IFIE Consultation at Ahmedabad

The NGO, Sanchetana organised a two-day Consultation in Ahmedabad to figure the problems afflicting the Muslims.

The Muslims of Gujarat have launched efforts to present a cogent picture of the lot of the community before the Prime Minister’s High Level Committee on educational, socio-economic status of Indian Muslims. The Committee is slated to visit the State in the first week of November. While emerging physically battered and psychologically bruised from the cataclysmic aftermath of the pogrom staged against it in the early half of the year 2002, the community has picked up lost threads and is trying to configure its current status and ways to mend fences with the majority community and take remedial steps against poverty, illiteracy and disease. With contours of fascism broadly etched on the surface of the State with a vindictive Government hounding the community, belligerent press spewing fire and brimstone on a daily basis through its tendentious coverage, a partisan police and civil administration looking for opportunities to inflict indignity and injury on the community, the community finds few friends. In the words of social activist Gagan Sethi, the hate has assumed such grotesque proportions that not more than a bus-load of people can be gathered to raise voice against injustices.

The NGO, Sanchetana organised a two-day Consultation in Ahmedabad on August 6-7, 2005 to figure the problems afflicting the community which constitutes around nine per cent of the State’s 60 million people.

Dr. Hanif Lakdawala, Director, IFIE

Outlining the premise of the seminar, Dr. Hanif Lakdawala, Director, Institute for Initiatives in Education (IFIE) said, the IFIE had been engaged in discussing the real problems faced by the Muslims for years. The Institute had interacted with nearly 8,000 persons and figured out four major problem areas i.e., lack of education, unemployment, lack of social reforms and strained relations with other communities. The Gujarat carnage-2002 abruptly stopped this process. Dr. Lakdawala said though the Indian Constitution guaranteed the religious and cultural freedom, the socio-economic problems of the community were never discussed. He said several Muslim communities were listed under OBCs in Gujarat. Their numbers make them the majority among Muslims, hence the need to discuss the socio-economic dimensions of the problem. He said the seminar was an effort to identify and articulate socio-economic rights of the community and its violations and evolve strategies for its advocacy.

Prof. Imtiaz Ahmed, sociologist

Prof. Gopal Singh’s report was the first attempt to document the situation of Muslims in India. It took stock of the socio-economic conditions. Muslim though think of their problems on pan-Indian level, the problems have several dimensions if looked at the grassroots level as Muslims have as much diversity as any community of this magnitude should have. Muslim economic infrastructure is very traditional. Children become part of this. Therefore the Muslim occupations have a kinship nexus. For example, while a butcher may involve his entire family into business, he does not deal with a bank. Hence adolescence period of a Muslim child is very short. He gets into the apprenticeship at the age of seven and becomes an adult at 13. Occupational structure is insular. Any community which has these characteristics, develops a tendency to change very slowly.

Major sections of Muslims were engaged in artisanship. Its status got deteriorated till 1974 but later, it improved. Landholding of Muslims got reduced successively due to division. Muslims were mainly in rice cultivation and Green Revolution did not touch this sector.

During this period, no specific scheme for betterment of the lot of Muslims was ever envisaged. Muslim artisanship did not receive any special assistance. Muslims in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh had mango orchards. But no new policy input came in this sector. Ghosi community of Muslims was engaged in livestock breeding and milk business. But no opportunities to commercialise this occupation or value addition was available to this community.These issues have never engaged the community leaders.

Gagan Sethi, social activist

The Gujarat carnage 2002 was a major slap on the face of the humanity. Mistrust is historic in context of Gujarat. But it transformed into hatred and anger. Hate of extreme kind has stemmed from a political paradigm. The situation has come to such a pass that there is no one in Ahmedabad who listens to the language of peace. Of Kalol’s 86 villages, 76 have been emptied of Muslims. In the language of relief, the people displaced by the riots have been rehabilitated. But giving them a shelter or house does not mean rehabilitation. They need security, peace and integration with the rest of the whole. Minority youth have rage in their heart

Maqbool Ahmed Siraj, journalist

The communalisation of politics and public life lies at the root of the Muslim problems. Insistence on some ingredients of their identity is dubbed communalism. Besides, Muslims suffer from the deficiency of organising themselves. They need to learn from smaller communities such as Bohras who despite their strict adherence to their symbols and faith, have come up in business, trade and industry. Muslim leadership has mainly focused on raising the emotive issues.

