Many committees, much inaction

The Sacchar Committee, formed in 2005 by the prime minister for unbiased findings into the socioeconomic condition of Indian Muslims, has prepared a report that not
only demolishes the myth of ‘Muslim appeasement’ but also establishes conclusively that they are underdeveloped in massive disproportion to their numbers. That an
anti-Muslim bias exists in national development in most states is no longer in doubt.

By Moinul Hassan

In May 2005, the prime minister had formed a high-powered committee under the chairpersonship of Justice Rajinder Sachar, with the mandate to assess the socioeconomic condition of Indian Muslims. The Sachar Committee has already submitted its report to the prime minister, which was subsequently tabled in Parliament.

Before commenting on the findings and recommendations of the Sachar Committee, let us take note of some historical facts, since this is not the first time that there has been an effort to ascertain the socioeconomic condition of Indian Muslims. In 1870, the then viceroy, Richard Southwell Bourke, or Lord Mayo, formed a commission under Sir William Hunter to find out the reasons behind the resentment among Muslims against the British government. Hunter, using his anthropological skills, prepared a Report named Our Indian Musalmans. The facts unearthed by the Hunter Commission Report, which was based on undivided Bengal, brought forth for the first time the gross under-representation of Muslims in government jobs. Data from the report show that within Grade-3 assistant engineers, there were 14 Hindus and two Muslims; among sub-engineer and supervisors: 24 Hindus and only one Muslim; overseers: 63 Hindus and two Muslims; in the finance department: 50 Hindus and no Muslims; among lawyers: 239 Hindus and only one Muslim. Other Muslims who were working in the government departments were either gatekeepers or peons. It appears from the findings of the Sachar Report that the situation has not changed much.
A Minority Commission was established in post-independent India in 1978. Subsequently, in 1980, a high-powered committee was formed under the chairpersonship of Dr V A Syed Mohammad. Later, Dr Gopal Singh (Parliamentarian and a noted diplomat) took over as chairperson, with Khurshid Alam Khan as secretary. The Dr Gopal Singh Committee submitted its 119 page report on June 14, 1983. The report discussed the condition of minorities as well as other backward sections of Indian society. The committee made wideranging short- and long-term recommendations, but the report never saw the light of day.

Then, in 1995, the Minority Commission collected on its own substantial amount of data and information that reflected the fact that the condition of Muslims was quite deplorable and their representation in jobs disproportionate to their population in various states. In 1996, a 12-member strong subcommittee of the Planning Commission, while voicing concern over the deplorable condition of minorities, observed that, “...the representation of minorities, especially Muslims, in the states and at the Central level is disproportionate to their proportion and to correct the imbalance till now no specific action has been taken”.

However, since the advent of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre, the efforts to ascertain the condition of minorities, especially Muslims, and undertaking corrective steps received a big setback. It was only after the defeat of the NDA in 2004 and the formation of the secular United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre, supported from outside by the Left parties, that such efforts were re-initiated through the Sachar Committee.

According to the Census 2001, the ratio of Muslims in the country’s population is 13.43 per cent, which implies that the Muslim population in India is second only to Indonesia. The states with a large number of Muslims are Uttar Pradesh (31 million), West Bengal (20 million), Bihar (14 million), Maharashtra (10 million), Kerala (eight million), Andhra Pradesh (seven million), and Jammu and Kashmir (seven million). In Jammu and Kashmir and Lakshadweep, Muslims are in the majority. There are 43 districts in UP, West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Haryana, and Uttaranchal where the Muslim population is substantial (over 30 per cent): 10 are in UP, five in West Bengal, four in Bihar, 10 each in Assam and Jammu and Kashmir, two in Jharkhand, and one each in Haryana and Uttaranchal.

The relative backwardness of Muslims is evident from the Muslim literacy level: while the national literacy rate is 64.8 per cent, among Muslims it is 59.1 per cent. Looking at the statewise breakup, literacy among Muslims is 47.8 per cent in UP, 42 per cent in Bihar, 48.4 per cent in Assam, 57.5 per cent in West Bengal, and 47.3 per cent in Jammu and Kashmir. Literacy rates among Muslim women stand at 21.5 per cent in Haryana, 42.7 per cent in Jharkhand, and 40.3 per cent in Uttaranchal. Among all states and Union Territories, Haryana has the lowest literacy rate among Muslim women.

