FDI in Retail is a much desired decision ....

The headlines these days are filled with the stories of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Retail sector which has become the point of disagreement, and seems to have split the country into two camps. One group is supporting it and the other is opposing and denouncing it. But interestingly, both are offering examples from economic sectors to prove their points in the contention. As everyone else has sided with one group or the other, I too have taken a stand on the issue and have decided to go in its favour.

In India there are two types of protests. One is genuine and inevitable, like the protest against the indifference by the successive federal and state governments in dealing with the Bhopal Gas victims or the kins of victims of Uphaar cinema etc, which by any means are an absolute necessity, as it is a move to awaken the otherwise lethargic administration. The other kind of protests is born out of political interests, mostly to earn brownies against the political opponents. They are not only wrong, but are misleading too.

Until the liberalisation of 1991, India had been largely and intentionally isolated from the world markets, to protect its economy and to achieve self reliance. Foreign trade was subject to import tariffs, export taxes and quantitative restrictions, while foreign direct investments (FDI) were restricted by upper–limit equity participations, restrictions on technological move. But in a historic decision on 14 September 2012, Government of India allowed FDI in the country. In aviation up to 49%, in broadcast sector up to 74%, in multi-brand retail up to 51% and in single-brand retail it allowed an FDI up to 100%.

FDI is nothing new to the world nor to India as we had make some major changes in 1991 which has helped our economy grow at steady pace even after the downslide trend on world’s business index. And starting from a reserves of less than $1 billion in 1990, a recent UNCTAD survey projected India as the second most important FDI destination (only next to China) for international corporations during 2010–2012. As per the statistics, the sectors which fascinated higher inflows were services, telecommunication, construction activities and computer software and hardware. Mauritius, Singapore, USA and UK were among the foremost sources of FDI. According to Ernst and Young, foreign direct investment in India in 2010 was $44.8 billion, and in 2011 experienced an increase of 13% to $50.8 billion, and so India has seen an eightfold enhancement in its FDI in March 2012.

FDI threats and real scenario:

The major justification offered by opposing detractors are that the FDI in retail sector shall harmfully impact the small retailers, farmers and consumers, and will give rise to domination by large trans-national retailers, which may negatively affect the pricing and supply of the goods. They also claim that the unorganized retail sector in India is one of the major employment generators, and granting permission to FDI in this sector could mean loss of livelihood for the small traders. The dispute that the introduction of FDI and supermarkets will relocate a large number of small traders is similar to the argument used during the era of industrial licensing, which was meant to protect small-scale industries. But eventually the inefficiencies and quality standards of the protected small-scale companies become evident even to the communist politicians consequently the said licensing was abolished. But then too small-scale industries have not died. As an alternative, they have learnt to co-exist as suppliers to large-scale industries. Apart from it, the small traders in large parts of the country will enjoy built-in safeguard from superstores because the latter can only exist in large cities. On the other hand, the ability of supermarkets to demand pricing and quality standards from manufacturers will benefit even small shops, who can even buy the same quality product from the same manufacturers to sell the same in smaller towns and villages.

It surely can be disputed, that since the reward cited above are due to the scale of operations rather than the input of foreign capital, why should we allow FDI in retail trade then? The case for FDI has more to do with the assurance and eagerness to invest hefty amounts in a short period as well as the proficiency based on knowledge. Even to set up a modest chain of 200 supermarkets in selected towns and cities acrossw India in the next three years, will require an investment of about Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 20 billion), at the rate of Rs 10 crore (Rs 100 million) per supermarket to cover the infrastructure and working resources. Each supermarket may take 2 or 3 years before it becomes fully operational and gainful. There is also a risk that a few of them may even fail. And in that scenario how many local Indian entrepreneurs will be enthusiastic and able to entrust this level of investment and agree to the risks involved therein? That is where the intercontinental know-how and skills that may come with FDI would provide the assurance and capital. Apart from this, by allowing FDI in retail trade, India will become more incorporated with provincial and an international economy in terms of quality standards and consumer prospects. These Supermarkets could supply several consumer goods from India for wider international markets. India undoubtedly has a benefit of being able to produce several categories of consumer goods, viz. fruits and vegetables, beverages, textiles and garments, gems, jewellerys, and leather goods. The advent of FDI in retail sector is bound to pull up the quality standards and cost-competitiveness of Indian producers in all these segments. That will benefit not only the Indian consumers but also open the door for Indian products to enter the wider global market. It is therefore obvious that we should not only permit but support FDI in retail trade.

Job opportunities:

Apart from it the development of organized retail has the probable of generating employment for both the skilled and unskilled people. Furthermore, the government of India can protect the interest of small retailers by restricting FDI to be permitted only for stores having floor size greater than say 2,000 square feet. Moreover, monopolies of large MNC retailers can also be checked by the government by enforcing strict regulations and, whoever needed, through the Competition Commission of India. Like in China, even after many years of emergence of multi-brand retailing and supermarkets, 90% of fresh food and 70% of all food is still controlled by traditional retailers. An impressive growth has been noticed in the retail and wholesale trade there after Chinese government approved 100% FDI in retail sector.

Beneficial to farmers as well:

It can be understood that, with the establishment of multi-brand retail, the essential goods industry like food and packaging industry will also get benefits and improve too. As we are aware India is one of the largest producers of fruits and vegetables; but it has limited integrated cold-chain infrastructure. Non-availability of ample storage facilities is a cause for heavy losses to the farmers, as well in terms of wastage in quality and quantity of fruits and vegetables in particular. With adoption of liberal, there could be a complete revamp of the currently uneven supply chain infrastructure. Extensive backward integration by MNC retailers, coupled with their technical and equipped proficiency, can optimistically remedy such structural drawback. Also, farmers can get benefit with the “farm-to-fork” the chain of food supply, from the farm where it is produced to the consumer ventures with retailers which helps (i) to reduce number of mediators ; (ii) give fair prices to farmers, and (iii) provide steadiness and economies of scale which will benefit, in the ultimate analysis, both the farmers and consumers.

Even the Journal of International Economics, supports the idea of FDI with an analyzed example that about 69 developing countries which welcomed FDI ultimately grew into stronger economies in the past two decades. Their results suggest that FDI is in fact an important vehicle for the transfer of technology, contributing to growth in larger measure than domestic investment. Moreover there is a strong complementary effect between FDI and human capital, that is, the contribution of FDI to economic growth is enhanced by its interaction with the level of human capital in the host country.

Major flaw in the policy who oppose FDI in retain.

