Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently called upon the BJP to make it an all inclusive party by reaching out to all sections of the society so that it represents the countrys true diversity. But the saffron party guided, geared and controlled by the RSS may never be able to truly shed its communal credentials. Today, the biggest challenge to our country is from forces claiming to represent the mainstream majority. There is an emergence of extremist voices laying down demands that threaten the very idea of a secular India. It is not just in the Lok Sabha where the Muslim representation has fallen to an all-time low but Muslim representation in the State Assemblies is on a very steady slide. In the recent Assembly elections Maharashtra is down from three Muslim ministers and 11 Muslim MLAs in the earlier Assembly now to nine legislators and no Muslim minister in the current Cabinet. The BJP, which emerged the largest single party with 122 MLAs had fielded just one Muslim candidate who bit the dust. In Haryana which also went to the polls is down from five Muslim MLAs and one minister to three MLAs and no minister. The BJP which won 47 seats to form the government had fielded only two Muslim candidates and both of whom lost. The situation in these two States is similar to that in the other seven States where the BJP is either in power or in alliance which include Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Goa, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. Tin these nine States, which account for over a third of India’s population there are just 22 Muslim MLAs among 1,359 legislators. Chhattisgarh and Goa have no Muslim MLAs, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat have one each. This is a significant change from how these States’ outgoing Assemblies looked. Leaving out Andhra Pradesh, whose boundaries have now changed with the creation of Telengana, there were earlier twice as many Muslim MLAs in the outgoing Assemblies of the remaining eight States as there are today. Muslim representation has dropped further at the ministerial level. Of the 151 cabinet ministers and ministers of state in the nine BJP-ruled States the only Muslim is Yunus Khan, Public Works Department Minister in Rajasthan. On the other hand, there are 52 ministers in the 13 big States not ruled by the BJP. Non-BJP-ruled States have also 300 Muslim MLAs. There has been a organized endeavor by the BJP to create hate against Muslims. Due to this even a senior Muslim politician cannot win from any seat except one with a large Muslim majority. If this sordid state of affairs continues Muslims, especially the younger generation may lose trust in the electoral system. India being a secular socialist republic it should be a democratic society where no minorities feel marginalized. India has been declared a secular state by its written constitution and it is every Indian’s duty to stand by and believe in this declaration. The battle of secularism and democracy has also to be fought at the grass root levels while we concentrate in our resolve to make India a powerful and progressive nation. Mahatma Gandhi had very rightly said I do not expect India of my dreams to develop one religion, i.e., to be wholly Hindu or wholly Christian or wholly Mussalman, but I want it to be wholly tolerant, with its religions working side by side with one another.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 04:53:33 +0000
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