The findings of the Sachar Committee completely blow out of the water the myth of “Muslim appeasement” propagated by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-BJP. Through painstaking and meticulous work, the Sachar Committee has established how Muslims have fallen behind the rest of the population, especially in employment opportunities and education. The committee found that the representation of Muslims in government jobs is far below their proportion in the total population.

The situation is particularly grim in the states of Assam, West Bengal, UP, and Bihar. Delhi and Maharashtra also fare poorly. Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have a better record than the other states. As far as Muslim representation in jobs in public sector units (PSUs) is concerned, Kerala and Karnataka have a better record than the other states. West Bengal, UP, Delhi, and Maharashtra have poor representation of Muslims in PSU jobs, especially in the higher positions.

The Sachar Committee has also looked at Muslim representation in specific areas like the judiciary and the bureaucracy. Within the judiciary, from the Advocate General to district and sessions judges, there are only five Muslims in West Bengal and nine in Assam. In Jammu and Kashmir, where Muslims are 66.97 per cent of the population, Muslims account for only 48.3 per cent jobs in the judiciary. Andhra Pradesh has 12.4 per cent. The Sachar Committee has remarked that the under-representation of Muslims is one of the major reasons for judicial bias against Muslims. The representation of Muslims is only three per cent in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), 1.8 per cent in the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), and four per cent in the Indian Police Service (IPS).

The situation of Muslims with regard to education is equally dismal. Relative educational backwardness among Muslims exists from basic literacy to higher education. Currently, out of the total Muslim population of around 14 crore, only about four crore Muslims have received some education—192 lakh are educated till the primary level, 105 lakh till the secondary, 73 lakh till higher secondary, and 24 lakh till the graduate level. The Sachar Report discusses the issues related to educational backwardness among Muslims in some detail.

In the age group of 6-14 years, 25 per cent of Muslim children are either dropouts or have never attended school. The share of Muslim children is lower compared to the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and the Scheduled Tribes (STs) as far as enrolment ratio in schools is concerned. The dropout ratio at every level—primary, secondary and higher secondary—is the highest among Muslims. Only three per cent of Muslim children attend a madrassah. A sizeable section among Muslims is Urdu-speaking, but the infrastructure to teach Urdu is very wanting. Even after recommendations by various committees, no substantial action has been taken by successive governments to improve the situation with regard to teaching Urdu. The situation in primary teaching in Urdu with regard to infrastructure in states like UP, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Bihar is pathetic. In comparison, states like Karnataka and Maharashtra have done better.

The Sachar Committee has brought out the backwardness faced by Muslims through various other indicators. In almost every three Muslim-dominated villages, one does not have a school. Nearly 40 per cent of Muslim-dominated villages do not have any health facility. The maternal mortality rates, incidence of underweight children and anaemic mothers are comparatively higher among Muslims. Their nutritional status in terms of per capita calorie intake is also lower than the rest of the population. The Sachar Committee has observed that Muslims are not only victims of poverty, but have come to accept inequality and discrimination as their inevitable fate.

The BJP, which has decided to fall back upon its communal agenda in order to revive its sinking electoral fortunes, has already started a slander campaign against the Sachar Committee, calling it another instance of “Muslim appeasement”. The very premise of their campaign is ridiculous since the Sachar Committee, through its findings of the pathetic condition of the Muslims, has, in effect, demolished the myth of Muslim appeasement which has been zealously propagated by the Sangh Giroh all these years. How can a community that has been “appeased” by successive governments land up being at the very bottom of society in terms of socioeconomic indicators? In fact, it is the rigorous exposition of Muslim deprivation contained in the Sachar Committee that has unnerved the BJP and its communal cohorts because it has buried the myth on which they have thrived for decades. The UPA government, rather than going on the defensive in the face of the communal campaign mounted by the BJP, should muster the required political will and unite all secular parties in initiating the implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendations. The Congress party should realise that vacillation on this issue would amount to another great betrayal.