We know that India's economy was largely reliant on its large domestic market with external trade accounting for just 20% of the country's GDP. But during the past 15 years, the importance of FDI in the world economy has increased rapidly. The total stock of FDI increased from 8% of world GDP in 1990 to 26% in 2006. Although the bulk of FDI continues to take place between OECD countries, the increase in FDI has been particularly pronounced in developing countries, largely reflecting the integration of large emerging economies, like the Brazil, Russia, and China. Even The share of non-OECD countries in the global stock of inward FDI has risen from 22% in 1990 to 32% in 2005. China by far has remained the most important non-OECD country as a recipient of FDI, accounting for about one-third of FDI in non-OECD countries in 2005.Frankly speaking, since the mid-1990s inward FDI has become the main source of external finance for developing countries and is more than twice as large as official development aid.

Therefore it is advisable to analyse the advantages and disadvantages of the planned policy of allowing FDI in retail trade. One key point is that we must differentiate between the benefit of consumers, who comprise India’s population of nearly 120 crores, from the interests of small traders or retailers, who may number over one million. It is obvious that the welfare of the consumers should be on priority over those of the retailers. FDI in retail and the development of larger stores and supermarkets have many advantages from the point of view of the consumers. FDI will provide right of entry to larger financial resources for investment in the retail sector and that can lead to several of the other advantages that follow; The larger supermarkets, which tend to become regional and national chains, can bargain prices more insistently with manufacturers of consumer goods and is expected to pass on the advantage to customers; They can lay down better quality standards and guarantee that manufacturers adhere to them. Many consumer goods manufacturers will find that supermarkets account for a growing share of their sales and will be afraid of losing this important and reliable customer to competition. The fact that a well-known chain of supermarkets sources from a manufacturer becomes a stamp of quality. With the availability of finance, the supermarkets can invest in much better infrastructure facilities like parking lots, coffee shops, ATM machines, etc. All this will make shopping a pleasant experience. The supermarkets offer a wide range of products and services, so the consumer can enjoy single-point shopping. And optimistically speaking with this kind of liberalization in retail, who knows some day an Indian group with strong local brand quality and international network like the Reliance or Tata can collaborate with international supermarket chains and may set up supermarket chains all across the globe!


When Rajiv Gandhi introduced computers in India and Atal Bihari Vajpayee planned the golden quadruple highways in the country, the Communists and also some other groups resisted the projects. Even when Indira Gandhi announced the plan to set up underground railway service in Kolkata, the communists went berserk. But now we all know how all these projects benefited us. Now the communists, BJP and many others are resisting the FDI in retail in India. Let the government ignore the protests and push ahead with the plan on the FDI. I am sure after sometime most in India will say that FDI in retail has benefited the country, and those who are resisting the foreign investment today will fall on line soon.

ETHNIC CLEANSING OF ROHINGYAS IS GOING ON IN MYANMAR...

The world remains silent!
Sectarian violence is nothing new in Rakhine, the northern province of Burma (Myanmar) where minority Muslim Rohingyas have been attacked by Buddhists for quite some time. It is alleged that this time it all started after some Muslim miscreants robbed, raped and murdered an ethnic Rakhine Buddhist woman on 28th May this year. And honestly speaking, the verification of the incident- whether the Buddhist woman had been attacked by Muslims was not required at all because the persecution of the stateless Rohingyas had started long before this May incident. The Muslims make up nearly five percent of Myanmar's more than 53 million populations. And the largest group of Myanmar’s Muslims is the ethnic-Bengali minority, generally known as the Rohingyas, who mainly live in the western state of Arakan or Rakhine.

Elsewhere rape or murder is an ordinary crime. There are laws to deal with a rapist or murderer. I am sure in Myanmar there must be instances of a Buddhist committing such crime against a Buddhist. Usually none bothers to find out what religion the rapist belongs to. It’s illogical that you will target the entire Muslim community just because the rapist was Muslim. It’s clear that they used the rape as an excuse to step up the attack on the Muslim Rohingyas who have been attacked for some years.

When Arab traders reached the region in the 8th century, ancient local Hindu Chandras and their kings embraced Islam. The entire Muslim population in Arakan was known as one community. Later Pathans, Mughals and even migrants from present Bangladesh added to the Muslim stock which was known as Rohingya. In 1795 in Arakan Scottish doctor and author Francis Buchanon met local people who introduced themselves as “Rooingyas”- he wrote in his book. Rohingya history dates back to centuries in Myanmar. Even after Burma became independent in 1949, Rohingyas were identified as one of Burma’s ethnic groups. But Rohingyas were denied their citizenship rights since an amendment to the country’s citizenship laws in 1982 and now are treated as illegal immigrants in Myanmar. The Myanmar’s government and the Buddhists even do not want to identify the Muslim community as ‘Rohingya’ today- they call them immigrant “Bengalees” now.

Rohingya Muslims’ political assertion in 1945
In 1945 the only Muslim political party the “Burma Muslims Congress” (BMC) was founded somewhat at the same time when the Anti Fascist People’s Freedom party (AFPFP) of General Aung San came into existence. And on December 25, 1945 U Razzak was elected the president of BMC, who made alliance with AFPFL for which he was duly rewarded with the ministerial berth of Education and Planning in Bogoke’s (General Aung San) Government. His stand of united Burmese (Burma) nation sacrificing the long-term interest of guarantee for the rights of Minority Burma Muslim satisfied not only the Burmese Buddhist leaders of the AFPFL, but strangely also the then British Government. But soon after his assassination, U Raschid and more prominently U Khin Maung Lat, followed the same primary policy of sacrificing the Rights and Interests of the Burma Muslim Community for ‘the country and their party’. No wonder most of the Burma Muslims later declined to consider or identify these ‘self interested’ experienced politicians as their true representatives or saviors’. Prime Minister U Nu, just a few months after the independence of Burma, demanded the Burma Muslim Congress to resign its membership from AFPFL. But by then the newly-formed Burmese Muslim League requested a special government department for Muslim dealings to resolve their own prospect, the same as for other minorities, who had Ministries in Yangon and governments in their states. But instead of any concrete decision the then Prime Minister, U Nu removed the Burma Muslim Congress from AFPFL on September 30, 1956 and ordered the BMC to be dissolve, and on the other hand decreed Buddhism as the state religion of Burma against the will of the ethnic minorities and various religious organizations including Burma Muslims thus sowing the seed of splitting up and clash of culture.

