Rethinking Islam with Sultan Shahin

Interview

09 Apr 2011, NewAgeIslam.Com

Firoz Bakht Ahmed on Jamia Millia's Minority Status
	Demand for separate Muslim quotas is intrinsically discriminatory, and so is the entire politics around minority institutions. Granting minority status might give some people or institutions a temporary financial reprieve, but in the long run it saps their confidence, self esteem and dignity and undermines the quest for building a cohesive society. The very fabric of secularism is torn asunder when a nation starts viewing people or institutions in terms compartments based on ascriptive identities such as religion. The fundamental principles of equality are murdered in broad day light, and it only leads to the balkanization of society. All quotas are like begging bowls that will never be filled and that will make the ‘beneficiary’ community rust and perish rather than perform. When there’s a begging bowl in your hand, you never tend to seek to excel on merit or to be a go-getter. -- Firoz Bakht Ahmed in an interview with Yoginder Sikand for NewAgeIslam.com

Firoz Bakht Ahmed on Jamia Millia's Minority Status

Firoz Bakht Ahmed, a community worker and activist, in a dialogue with Yoginder Sikand for NewAgeIslam.com, firmly opposes the minority status granted to the Jamia Millia Islamia and considers this to be an assault on secularism. There should not be any reservations based on religion at all, he argues in this interview, excerpts of which are given below: Q: Why do you think institutions like the Jamia vie for minority status? A. When intellectually-starved community-based educational institutions and economically disadvantaged people fight for minority status, they are driven to do so for earning benefits from government coffers, which come on a platter if they succeed in winning one or the other category, badge, tag or status. It is as simple as that. Q: How do you look at the role of what are called ‘Muslim leaders’ in this move to have Jamia declared a minority institution? A: I think they are misguiding the Muslims. Afflicted by educational backwardness, administrative apathy and political expediency, Muslims have been cajoled by almost all politicians but mostly from their own fold, who indulge in mere lip-service only to cry hoarse inside and outside Parliament about the plight of Muslims. The Muslim ‘leadership’ has lost its voice and utility. Most so-called leaders of the Muslims are brokers, who play the politics of vote-banks to acquire state patronage for themselves and their coteries. Q: In this context, many Muslim ‘leaders’ continue with their demand for separate quotas for Muslims. How do you see this demand? A. Our myopic political class, ever ready to appear to pander to these ridiculous demands, occasionally throws crumbs at them — their sole motive being to meet their political ends. Furthering the cause of education or ameliorating the lot of poor or building a secular society is out of their radar. They fill their coffers while the community is left to fend for itself. The Indian Muslim ‘leadership’ is characterized by petty mindedness and a narrow outlook so out of tune with reality as to be quite irresponsible. This demand for separate Muslim quotas is intrinsically discriminatory, and so is the entire politics around minority institutions. Granting minority status might give some people or institutions a temporary financial reprieve, but in the long run it saps their confidence, self esteem and dignity and undermines the quest for building a cohesive society. The very fabric of secularism is torn asunder when a nation starts viewing people or institutions in terms compartments based on ascriptive identities such as religion. The fundamental principles of equality are murdered in broad day light, and it only leads to the balkanization of society. All quotas are like begging bowls that will never be filled and that will make the ‘beneficiary’ community rust and perish rather than perform. When there’s a begging bowl in your hand, you never tend to seek to excel on merit or to be a go-getter. Q: Coming back to the question of the Jamia, what impact do you think minority status will have? A: Some Muslims think that with the Jamia having been accorded minority status, they will get 50% representation in the university. In the short term, this might yield some benefits, but in the long run it will have a very detrimental effect on Muslims. Most of India’s universities and educational institutions have a secular and not a Hindu character. So, why should Muslims be ghettoised into ‘minority’ universities? Reservations and minority status for some institutions, I repeat, are no more than crutches for Muslims. The real solution lies in competing and making a mark in various fields on the strength of their merit. Some Muslims think that minority status for Jamia will help them. This reflects a painful, ostrich-like mentality. In the long run, this move will prove harmful for Muslims. After all, not all Muslim students all over India will be able to get admission in the Jamia or the Aligarh Muslim University. They will have to go to other universities, where some people might argue that they are misappropriating the rightful places of the students from the general category. They might tell them, “Why have you applied here? Why don’t you go to the Jamia and Aligarh instead, to your Muslim universities?” So, while minority status may somewhat increase the Muslim representation in the Jamia, it will put Muslims in a disadvantageous position in other institutions. Even within the Jamia, the teaching faculty is divided between opponents and supporters of minority status for the university. Although there are a sizable number of opponents of the move, they are not as vocal as those who support it. Many departments in the Jamia are not comfortable with this minority status tag. We need to ask them why. I think they will agree with much of what I have said here. A regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com, Yoginder Sikand works with the Centre for the Study of Social Exclusion at the National Law School, Bangalore. URL: http://newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamInterview_1.aspx?ArticleID=4424