Follow-Up

This is a hi-tech era, but Muslims in Raigad district near Mumbai continue to live in pathetic conditions.


The Muslim community is urban focused. The largest share of Zakat and donations are spent on urban projects and middle class living in the urban areas. Unintentionally, the community is neglecting poor Muslims living in the rural areas.


A three-day visit by this writer to Raigad district near Mumbai reveals the pathetic conditions of poor Muslims. Even in today’s fast-developing, high-tech world, land and agriculture is the only means of earning respectful livelihoods for the Muslim, and in fact, for most of the rural, un-educated poor Muslim. Because of the vagaries of monsoon, agricultural production on small land holdings barely sustains one family. However, it is the only means by which the family can stay out of debt.


For the rural Muslim, land is a lifeline. On the other hand, the urban rich look at land as a luxury, as an escape from the fast, tense urban life. Raigad district, being in the immediate neighbourhood of the metropolis of Mumbai, started feeling the pressures of urbanisation since 1990s. Thus, the pressure on land in the district not only comes from the local population in the district, but from the rich and powerful, of Mumbai. And at stake is the sheer existence and livelihoods of the rural poor Muslim, who do not even figure in the scheme of things.


This is evident from the development plan of the region, which talks of industrialisation of the region and development of tourist spots and residential colonies. Even the government, bowing to the pressures of the international financial agencies, has chosen to neglect the development of Muslims. Extensive survey revealed that the five areas, which needed attention by the community in the near future, are: 1.Water.2. Education.3. Health.4. Employ-ment and 5. Energy.


In every village this writer visited, the gravity of the drought situation was pathetic, due to which people had no water to drink and had to wait for days for the tanker to arrive. The case of animals was worse, due to lack of fodder. The education scenario is equally bad. Those who can afford to migrate to urban areas do so, but majority have no choice, but to remain without higher education. Health care is totally dependent on the private dispensaries. Very few pockets have proper healthcare system in place. Employment scenario is such that majority of the males are working in the urban areas or in the gulf with the result that social ills are quite discernible. Traditional methods of generating energy can be harnessed, but there is no support from the community.


The problems of the poor Muslims residing in the rural areas are different and enormous. The traditional style of Muslim social and welfare organisations is, collecting funds from the rich Muslims and either investing it in the community projects or re-distributing it amongst the urban poor. What is lacking is the advocacy approach.


Instead of only approaching the rich Muslims for funds, the Muslim organisations must educate the masses about the government schemes for various sectors including education, employment and healthcare. There is not a single advocacy group amongst Muslims in Maharashtra who can educate Muslims about their legitimate rights and thereby share in the development budget of the state.


The word advocacy has its origins in law and is defined by most dictionaries as the process of ‘speaking on behalf of someone’. Today, it has evolved to include work undertaken by development agencies, civil society groups and individuals to bring about change.


Advocacy in this context encompasses a range of activities, all focusing on a process of change. This change may be in policies and laws themselves, in the implementation of these policies, or even in people’s awareness of the policies and their own rights.


It is high time the community focuses on the poor Muslims living in the rural areas and forms advocacy groups educating Muslims about various official schemes. This will ensure that the legitimate government funding is also directed towards Muslim pockets in rural India.

The Hashimpura massacre occurred during the communal riots that broke out in Meerut on May 22, 1987.


Almost after two decades of the Hashimpura massacre, charges have been framed against 17 Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel in Delhi’s Tees Hazari court for allegedly killing 43 innocent Muslims.


The Hashimpura massacre occurred during the communal riots that broke out in Meerut in May 1987. Apparently, the immediate provocation was the decision to open the lock of the Babri Masjid . In April, several areas of Meerut city were affected by communal violence during Shab-e-Baraat.


Curfew was imposed and PAC personnel conducted a search in several Muslim localities in the city. On May 22, 1987, they booked hundreds of Muslim youngsters from Hashimpura, though there was no riot in that area of the city. About 19 PAC personnel, under platoon commander Surinder Pal Singh, allegedly took about 50 of them, most of them daily wage labourers and poor weavers, in a truck from Hashimpura Mohalla in Meerut to the Upper Ganga canal in Murad Nagar, Ghaziabad, instead of taking them to the police station. They then shot some of them, one by one, and threw them into the canal. A bullet injured one of the PAC constables. Four of those shot, escaped and one of them filed a first information report (FIR) at the Murad Nagar Police Station. The remaining men were taken in the truck to the Hindon Canal in Makanpur and shot. Two of the persons who were shot, survived and lodged an FIR at the Link Road Police Station.


Last year, the case was transferred from the Ghaziabad court to Tees Hazari on the orders of the Supreme Court, as various Uttar Pradesh governments showed little interest in pursuing the prosecution of the 19 accused police personnel.


The Tees Hazari court has framed charges against 17 PAC personnel under section 307, 302, 149 148, 147 120B and has asked the accused to appear before the court. Now it has to be seen whether the victims could get justice even after two decades of the brutal incident.