General Ne Win became the head of the state, his government refused to recognise the Rohingya as one of the ethnic groups of the country. In 1974 the constitution of the junta-led government approved a new list in which 135 ethnic groups were recognised as original inhabitants of the country, and the Rohingya did not find a place in there. Finally, when the 1982 Citizenship Law was passed in Burma, the Rohingyas effectively turned illegal foreigners in Burma.
Rohingyas are not allowed to travel without certified authorization, are barred from owning land and it’s compulsory to sign an assurance to have not more than two children! They need permission even to get married. Rohingyas lead a shackled life in Myanmar.

Simon Commission’s recommendation of 1919
The Simon Commission (appointed according to the Law of the Government of India in 1919, The Montague-Chelmsford Law) conducted an inquiry on the effects of Diarchy System of ruling Burma, and recommended that special places be assigned to the Muslims in Burma’s Legislative Council. The Commission further recommended that full rights of nationality should be assured to all minorities Muslims, Christians and Hindus: the right of free worship, the right to follow their own ethnicity and the right to own property and to receive a share of the public revenues for the maintenance of their own educational and charitable institutions. It recommended Home Rule or independent government separate from India or the status of a detach territory. But the British Government did not accept any of the recommendations except for the separation part, at the round table committee on India which was duly held in London in 1930. Thus the flawed policies of the British government and the cruel Burma’s Buddhist majority started unleashing terror on Muslim minority and the oldest documented riot to be recorded was in 1919 followed by riots of 1921, 1930, 1938 then in their post Independence era in 1964, 1981, 1997, 2001 and now again in 2012.

Recent persecution of Rohingyas
Persecution of the Rohingyas in Myanmar has reached terrible level in recent weeks. Since June 10, a state of Emergency has been enforced across Rakhine; Myanmar’s President Thein Sein has instigated martial law, giving the military administrative control of the region. Now the security forces have ganged up with the Rakhine Buddhists in attack against the Rohingyas. International media or other independent observers are not allowed in the areas where Rohingyas are holed up. Some hundreds of Rohingyas have been killed and thousands of Rohingya houses and businesses have been looted or set on fire in the past two months. Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and other rights groups have accused the government forces for taking partisan role and supporting the Rakhine gangs. Scores of mosques have been vandalised. The ethnic cleansing of the Rohingyas is going on Myanmar and the government of Myanmar is the key sponsor of the anti-Rohingya pogrom.

Rakhine shops have stopped selling rice and other provisions to Rohingyas. Troops are openly asking Rohingyas to leave the country or starve to death. Most Rohingyas are not being allowed to run their businesses, do farming or other income-generating work.

Some Rohingyas have attempted to flee to Bangladesh by taking along the women and children. But Bangladesh has not opened the door for them this time. More than 900,000 Rohingyas are lying trapped in their villages in Myanmar. They have no place to escape and they are dying miserable deaths.

The Rohingya has been described as “among the world’s least wanted” and “one of the world’s most persecuted minorities”. Evidence has been gathered suggesting that the Burmese regime has marked certain ethnic minorities such as the Karen for extermination or 'Burmanisation'. The inhuman tyrannical government, which operates unrelenting internal security machinery, generally infiltrates or monitors the meetings and activities of virtually all organizations, including religious organizations. Religious freedom for all Muslims and Christians is reduced. It’s just three months since pro-democracy activist Daw Aung San Suu belatedly received the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, but her silence and blind eye towards the atrocities of Rohingya Muslims has made the world wonder if her selection for the “esteemed honor” was proper.

The silence of world community
Even an appeal for an international assistance from several Rohingya organisations around the world have fallen on deaf ears and have received little attention from the international community since it has been more subtle and indirect than the mass killings in places like Rwanda or is less interesting then the so called terrorist hubs in Afghanistan or Iraq. The West has literally turned a blind eye to the plight of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar in an attempt to maintain its economic interests in the Burma’s lucrative market. To them the violent targeting of Burmese minorities arrived at a time when the US and Britain have called off their pro-democracy campaign against the country’s junta. Regrettably the West’s silence over the bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims comes at a time when Western companies have jumped into Myanmar in an attempt to counterbalance the near-exclusive Chinese control over the Myanmar market. Even the silence of the United States is not unwarranted as it has deeper financial reasons. President Barak Obama has recently lifted the ban on American investment in the country and Britain has opened a trade office in Rangoon on July 11.

While it seems Myanmar has become a destination for capital investment now, as the United States, the European Union and Canada have accepted the government’s narrative of democratic transition and have largely lifted the economic sanctions enforced since mid eighties. The United State seems to have overlooked what the Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said on her visit to Myanmar late last year when she welcomed Myanmar’s first steps toward democratization, but had set down conditions for strengthening bilateral ties, that included an end to ethnic violence!

Since for the international media most parts of Arakan are still a no-go zone, specific details of killing and torture of Rohingyas are not reaching the mainstream media. Some Rohingya refugee groups from different countries, using special sources are regularly collecting news from villages which are being targeted by the Rakhines and the security forces and circulating them among refugee community and others spread across other countries.

Here is the copy of a mind-boggling report I happened to get in the first week of this month through a Human Rights Activist in the UK:

Date: 06/08/2012
Latest Situation of Rohingya People:
Four villages were burnt down and 25 Rohingyas, including children, were killed in Kyauktaw Township yesterday (05/08/2012) afternoon.
As the villages were attacked by the Rakhine Buddhists, the security forces kept a watch from distance. Details of the carnage:

Sl No

Village name

Burned houses

Dead bodies

Dead body details

01

Apauk or Aafauk

80

05

1. Fadan, son of Nazam, 30 years
2. Ms.Noorjanatson, of shwe Hla, 12 years
3. Abdusuwan, son of Abdul Khalid, 25 years
4. Ko Shwe Mi, son of Enam, 35 years
5. Halayar, son of BodawYar, 18 years
6. Nine other persons appear to have survived injuries.

02

Pyapauk or Foekafara

80



Some surely died, but no information available.

03

Gufhitaung

150

2

A mosque was burned down, two fishermen were killed by Maung sein win and his group, who is originally from Sittwe and living in Kyauktaw now, a Mosque scholar (Imam) was stabbed by spears and sustained heavy injuries in chest and head

04

Shwe Hlaing @ Milimafara

99

16

7 people injured.

05

Nedan



02

While Two brothers were returning from farmwork, a Rakhine mob attacked them. Body of the elder brother Iliyas, 42, was found. Body of the younger brother is missing.

06

Thee-de

Info not available



The whole village was burnt. Some surely died, but no information available.



