stop the so-called ‘honour killings’ or killings for marrying in the same gotra?

 

HER PROBLEM

If not, what is the utility of the measure for an aam aurat, who has little to do with the seats in the Lok Sabha or the State Assemblies? Will this ‘giant leap for the womankind’ ensure her freedom from beatings, punctuated with abuses, by her husband and father-in-law? Would she, as a girl child, henceforth, be entitled to as much food and education as much her brother enjoys in her house? India has the highest rate of female anaemia and maternal mortality. Will all this change with women in the legislatures? Reservation for tribals and Dalits is there for over 60 years. But has it not failed to erase off the stigma of their birth? Women’s basic problem in Bharat is absence or lack of basic respectability and her social acceptance. Laws are not lacking. The problem is the clogged delivery system, as pointed out by the eminent political commentator, Mr. M.J. Akbar – Times of India, March 14. He explains: The two most powerful women politicians in the country are in-charge of Congress in Delhi, both Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Mrs. Sheila Dikshit are also known for their secularism. They chose only one woman candidate out of seven, and not a single Muslim… the logic that provides reservations for women also sustains the argument for sub-reservations. The principle is the same.

Each and every thinking Muslim has protested against ignoring Muslim women in the 33 per cent quota proposed by the current Bill. There is merit in ‘quota within quota’. The Muslim members of the Lok Sabha, cutting party lines, demanded sub-quota for from the already under-represented minority. This demand came from within the Congress and its allies like the National Conference and Muslim League.

Maulana Mohammad Asrarul Haque is the first Congress MP to emphasise the need of sub-quota for Muslims, backwards and Dalits. The opponents of the Bill, the RJD, JD (U), and Samajwadi Party – have been consistently making this point. “I would urge that the fears or opinions regarding Dalits, minorities and OBCs being left out should be addressed. Reservation should be such that women from all sections and communities adequate reservation,” Maulana Asrar told the Indian Express.

“The question of neglect of the Muslim community is very much there… it is true that my party supports the UPA, but I have no answer if somebody asks me what was the haste in passing the Women’s Bill when the recommendations of the Sachar Committee are there,” said another parliamentarian. The Muslim League’s E.T. Mohammad Basheer said that given the low literacy rate “we feel that many Muslim women would not come forward and get a chance to become MPs.” The view of the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s Mr. Asaduddin Owaisi is: “While 7,906 candidates got elected in the 15th Lok Sabha elections from 1956 to 2009, only 14 Muslim women could manage to win… if the Bill is an affirmative action for the under-represented class, I feel the right should go to Muslim women.”

What goes without saying is the various Muslim organisations have voiced their dissatisfaction with the Bill, and non-implementation of the two important panels.

 

TWO PANELS

The government itself appointed the Justice Rejinder Sachar Committee and the Justice Ranganath Commission. The Sachar Report said: The Muslim community is “nearly as backward as a community as the SC/ST and more backward than the Hindu OBCs.” As a logical step the Congress-led UPA dispensation should have declared Muslims a backward class in terms of Art. 15(4) of the Constitution and included Muslims in the list of OBCs, with a sub-quota of its own. But, for reasons best known to the Prime Minister, his government did not. Muslims ask: why?

The Mishra Commission recognised the Muslim community as a Backward class and proposed 15 per cent reservation for minorities, out of which 10 per cent exclusively for the Muslims. For the Government response to this recommendation you will have to ask the Government itself.

Quite unnecessarily, a provocative question is often being raised in New Delhi: whether there can be at all a separate sub-quota for Muslims? Do the questioners not know that the Supreme Court, the highest palladium of justice of Bharat, has permitted categorisation of the OBCs. The Moily Government was the first to introduce it in Karnataka, Andhra has done it. So has done Tamil Nadu. So has done Kerala and Bihar has done it by dividing the OBCs in Forward and Backward or Backward and Most Backward.

 

CHEATED & BETRAYED

The principal minority feels really betrayed and cheated in the background of the reservation issue. The wise framers of the Constitution had introduced a provision for reservation for Muslims in the Draft Constitution which was unfortunately dropped during the third reading. It was, perhaps, a deliberate subterfuge and the Muslim community was promised ‘generous treatment’ without reservations.

How generous has been the treatment during the last 63 years? The dusted records in the Union Home Ministry may provide an eloquent commentary on the embarrassing question.

At the risk of repetition, we submit: do not compel the slumdogs to leave their shanties and take to the roads to Parliament to demand what is being denied to them illogically.

The concerted view of all representative Muslim organisations like the AI Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat, the AI Muslim Personal Law Board and AI Milli Council is: Give 13 per cent reservation with 10 per cent exclusively for Muslims.

Is it tantamount to asking for the moon? Are Muslims, by demanding reservation, stepping on the toes of other countrymen? Are they, really?