http://www.islaminterfaith.org/
Say no to quota at
AMU
By ASIF JALAL
Asstt Supdt of Police
Shimla, Himachal Pradesh [
[email protected]]
(Tribune 28.05.2005)
THE demand by the fundamentalist fringe of the Muslim leadership for
a quota for the Muslims at AMU, Aligarh, was long-standing. The
government finally yielded to this demand when it approved the AMU
Academic Council’s proposal to reserve 50 per cent of the seats for
Muslims for admission in 36 postgraduate courses at AMU citing
Section 2(1) of AMU (Amendment) Act, 1981, and Section 5(C) of the
Act which empowers the university to formulate policies for
promoting “the educational and cultural advancement of the Muslims
of India”. This approval, apart from being blatantly communal, is
totally against the interest of the Indian Muslims. Though on the
surface, it may appear contrary.
It has to be understood that for the
Muslim leadership in India, the institutions and issues like AMU,
Jama Masjid, MPLB, Babri Masjid, Rushdie affair etc. are stepping
stones of their political career through which they raise themselves
to the corridors of power and manoeuvre the government of the day.
The present move is a fine example of this fact.
The previous government sought to bring AMU under the ambit of the
Common Entrance Test (CET). This was interpreted as an attempt to
“erode its minority character”. Now to draw political mileage from
the whole affair, quota-based admission policy is being introduced
as a sop to “rectify” the damage sought to be done by the previous
government.
The logic cited for this is “to
promote the educational and cultural advancement of the Muslims of
India”. However, the argument that the study of the modern courses
like MBBS, MCA, engineering, LLB, BEd etc by Muslims at AMU would
promote their (Islamic) cultural advancement is absurd on all
accounts.
Today’s India is a land of opportunities. Thousands of educational
institutions are providing courses in liberal arts, science,
technology etc. like never before. We have low interest rate
educational loans to facilitate the pursuit of the dream if we are
poor. Thousands of fellowships are offered to the young and
enterprising. It was never so easy to study and get empowered. There
are countless men and women who, by hard work, acquired education
and substantially improved their lot.
However, among Muslims there exists really no earnest desire for
education and material success through institutionalised mechanism.
Muslim society is basically a lost world. It is a world of
persistent delusion of persecution complex. It is a world of men
sitting idly and waiting for the state to intervene and ameliorate
their condition. Here children have no schools, no tradition of
selfless intellectual pursuit, and no deep urge to awaken their self
or to know the secret of life.
In this world, the dominant belief is
that Muslims are discriminated against in government jobs, therefore
technical skill and educational qualifications are not worth
pursuit. Education is seen more as an eligibility criterion for
applying for government jobs than an instrument to choose one’s
destiny.
The advocates of educational uplift
of the Muslim through reservations have no inkling to work at this
level in Muslim society because it involves years of selfless,
unnoticed, unrecognised blood and sweat in the hundreds of villages
and towns of India. Such work will not win them a general election,
or the favour of the ruling party.
In fact, in the rear side of another
institution of minority character, Jamia Millia, Delhi, you would
get the largest mass of illiterate Muslims. The Muslim intellectuals
of this institution are short of time and resources to educate and
guide aimless young boys and girls, migrants and locals, unemployed
and employed in the self-alienating and demeaning jobs.
Again not very far from here is the locality of the Meo Muslims of
Haryana, a community at the bottom of socio–economic indicators. In
fact according to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), female
illiteracy among the Muslims on the all India level is 66 per cent
and in Haryana it is universal (98 per cent).
Ironically, an organisation run by
people of another faith is working here, but not a single soul who
is championing “to promote especially the educational and cultural
advancement of the Muslims of India” is to be found here.
The prescription of reservation does not address this issue of mass
illiteracy and a pathetic absence achievement motivation through
approved means. And if there exists indifference and apathy towards
education at the basic level, there will be no Muslim to go to study
at AMU. The problem of the Muslim community is not the shortage of
educational institutions to get enrolled, rather it is the shortage
of men and women to get enrolled. The need of the moment is to
unleash the reserve of talent, of infinite aspiration among the
young Muslims and give it a constructive direction.