According to our source from the ground, Abdusuwan s/o Abdul Khalid, 25 years from Apauk village, was inhumanly tortured while going to another village. His dead body was left on the road in front of the villages.

Date: 06/08/2012
Latest Situation of Rohingya People:

Sealed Mosques and arrested Imams

Just received a phone call from Maungdaw and got some news from the caller that the Nasaka( Myanmar border security force) yesterday raided Mosques in the following villages and took away 16 Imams and sealed the Mosques. The mosques are:
1. Kunnapara Jame-Mosque, Alethengyaw,
2. Chandapara Jame-Mosque, do
3. Donkhali Jame-Mosque, do
4. Lumbaguna Jame-Mosque do
5. Sambanna Jame-Mosque do
6. Godusara Jame-Mosque do
7. Alipara Jame- Mosque , Maungdaw
8. Khairipara Jame-Mosque, Maungdaw
9. Maung Ni para Jame-Mosque, Maungdaw

Their family members and other villagers are now very anxious about the safety of the Imams. Many Rohingyas have been arrested by the security forces and their relatives know nothing of their whereabouts.
The Nasaka men are daily asking the Rohingyas to leave Arakan. “We want this land of Arakan, we do not want you,” the men are saying. “Nobody will come to help you. Leave Myanmar as soon as possible, if you want to stay alive.”

Sadly, the mainstream media is not using such info to expose the atrocity being perpetrated by the Rakhine Buddhists and Myanmese security forces in Arakan. It’s clear that the number of Rohingyas killed in the past two months would run into several hundreds. Yet the government says the death toll is not more than 80.

The Pro military Burmese media has even declared the Rohingyas as terrorists and traitors. Since mid-June, it has tactfully used its border security forces to burn Rohingya houses, kill Rohingya men, women and even children. And recently, President Thein Sein suggested that Myanmar could end the crisis by expelling all of its Rohingyas or by having the United Nations resettle them. Interestingly, many pro-democracy activists are supporting Then Sein on the Rohingya issue. It’s clear that the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingyas is sponsored by the state. Yet the international community is mum. It is disappointing that even the Dalai Lama, who is very vocal about the Chinese aggressions into Tibet and Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi have not spoken out against the persecution of the Rohingyas in Myanmar. We understand that Ms. Suu Kyi, is not as influential as the powerful military officers. Yet, if Suu Kyi raised the issue in support of the Rohingyas, international community could have picked up the issue quickly and could pressure Myanmar to stop persecution of the Muslim community.

Despite all government-sponsored excesses being committed in Myanmar, the world seems to be more interested in cultivating ties with Myanmar, with an eye on the country’s natural resources and its geopolitical importance. None is asking the question whether Myanmar is really moving towards democracy when it’s killing thousands of its genuine citizens and seeking to drive away tens of thousands of others from the country.

http://twocircles.net/2012aug16/rohingyas_living_shackled_life_myanmar.html

Counting others sins shall not make Doctors saint either....

The leaders of Indian Medical Association [IMA] have attacked Bollywood star Aamir Khan for highlighting the evils in Indian medical system as host in popular TV show Satyamev Jayate. IMA has even threatened to go to court against Mr. Khan .This threat by the doctors has been reported in the media widely. But it is also a fact that this brazen attack against Aamir Khan by some of the devious members of the Indian medical community has been denounced by many ordinary citizens and even some doctors in the country.

The IMA functions under Medical Council of India (MCI) which is a statutory body with the responsibility of establishing and maintaining high standards of medical education and recognition of medical qualifications in India. It registers doctors for practice in India, in order to protect and promote the health and safety of the public by ensuring proper standards in the practice of medicine.

IMA has been caught on “unethical” practice by none other than the MCI in the recent past. The MCI called Indian Medical Association's endorsement of some food products unethical and banned the endorsements. The council asked IMA- an organization of 2 lakh medical doctors as members through more than 1,700 local branches spread all over the country and headquartered in New Delhi to refrain from such endorsements in future. The issue was the IMA’s Rs 2.25-crore contract with PepsiCo to allow Tropicana fruit juice and Quaker oats to use the IMA logo on their packs for three years, ending 2011. The endorsement controversy been raging for two years after Dr K V Babu, an IMA central committee member complained to the MCI on June 6, 2008, that the endorsement violated medical ethics. After protracted proceedings, the National Human Rights Commission served a notice on the association on June 30, 2010. After some confusion on its own powers over IMA, the MCI on August 18, 2010 declared that IMA indeed came under its jurisdiction and served a show-cause notice to the association ''for endorsing food products without valid justification and for a fee” and termed it as an act of violation of the provisions of the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002.

Interestingly, in its reply to the MCI, the IMA argued that it had not endorsed the products, but only entered into a MoU with PepsiCo for a 'nutritional awareness programme.' However, the endorsement made the IMA the first professional body of doctors in the world to endorse a food product. Because of this endorsement PepsiCo's Tropicana fruit juice and Quaker oats use the logo of IMA on their packs. But then these were not the only products being endorsed and recommended for consumption by the IMA. IMA has endorsement contracts with other health and hygiene products as well that including Dettol, Lizol (sanitizer), Aqua-guard (water purifier), Pampers (napkins) and Odomos (mosquito repellent).But The MCI had cautioned the IMA and affiliated associations to avoid endorsing food and hygiene products of private companies, since it was a breach of the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulation, 2002 provisions which clearly says “Endorsements are against the code of ethics prescribed by MCI and doctors and/or their organizations aren't allowed to promote their products”.

But then that’s not all, the Code of Ethics Regulations, 2002 (AMENDED UPTO DECEMBER 2010) (Published in Part III, Section 4 of the Gazette of India, dated 6th April,2002) of MEDICAL COUNCIL OF INDIA has clearly mentioned other do’s and don’ts for the doctors like:

1. CODE OF MEDICAL ETHICS:
1.1.2 The prime object of the medical profession is to render service to humanity; reward or financial gain is a subordinate consideration. Who- so-ever chooses his profession, assumes the obligation to conduct himself in accordance with its ideals. A physician should be an upright man, instructed in the art of healings. He shall keep himself pure in character and be diligent in caring for the sick; he should be modest, sober, patient, prompt in discharging his duty without anxiety; conducting himself with propriety in his profession and in all the actions of his life.

1.3 Maintenance of medical records:
1.3.1 Every physician shall maintain the medical records pertaining to his / her indoor patients for a period of 3 years from the date of commencement of the treatment in a standard proforma laid down by the Medical Council of India.

