AIMPP asks Muslims to be ‘cautious’ and lift SC standing demand as BJP focuses on Pasmanda Muslim outreach

In July 2022, at a BJP National Executive Meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested his occasion to give attention to an outreach program for Pasmanda Muslims. The assembly on the time was held in Hyderabad. While addressing the assembly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked about specializing in the upliftment of Pasmanda Muslims. In October 2022, in a first-of-a-kind endeavour, a gathering between BJP leaders and key members of the Pasmanda Muslim group was held in Lucknow, about 4 months after PM Modi’s clarion name to woo them. Since July 2022, a number of conferences with Pasmanda Muslims had been held by BJP in numerous states – like this one in Delhi.

In August 2022, BJP OBC Morcha, on the Pasmanda Muslim Sneh Milan Evam Samman Samaroh, demanded a 50% reservation for the Pasmanda Muslim group in Muslim establishments like Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Millia Islamia and many others. 

According to studies, with the all essential Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states approaching meeting elections, BJP had in 2022 chalked out a technique to construct a brand new help base comprising Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs), Pasmanda (backward) Muslims, and non-Jatav Dalits in these states within the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Now, nonetheless, the All India Pasmanda Muslim Manhaz has now issued a press release asking Pasmanda Muslims and Muslims of different castes to watch out of BJP and its ‘new found love’ for them. According to studies, All-India Pasmanda Muslim Mahaz (AIPMM) has warned greater than 50 sub-castes of Muslims to watch out for political events, together with BJP, for his or her ‘sudden love’. They have demanded that Dalit Muslims and Christians be included within the scheduled caste (SC) class and reservation for SC class be elevated. It is pertinent to notice that the founder President of the AIPMM is Ali Anwar, former Rajya Sabha member from JD-U.

According to a Hindustan Times report, Ali Anwar has stated, “Instead of misleading Pasmanda Muslims, the Narendra Modi government should take necessary action to include Dalit Muslims and Christians in SC category and increase reservations for SCs in jobs and education.” In July 2022 too, Anwar had written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking for SC standing for Pasmanda Muslims. “Even if the BJP is extending a friendly hand towards Pasmandas for their votes, could you at least take these few steps immediately: There are about a dozen castes within the Pasmanda Muslims such as Halalkhor (scavenger, Bhangi), Muslim washer man, cobbler, Bhatiyara, Gadhedi etc for whom the Sachar Committee and the Ranganath Mishra Commission have recommended SC status. Has your government, in response to a query from the Supreme Court last year, replied it will not accept this recommendation? Will you end this religion-based discrimination by increasing the quota for scheduled castes?” he had written within the letter.

Interestingly, in December 2022, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind had moved the Supreme Court in search of a route to the Union authorities to grant the Scheduled Caste standing to Dalit converts to Islam. The intervention utility filed says that it can be crucial for Dalit converts to Islam to be thought of Scheduled Caste to allow them to get equal alternatives in authorities jobs, academic establishments and the employment sector. 

The petition said that someway, the non-inclusion of those converts stops them from freely propagating their religion. According to studies, the plea says that the denial of the Scheduled Caste standing to Muslim converts deprives them of political, academic, and different advantages given to non-Muslim and non-Christian Scheduled Castes individuals and it’s a calculated historic flawed to restrain the free occupation, apply, and propagation of faith. It was submitted that the reality of the caste system can’t be denied and the impact of society is inevitable on all of the spiritual communities it inhabits.

‘In the present issue, a person belonging to a Scheduled Caste is provided benefits if he is a Hindu, Sikh or Buddhist. However, if the same person is a Muslim, he will not be provided with those benefits. This distinction is totally arbitrary and is sans any reasonable classification,’ the petition said.

With the BJP reaching out to Pasmanda Muslims and Muslim organisations, together with AIPMM and Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind elevating calls for to grant SC standing to transformed Muslims, the implications of this harmful demand turns into way more obvious.

When the Jamiat had filed its intervention utility in Supreme Court, OpIndia had raised alarm over the demand coupled with BJP’s outreach to Pasmanda Muslims. With BJP and its leaders making arguments saying that the ancestors of Pasmanda Muslims had been Hindus who transformed to Islam, and Pasmanda Muslims forming 70-80% of the Muslims, the BJP furthering this trope turns into significantly harmful. They are basically insinuating then, that the majority Muslims at present transformed to Islam due to the discrimination they confronted once they had been Hindus and that they’re nonetheless in unhealthy financial and social situations due to their id once they had been Hindus.

This argument furthers the liberal argument that the foundation reason behind issues even inside Islam and Christianity stems from Hinduism, which is patently incorrect. If they convert from Hinduism owing to their social standing to extra egalitarian choices, they can not probably proceed responsible their Hindu previous for his or her present plight.

Further, additionally it is vital to notice that the SC standing and subsequent reservation to 80% Muslims of India (Pasmanda Muslims) would solely encourage conversion from Hinduism to Islam and likewise Christianity since it could act as an incentive used to coerce gullible Hindus. With political events together with BJP battling for Pasmanda Muslim votes in states like UP and Bihar, the demand of Jamiat and AIPMM poses an actual and current hazard to the Hindu group and BJP would do effectively to be cautious of the potential issues stemming from their outreach.