The socioeconomic condition of the Muslim minority has not changed despite recommendations made by several committees in the past, largely due to apathy shown by consecutive Central governments. The Sachar Committee has also shown that the situation is not the same everywhere, and varies across states. The heterogeneous nature of the problem must be kept in mind before formulating any policy or plan for the socioeconomic uplift of Muslims. Rather than recommending blanket reservation for Muslims, which is problematic within the framework of the Indian Constitution, the Sachar Committee has proposed many affirmative action measures. The main recommendations are:

1. Equal opportunity should be created to eradicate inequality.
2. A Central Information Bank, where all relevant information will be collected, should be created.
3. An autonomous assessment and monitoring authority has to be formed, which will assess the progress of the programmes undertaken for development of minorities in different states.
4. An Equal Opportunity Commission, which will redress all related complaints, has to be formed.
5. Care and responsibility have to be taken to find out a selection process in administrative jobs, by which a better representation of Muslims is possible.
6. An integrated approach has to be developed for textbooks and other educational tools, as far as Muslim education is concerned.
7. The UGC [Universities Grants Commission] has to be careful to bring in, restore and protect diversity in student composition in all academic places.
8. It should be ensured that the most backward classes could avail alternative admission procedures in universities and autonomous colleges.
9. Government should construct hostels for minority students and make hostel facility available at cheaper rates.
10. Improvement in infrastructure for the Urdu schools has to be done.
11. Madrassah and general secondary schools have to be linked in such a way that any student can shift easily, and this will bridge the isolation of the educational systems.
12. Certificates and degrees given by madrassahs should be acceptable for appearance in any competitive examination; barriers for such transfers should be removed.
13. Easy educational and commercial credit facilities for minority sections have to be made available.
14. Regular audit of the performance of commercial banks in providing business loans to minorities has to be initiated.
15. Experts from minority sections have to be included in different interview boards and commissions.
16. Since the overall growth rate is higher now in the economy, adequate measures should be taken to improve skills and education of all backward classes to build up the prerequisite human capital needed to maintain such a growth.
17. Financial assistance has to be provided to improve employment opportunities in Muslim-dominated areas.
18. Waqf properties have to be revived, rescued and finally used prudently for the development of Muslims.
19. Participation of Muslims in different infrastructural areas has to be enhanced.
20. Special mechanisms have to be developed for the most backward sections among Muslims who are almost comparable historically with SCs and STs.

The Sachar Committee Report has critically discussed the issue of treating all Muslims as a single entity in the Other Backward Castes (OBC) list. It says that among all 82 different communities among the Muslims coming under the OBC list, the Muslim OBCs face simultaneous discrimination on the basis of both religion and caste. There is an implicit suggestion to include more communities within the Muslims into the OBC list of the Centre and the states. The Report also favours the inclusion of Dalit Muslims in the SC list. The Committee says, “It would be most appropriate if they were absorbed in the SC list, or at least in a separate category, Most Backward Classes (MBCs) carved out of the OBCs.”

The Sachar Committee Report has provided data which shows that the socioeconomic condition of Muslims in West Bengal is very poor, comparing unfavourably with many other states. The opponents of the Left and a section of the media have launched a diatribe against the West Bengal government and the Left Front based on the findings of the Sachar Committee. But to hold the Left Front government solely responsible for the plight of the Muslims in Bengal today is not only unfair, but also reflects a lack of understanding of the historical evolution of West Bengal and the Muslim community within it.

To understand the specificities of problems faced by the Muslims in West Bengal, it might help to recollect a bit of history. The impoverishment of the Muslim masses in Bengal started during the British colonial rule, mainly on account of the Permanent Settlement [plan] of Lord Cornwallis. Since mostly only the Hindu landlords could afford to pay the high taxes levied by the colonial administration, the “jamindars” were predominantly Hindus: the Muslims lost much of the land they owned. In fact, the Muslims formed the majority of agricultural labourers. The Muslim middleclass, by and large, vanished in this process of massive social realignment. Except for a few madrassahs, the Muslims remained outside the purview of the education system. This situation continued till the end of colonial rule.

Immediately after Independence, West Bengal had to suffer the tragedy of Partition. The small section of educated middleclass Muslims that had developed in the colonial period migrated to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), with a steady stream of migration continuing till the mid-1960s. Muslims who stayed back in West Bengal were overwhelmingly agricultural workers in the rural areas. In the backdrop of communal riots and Partition, security of life and livelihood was their primary concern. The Congress, which began ruling the state after Independence, did virtually nothing for the uplift of the Muslim minority.

It was not until the formation of an independent Bangladesh in 1971, and the advent of the Left Front government in 1977, that things started moving. Developmental issues related to Muslims in West Bengal began to get addressed only after the Left Front came to power. It is no wonder that, therefore, given the significantly late start, the condition of Muslims in Bengal continues to compare unfavourably with those in other states. The upward trend in the socioeconomic indicators among Muslims under the Left Front rule is unmistakable.