1.3.2. If any request is made for medical records either by the patients / authorized attendant or legal authorities involved, the same may be duly acknowledged and documents shall be issued within the period of 72 hours.

1.4 Display of registration numbers:
1.4.1 Every physician shall display the registration number accorded to him by the State Medical Council / Medical Council of India in his clinic and in all his prescriptions, certificates, money receipts given to his patients.

1.5 Use of Generic names of drugs:
Every physician should, as far as possible, prescribe drugs with generic names and he / she shall ensure that there is a rational prescription and use of drugs.

1.8 Payment of Professional Services:
The physician, engaged in the practice of medicine shall give priority to the interests of patients. The personal financial interests of a physician should not conflict with the medical interests of patients. A physician should announce his fees before rendering service and not after the operation or treatment is under way. Remuneration received for such services should be in the form and amount specifically announced to the patient at the time the service is rendered. It is unethical to enter into a contract of "no cure no payment". Physician rendering service on behalf of the state shall refrain from anticipating or accepting any consideration.

3.7 Fees and other charges:
3.7.1 A physician shall clearly display his fees and other charges on the board of his chamber and/or the hospitals he is visiting. Prescription should also make clear if the Physician himself dispensed any medicine.

6.4 Rebates and Commission:
6.4.1 A physician shall not give, solicit, or receive nor shall he offer to give solicit or receive, any gift, gratuity, commission or bonus in consideration of or return for the referring, recommending or procuring of any patient for medical, surgical or other treatment. A physician shall not directly or indirectly, participate in or be a party to act of division, transference, assignment, subordination, rebating, splitting or refunding of any fee for medical, surgical or other treatment.

From my personal experiences I can proclaim that many well-earning and ‘so-called’ reputed doctors do not follow the rules or ethics as advised by the MCI. I had lost my 58-year-old father in a case and I believe it was a case of negligence by a renowned doctor. I fought a long legal battle to prove that the doctor was negligent; I know very well that many of the doctors these days hardly bother to follow the MCI guidelines on practice. There are hundreds and thousands of complaints pending against doctors, be it with the Indian Medical Associations (IMA), respective State Medical Councils (MC), consumer courts and equivalent forums. And most of the cases go the doctors’ ways as it’s always a near-impossible task to gather documentary proof against a medical professional. As the doctors are highly educated closely knitted community, it’s impossible to get evidences and testimonies by a doctor against their fellow colleagues despite their “off the record admission” of wrongful treatment or negligence. Therefore corruptions in medical councils, “cut system” in drugs and diagnostics, overpricing of medical services, growing incidents of medical negligence, sex selection services for profits, surgical procedures are a harsh reality one has to live up with to undergo a medical treatment.

In the present scenario the rampant corruption and greed for fast bucks have replaced the sacred vows the doctor’s pledge for, while choosing the medical profession. The recovery of Rs 2 crore from (then) MCI Chairman Ketan Desai as bribe for granting recognition to Gian Sagar Medical College in Patiala for admission of students for 2010-2011 for different courses for which the college did not have the required facilities is evident enough to prove the deep rooted corruption in the system. In another case the CBI has begin investigating former President of Dental Council of India Dr.Anil Kohli for allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income during the period April 1, 2005 to March 31, 2009. It is alleged that the then DCI President received favors from many dental colleges for verification and cancellation of certain institutes. Ultimately he had to resign from the DCI in 2010. It’s evident enough to prove that there is widespread disparity in the health system which is fast decaying in our country.

There is another related case which needs to be mentioned here. When Mr Dinesh Trivedi was the minister of state for health and K Sujatha Rao was the health secretary, the minister openly criticized the secretary and ministry babus for indulging in “red-tapism” and “corrupt culture” Mr.Trivedi’s charge against Rao was that she had created hurdles on way to set up a dedicated portal on health, that was supposed to carry information about top hospitals, doctors and other health-related matter for common people and others.

After taking charge of West Bengal as its chief minister, Ms.Mamata Banerjee made regular surprise visits to hospitals. Although in minuscule level, some positive changes have been noticed in these hospitals. However a recent RTI has revealed that only 9 per cent of the doctors accused of “medical negligence” and “ethical violation” in the state over the last 10 years have been “dismissed” from their services or warned. The rest 91 per cent of the complaints either met dead end or the doctors concerned were let off without even being issued a show-cause letter. A total of 515 cases were filed against doctors in West Bengal [as most of the complaints are declined by the MCI ] in the last 10 years and only 15 doctors have been removed from the council’s list of registered practitioners and another 30 had been let off after ‘warnings’.


As there was none to care about the dilapidated health services in the left regime, West Bengal has seen several exemplary cases of medical negligence and apathy from doctors in both government-run and private institutions which were duly offered cover-ups by the previous Left government. It will take some time for enthusiastic Mamata to put things in order in the government as well as private hospitals.

The gravity of decaying health services can be verified from a reply to the RTI, the West Bengal Medical Council [WBMC] registrar D K Ghosh has furnished that has offered complete details between 2001 and 2010. It says, 171 charges against the doctors or hospitals have been tabbed with ‘not to proceed any further’. 104 cases have been kept pending as ‘cases under consideration’. 61 cases has been ‘closed or dropped’ and for another 25 cases, ‘charges could not be substantiated’. Charge-sheets have been issued in 53 cases but hearing is still awaited. Seven cases are in court and are pending judgment. 27 cases are pending as the accused doctors are registered with other state medical councils.

There are many such similar cases that reflect the plight of those who suffered because of ‘medical negligence’ and are awaiting justice. The Medical Council clearly lost transparency and credibility in their activities. Many families who have lost their dear ones due in such cases of negligence have long been fighting lone battles. But then unless the whole council is redone and the function of the members investigated, speedier justice for the poor victims is highly unlikely. Many prominent government doctors and [members of the WBMC] have resigned from government service after the exit of the Left Front government, citing ‘personal reasons’. But the cases of negligence against all doctors in the past few years must be probed by the new government. At least some cases will certainly be found in which the doctors will be found guilty. Possibly, some high-profile council members will also be caught for having shielded several accused doctors on numerous occasions. We all know that the WBMC failed to cancel the medical registration of the doctors found guilty by Supreme Court in the famous Anuradha Saha death case of 1998.