Housing is a totally neglected sector. This is vital for both preservation of identity and development. Occupational groups such as beedi workers, butchers, auto drivers could demand housing colonies. Old occupation must be automated in order to keep pace with competition. Modernisation of leather industry by Labbai Muslims of Tamil Nadu is a shining example. Muslims lack the will to compete and raise the bogey of discrimination. This is not fair.

Muslims must take to banking. Insistence on interest free banking may not be correct at this juncture. Most interest free investment companies have failed and vanished with the hard earned money of depositors.

Muslims must devise the strategy to build rapport with Press, Police and people of other faiths. They should begin to respect others’ religious sensitivities. Slaughter houses must be rid of foul smell, during Ramadan and Sehri, the loudspeakers should not be used to disturb others’ resting hours, and issues of conflict should be resolved amicably in local communities without making a fuss in the media.

Achyuth Yagnik, Writer and historian

Mandal Commission has made it clear that the Muslims of Gujarat are divided in as many as 37 communities, most of them listed under the OBC. They are organised by their Jamaats. These jamaats could be the platform for launching reforms. These communities speak different languages. Muslim fisherfolk all over Gujarat speak Kachchi language, be it in Saurashtra or Kachch. Educational level of these fishermen is so low that you cannot demand any proof of citizenship from them. One should not be pessimistic about Gujarat. During the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress improved its tally of votes to 39 per cent.

Girishbhai Patel, Advocate, social activist

The Hindu-Muslim problem is mostly understood in context of secularism, but never in socio-economic context. The question that Muslims as a community have economic problems is not understood sufficiently. We also need to consider the dimension of the problem vis a vis the non state sectors such as banks and cooperatives. We should not only talk of guaranteeing rights by the government but also self-empowerment by the community.

Sofia Khan, advocate and social activist

Gujarat presents a new conundrum in India and in the lexicon of democracy and human rights. Situation has come to such a pass that Gujarat Muslim now hide their names. Even the ones who are found engaging in loose talk at the betel shop attest what happened to Muslims in the State. Situation has such ironies like when a Muslim woman complains against domestic violence under section 498A of the CrPC, the local police get active not to stop harassment of an errant individual, but to pounce upon the opportunity to beat up a Muslim.

Wajid Hussain Syed, social activist

Everything that challenges the caste structure (varna byavastha) of the Indian society, is taken seriously by the power elite of the nation. Communalism took a violent turn in Gujarat in the wake of Navnirman Samithi taking up interest of KHAM (Kshatriya, Harijan, Ahir and Muslims) in 1982. Implementation of the Mandal Commission report ignited the Kamandal ( read Hindutva) forces. Muslim must devise a strategy before they ask for reservations.

R. K. Saiyed, former Advisor, Governor of Jammu & Kashmir

No Minorities Commission report has been discussed in the Parliament. The Lingusitic Minorities Commission has presented 41 annual reports. But not one has ever been discussed. The Muslim managed F. D. High School in Ahmedabad has 14000 children. There are over 1000 children in each class with eight to nine sections. But the Government refuses to provide additional teachers. I have hundreds of Hindu friends, but only a single came to see me after the Gjujarat carnage.

Others who spoke at the workshop included Prof. Nisar Ahmed; Sheba George of NGO ‘Seher Waru’; Dr. Shakeel Ahmed of Jamaat e Islami Hind; Abida Khadri, advocate from Jamnagar; Dr. Mehrunnissa Desai, Ahmedabad; Dr. Burhan Siddiqui, Ahmedabad; Zahida Pathan, advocate, Bharuch; and Fazal Shaikh, principal of an ITI.

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