Muslims have been significant beneficiaries of the land reforms initiated by the Left Front government. Redistribution of ceiling surplus land has not only reduced asset inequalities in the rural areas, it has also reduced the gap between Hindus and Muslims as far as land ownership is concerned. The gap between the average landholdings of Hindus and Muslims is among the lowest in West Bengal among all Indian states. Unfortunately, this crucial aspect of socioeconomic development has not been considered by the Sachar Committee. The empowerment of Muslims in the rural areas, along with the SCs and STs, which has been achieved through land reforms, is also reflected in their fair representation in panchayats and zilla parishads.

Another significant initiative of the Left Front government related to the welfare of the Muslim minority in the state has been the reform of the madrassah education system. Besides recognising the rights of the teachers in the madrassahs, 507 higher and senior madrassahs have introduced a new curriculum that combines traditional and modern education. Madrassah reforms in West Bengal have been widely acclaimed.

Recently, a team of delegates from Pakistan also visited the state to gain experience about West Bengal’s modernised madrassah education system. A major initiative has also been taken by the West Bengal government to build hostels for Muslim girl students. Besides Bengali-speaking Muslims, West Bengal also has a substantial Urdu-speaking Muslim population, especially in places like Kolkata, Asansol and Islampur. New Urdu schools and facilities to teach Urdu in these places have been established. Finding enough teachers in these Urdu-medium schools has been a problem. Initiatives are being taken to fill the gap. The state government has also taken the right step by abolishing reservation for Arabic teachers in madrassahs and opening it up for Urdu-knowing candidates. The government has recently decided to upgrade the historic Calcutta Madrassah to the status of a full-fledged college. The Left Front government has also actively helped non-governmental organisations, such as the Al-Ameen Mission, that are doing exemplary work in imparting education among the Muslims. (Al-Ameen needs a special mention because it is helping the poorest section among the Muslims. Due to such efforts, Muslim children from poor families of daily wagers and landless labourers have, in the recent past, done very well in the secondary and higher secondary examinations. Many of these students have also successfully competed in the entrance examinations for medical and engineering education as well.) As far as employment opportunities for the Muslim minorities are concerned, several steps have been taken by the West Bengal government. The Paschim Banga Sonkhyaloghu Unnayan Bitto Nigam (West Bengal Minority Development Finance Corporation) has, since its inception in 1996, registered significant achievements in terms of providing soft loans to Muslims, promoting self-employment, and developing entrepreneurship. It is one of the best fund utilisers among the state-level channelising agencies of the National Minorities Development Finance Corporation. Conscious steps have been taken to prevent discrimination against Muslims in appointment in government jobs. This has shown results in terms of the recruitment of school and college teachers through the School Service Commission and the College Service Commission. Those industries—such garments, tailoring, leather, silk, and bidi—that have a higher concentration of Muslim workers have been especially focused for worker’s welfare schemes.

The Left Front government of West Bengal is aware that despite its sincere attempts to uplift the condition of the Muslim minorities, the situation continues to be grim. Along with the Central and other state governments, the West Bengal government also needs to make a special effort to bring about a marked improvement in the socio-economic condition of the Muslim minorities in the state, especially with regard to employment and educational opportunities. However, it is up to the UPA government to initiate the implementation of the recommendations of the Sachar Committee. While some of the recommendations need wider discussion—for instance, providing reservation for Dalit Muslims—the implementation of most of the recommendations can start immediately.

The 11th Five Year Plan, which was discussed at the NDC meeting recently, would be a good place to make a fresh beginning. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has already demanded that a sub-plan for the Muslim minority be made in the 11th Plan for all Centrally-sponsored development programmes in the areas of education, health, employment generation, housing, sanitation, etc. This was articulated by West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya during the regional consultation meeting of the Planning Commission held in Kolkata earlier this year. In their letter sent to the prime minister on the eve of the NDC meeting, the general secretaries of the CPI (M) and the Communist Party of India called for additional allocation of funds for Muslims on the lines of the Special Component Plan for SCs and the Tribal Sub-Plan.

The UPA government should take this suggestion seriously and allocate adequate resources for the implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendations. The dubious attempt on the part of the BJP to create a controversy over the remarks of the prime minister in the NDC meeting should not deter the government from moving ahead.