It is undoubtedly true that the courts and Consumer Forums are not experts in medical science, and must not substitute their own views over that of specialists. But we cannot appoint a murderer to investigate or do justice to a case of murder. We cannot appoint a thief for the same purpose while investigating a theft. The same way we cannot possibly get justice in such cases of medical negligence with the help of medical councils where the executives are medical professionals.

It is also undeniable that the medical profession to a good extent has become commercialized and there are many doctors who depart from their Hippocratic Oath for their selfish ends of making money. It’s true that the entire medical fraternity cannot be blamed for the fault of some doctors. It is also a fact that sometimes despite their best efforts the treatment by the doctor fails- sometimes despite the best effort by a surgeon, the patient dies. But it is also a fact there are some doctors who are earning bad name for the respected profession. The time has come to amend the law and make it more real, satisfactory and unprejudiced as it is against other professionals who work for selfish gains.

Amir Khan is indeed trying to do a good service to the society by pointing out the holes in it. Instead of attacking Mr Khan, Indian medical fraternity should go into retrospection keeping it in mind that counting others’ sins shall not make one a saint and help weed out the fraudulent doctors like ex-Medical Council of India (MCI) head, Dr. Ketan Desai or Dr.Kohli, Ex-Dental Council India (DCI) head, their associates and others, if they desire to re-establish the public faith in their healers….

As the process of modernization continues, more non-Muslim pupils are expected to seek admission to Bengal's madrasahs in the future.

Mr Aziz Mubarki, National secretary of South Asia Ulema Council in Kolkata, which represents Islamic scholars, argued that the government should not replace the traditional curriculum of Madrasahs.
Although Muslim in general are not against this modernization, Mubarki thinks modern education should not have come at the cost of the traditional religious curriculum. "For all students religious education is as important as is the modern scientific education," Mubarki said.
"Both educations are necessary for the better grooming of a human being," he told DW.
Aside from striking the religious curriculum, Mubarki also thinks that teaching mixed genders together at a Madrasah is not appropriate. Nor does the modernization serve Muslim interests, Mubarki said.

Such education opens opportunities for poorer children, especially girls
"A madrasah should have a mosque on its campus," Mubarki said. "Islamic religious education has been diluted simply to accommodate the non-Muslim students," he said - which hasn't helped underprivileged Muslims, he added.

Honorarium to Imam: Why pseudo-nationalists opposing it?

The West Bengal government’s decision to offer honorarium to Imam has kicked up a political storm, which probably is set to spill over to the rest of the country, turning it into a big political debate. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has filed a writ petition in the Calcutta High Court challenging the move by terming it as an unconstitutional and politically motivated decision. There is nothing wrong in initiating a healthy debate over the issue of the honorarium as it helps keep a tab on the functions of the government. But this time a genuine initiative by the government is denounced as an act of “minority appeasement” by the so called “Pseudo-Nationalists”.

In our country 7,000 crore rupees are spent on some river cleaning projects. Even technical and financial assistance is sought from World Bank and other global agencies for the completion of such projects. According to the government, the assistance for “National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA)” is in the form of a loan of US $ 801 million from the IBRD (World Bank) and a credit of US$ 199 million from the IDA. The government is keen to save a river because Ganga is India's holiest river and it is worshipped by the majority Community. No Indian protested against this huge expenditure to cleanse a river. It’s appalling that the government’s move to offer a token wage to the Imams is being resisted by the BJP.

Even a tiger saving project receives more funds than the government allots for development of minority affairs. The media, the film fraternity, the sports stars and the big corporate houses- all came forward to show their support and ask others to support the cause- ‘SAVE OUR TIGERS.’ NDTV, WWF, Sanctuary Asia and Aircel came together supporting the tiger project.This campaign was carried out to raise awareness against the sharp decline in number of tigers in India. It was termed as a very human approach by all who were able to understand the importance of this cause. In this campaign 10, 07,958 persons have come together to join the roar till now. It is said that this campaign helped the voice of people reach the government. In response, the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for an emergency meeting and Rs 600 crore were sanctioned for tiger conservation in the next five years. Apart from it another Rs 50 crore were allotted which will be spent specifically on projects related to tiger conservation.

But there are too many hue and cries if any minority development programs are announced by the government. They say it’s a ‘Muslim appeasement’ policy. Should this tiger project also be termed as “tiger appeasement” programme? You are helping the tigers because they are in miserable condition. Muslims live in miseries- even top BJP leaders agree to this fact. Then why will you call the decision to offer honorarium to Imams a ‘Muslim appeasement’ action?

Muslims’ backwardness officially documented and admitted
There are numerous reports and recommendations to prove the dilapidated status of Muslims in India. They include the submission and observation of a report in 2008 by the National Commission of Minorities [NCM]. In its report the NCM mapped the economic well-being of the Dalit sections of the two communities (Muslims & Christians) after thoroughly analyzing data provided by the National Sample Survey Organization.

The report concludes, among other things, that there can be no doubt whatsoever that Dalit Muslim Section (DMS) and Dalit Christians (DC) are invariably regarded as socially inferior by their co-religionists. In intra-community comparisons Dalit Muslim Sections are only slightly worse off than non-Dalit Muslims, and that is because the Muslim community as a whole tends to be very badly off compared to other communities. Muslims are part of the sections of society which has developed disabilities by prolonged social discrimination and are entitled to affirmative action to compensate for these disabilities and inability, to empower them to compete and achieve inclusive development!

The high percentage of Muslim presence in jails is also an indicator of their being victims of discrimination and suspicion, particularly as there prevails a tendency in India to blame largely Muslim groups for most criminal activities taking place here. But it’s a fact that poverty and lack of education among Muslims are also responsible for turning them towards crime. Poverty and prejudices entertained against them have further contributed to their presence in jails. Against the backdrop of dismal facts having surfaced regarding social, economic and educational status of Indian Muslims, the Sachar panel has also made some recommendations in their favor too. The Sachar panel recommends establishment of more English and Urdu medium government schools in Muslim-dominated areas. The panel also recommends allocation of 15% of all government funds to Muslims under all central schemes. It favors greater representation for Muslims in sectors such as health and teaching and also sensitization of government employments towards Muslims? The Sachar panel further made a strong argument for almost entire Muslims population in India, except a nonexistent handful creamy layer. With the Sacchar report having already served as an eye-opener to the harsh reality about the status of Muslims in Indian society, the question was whether in fact it will propel the government to take some constructive steps towards improving their conditions or would its relevance be confined to noise made in media circles and a little bit of political rhetoric.

However, after the government received the Justice Rajindar Sachar report and related recommendations, a dedicated ministry for “Minority Affairs” was developed in the union cabinet to look into the social, educational and economic progress of all minorities in India. But the minority affairs ministry programmes which were designed mostly for the socio-economic development of Muslims didn’t reach them. It might have also been the case that they were purposely left out of the gracious ambit. The grants like the Central Government’s allocated fund of Rs 16,000 crores for bank loans to minorities failed to reach Muslims as it was primarily distributed among the Sikh and Jain communities. The Minority Affairs Ministry was pulled up by a Parliamentary Standing Committee for returning unutilized funds, worth over Rs 587 crore, to the Centre in 2010-11.The Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment in its twentieth report on the Minority Affairs Ministry also noted that the quantum of surrendered funds was much lesser in previous years. The Ministry had earlier returned much lesser unutilized funds to the Centre- Rs 33.63 crore and Rs 31.50 crore in 2008-09 and 2009-10, respectively. The government increased the budget for Ministry of Minority affairs from Rs. 1,740 crore to Rs. 2,600 crore. Yet, Muslims were not benefited. But there are many states that, despite having sizeable Muslims populations, have overlooked the needs of the disadvantaged minority communities. In the Rs 78,686 crore budget in Bihar in 2012-2013, Rs 28,000 crore was allocated for welfare-related projects. But for minority welfare the share was merely Rs 125 crore.

In Karnataka the minority department was given only Rs. 261 crore. The picture is no different in Tamil Nadu either. Almost the entire Muslim population came forward to elect Jayalalitha to power. But for them she allotted only Rs 57 crore in the year 2012-13 whereas the Scheduled Castes bagged a sub-plan of Rs 6108 Cr and tribal communities got a sub-plan of Rs 349 Cr. In states like Maharashtra and Gujarat the condition is even more worrying as not a single rupee has been allocated for minority welfare in both the states for 2012-13. In fact Gujarat doesn’t even subscribe to the idea of having a separate department for minority development!

The picture in Bengal is also grimmer. Many called the Left parties “messiahs of the minorities”. During the left regime every year more than Rs 450 Crores of minority funds was returned to the centre, unutilized. Muslims got angry with the Communists because of the neglect they faced for many years. En masse they voted against the Communists in last year’s West Bengal elections and the party tasted defeat after ruling the state for three and a half decades.

According to 2001 census, there were 2 crore 31 lakh Muslims residing in West Bengal. By now the population must have gone up. According to many rational estimates Muslims constitute one-third of the state’s population. Almost 96% of the total minority population in the state is Muslim. In 12 districts of West Bengal Muslims constitute more than 25% of the total population. And a large section of the Muslim minorities (like anywhere else in the country) in West Bengal have remained socially, economically and educationally backward. To eradicate the backwardness of this section several steps are urgently necessary. Otherwise there will be no change in situation. The three decades of the Left Front rule in West Bengal has witnessed no government policies offering concrete economic assistance to the poor and needy. The CPI-M-led government only bothered to care for its own cadres.

Mamata’s initiatives for Muslims’ welfare
Mamata Banerjee’s government has come as a breath of fresh air in this wilderness, as she has taken some progressive initiatives to keep the development of Muslims on track at par with the development of other communities in West Bengal. She increased the annual budget allocation for minority developments to Rs.570 crore, up from Rs 330 crores last year. She has allocated Rs 90 crore from the budget of the minority affairs and madarasah education department to pay the honorarium to West Bengal’s imams, who were in pathetic condition and in dire need of financial assistance. She has promised a bigger Hajj House, has given a good shape to Aliah University and is in the process to set up a separate “Madarasah Aliah”. She has also announced to launch a CBI enquiry into Bengal’s sensational Waqf scam , which is estimated to be worth not less than Rs 70,000 crore.

And with the 15-point Programme for Minorities programme approved by Indian government a Multi-Sectoral Developmental Programmes (MSDP) has been launched on the basis of recommendations from the Sacchar Committee. It seems the federal government is eager to see the largest minority taking part in country’s progress and so it has released funds for the development of the Muslim society. But the lethargic state governments and a bureaucracy- that seems biased against Muslims at every level, have come as stumbling blocks between the federal government and Muslims. The states and their bureaucrats are not utilizing the funds for development work among minorities. As a result of this large chunk of the minority development funds are lying unused in the state’s coffers or being returned to the centre.

To curb a situation like above, the federal Minority Affairs Ministry has circulated a draft bill to constitute an Equal Opportunity Commission. If passed, the commission will be empowered to impose Rs 5 lakh fine and a three-year jail term on anyone who discriminates against minorities in education, employment and housing. The Commission will also be empowered to slap a fine of Rs 1 lakh per day if the accused does not comply with its rulings. The proposed law will cover all the minorities in the country and has a provision to bring in other social groups within its ambit through gazette notifications. The commission has been inspired by the Sacchar Committee, which in details narrated different sorts discrimination minority community members-, especially Muslims, face in jobs, education and housing. Only time will reveal if it is a sincere attempt to improve the lots of a backward community or nothing but another political gimmick like that announcement of 17% reservation for the community during recent state elections in Uttar Pradesh.

http://twocircles.net/2012jun04/honorarium_imam_why_pseudonationalists_opposing_it.html

http://kashmirmonitor.org/06182012-ND-honorarium-to-imam-28495.aspx

FACTS ABOUT HAJJ SUBSIDY .

Those who are against the Hajj subsidy must know that its not just the Muslim Hajj where Indian government is providing the subsidy.There are other religious events to such subsidies.

Just last month(April 12)the government of Madhya Pradesh has expanded the subsidy scheme to Hindu pilgrims visiting Sita Mata Temple in Sri Lanka and Angkor Wat Temple in Cambodia.
Such Indian Government provisions are already in place for pilgrimages to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet,Hinlaj Mata Mandir and Nankhana Saheb in Pakistan.

Muslims are also taxpayers in India.Muslims also have the rights to the national resources in the country.So,Muslims are doing nothing wrong by seeking subsidy for the Hajj.Subsidy is an initiative to help fund public welfare work.All religious Muslims sincerely want to perform the Hajj.Muslims are citizens of this secular country.The government should provide subsidy for the Hajj as it is doing to the Hindus and Sikhs.

A section of Muslims are against this Hajj subsidy because they know that the Hajj has to be self funded - not with the help of others. But they should know that subsidy they get for Hajj is not exactly other's money.its from the state.The state has its fund to help its citizens, which includes Muslims.Those Muslims who are against the subsidy should also know that photographing themselves is prohibited in Islam. But they have not refused to be photographed for their passport,ID cards,bank accounts and other purposes"'.

On Hillary Clinton’s Visit to South Asia

We are deeply disappointed with some issues raised by the U S Secretary of State, Ms. Hillary Clinton during her visit to India this week. As a sovereign country India is free to trade with any country on its own choice. We take strong exception to Ms Clinton's attempted intervention on our bi-lateral deal with Iran. We also object to Ms Clinton's interference in the matter of the water of river Teesta, which is an issue between two peaceful co-operative neighbours. We shall appreciate if no third party gets involved into the matter, uninvited.

Apart from it, we would have appreciated if Ms Clinton could make US ally Pakistan act against Hafiz Saeed, the man “wanted” in connection with 26/11 Mumbai blasts. The Americans should know that “colonial era is over” and India is not a banana republic like Pakistan. They must understand that India is not an insignificant state on the threshold of being identified as a “failed state” like Bangladesh where she openly supported former chairman of Grameen Bank and her old friend Mr.Younus.

India is a superpower in the region and a very important country in Asia. It has a distinct foreign policy and will not tolerate any intrusion from anyone including America.

The loot of waqf properties in India

A Karnataka government-appointed committee, which surveyed Waqf board lands in the state recently, has stumbled upon a multi-crore scandal and has submitted a 7,000-page report on the scam to the chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda. It has shocked all as the latest Waqf scam is touted to be larger than the 2G spectrum scam that rocked the country last year. The committee found that major irregularities had taken place between 2001 and 2012 in the transfer of Waqf land to private parties through mutation where an estimated loss to the exchequer was likely to be around Rs 2 lakh crores. Mutation is a legal process through which government land is transferred or sold to individuals, institutions, persons or firms after proper verification of all documents related to the land. It’s clear that the legal process was flagrantly violated in Karnataka while selling or transferring the Waqf lands to private individuals. Of the Waqf board's 33,741 properties spread across a whopping 54,000 acres of registered land, around 27,000 acres have not been used for what they are meant for, and were disposed off illegally.

Understanding Waqf

Under Muslim rule in India the concept of Waqf was more broadly comprehended as aligned with the spirit of charitable contributions approved by the Quran. Waqf implies the endowment of property, moveable or immovable, tangible or intangible to Allah by a Muslim, under the premise that the transfer will benefit the deprived. As a legal transaction, the Waqif (settler) appoints himself or another truthful person as Mutawalli (Manager) in an endowment deed (Waqf-namaah) to oversee the Waqf (charitable trust). As it implies a surrender of properties to Allah, a Waqf deed is unchangeable and everlasting. In harmony with the true spirit of Islam, Indian Muslim rulers bigheartedly dedicated property such as land and its revenue rights to Awqaf (plural of Waqf) created with the aim of maintaining Mosques, Madrasas, Dragahs, Khanqahs, Maqbaras, Ashoorkhanas, Qabristans (graveyards), Takiyas, Idgahs, Imambaras, Anjumans, Tombs, Orphanages (yatimkhanas) etc. Besides the charitable intent that clearly underlined these donations, for instance, land could have been Waqf(ed) for the creation of a graveyard where poor people could bury their dead. These donations to Awqaf were also done with the interest of promoting the tenets of Islam. Under Muslim rule, the presence of Islamic courts overseen by Qazis ensured that the Mutawallis discharged their duties fairly. Their mismanagement of the properties was considered breach of the trust reposed in them for which they were duly punished. Therefore keeping all religious obligations in mind the Central Waqf Council, an Indian statutory body was established in 1964 by the Government of India under Waqf Act, 1954 for the purpose of advising it on matters pertaining to working of the State Waqf Board sand proper administration of the Wakfs in the country.

Loot of waqfs

The scam involving the Waqf properties that has surfaced in Karnataka is not an isolated case. Loot of the waqf estates has been going on all across the country. The mismanagement of the properties in India reflects the Muslim community’s failure to build a clean and organized establishment that could look after the vast estate efficiently. Most Muslims in India live in phenomenally bad socioeconomic condition. Poverty, lack of education and unemployment are rampant in the community. If the Waqf properties were managed or utilized the way they are supposed to be, many of the community’s perennial problems could have been resolved without any help from outside. Sadly, those, who wield power and have been installed as leaders in the community, have turned corrupt. Most of them sitting on top of the existing institutions that control the waqf estates have been found selling away the properties piece by piece, for personal gain. It frustrates us as we find that more than 70% of India’s Waqf estates have already been sold away in the past decades by our unscrupulous Muslim leaders.

There is a complex set of reasons for this state of affairs in institutions that claim to work for the benefit of the country’s largest minority and the world’s second-largest Muslim population. Even in the case of Waqf, political hangers-on and operators from the minority community are sent off to man the boards. The policies of successive governments have created a class of “Sarkari Musalmans” adept at capturing institutions and bagging positions through which they can patronize others down the pecking order.

Even common Muslims just see the Waqf placard and believe the land belongs to them. They are encouraged to believe there is some higher religious purpose to Waqf, little knowing the fact that it has become a synonym for daylight robbery. The greatest hypocrisy perhaps is that the men who violate the spirit of charity behind the concept of Waqf then pretend to be committed and dutiful believers. This resource has been mortgaged, sold and encroached upon with the connivance of the very institutions and individuals responsible for safeguarding it, turning it all into a systemic rot. The Waqf boards in most states of India are repositories of corruption, in league with local land sharks and builders. They continue to get away with the daylight robbery of their own community because, whenever there is any demand for scrutiny, they mischievously take cover behind the “Islam in danger” sentiment.

Some glaring examples of suspected land deals from across the land:

Chennai: In 1997, the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board took the decision to outright sell 1,710 square feet of land in the commercialized Triplicane High street in Madras for a paltry Rs 3 lakh. A sale like this would have required the sanction of at least two-thirds of the board members.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Waqf Board got a measly Rs 16 lakh for 4,532square metres in the upscale Altamount Road on which none other than Mukesh Ambani has built his plush 27-storey home.

Bangalore: Developed on about five acres of land, the Windsor Manor hotel here was till recently giving the board a rent of Rs 12,000 a month for a property worth not less than Rs 500 crore.

Faridabad: The Waqf board has been leasing out about five acres of land on 11-month leases for several years at a ridiculously low rent between Rs 500 and Rs 1,500 per month. A factory was built at the place and land use altered.

Kolkata: Shaw Wallace was giving a miniscule amount as rent for the palatial building at the BBD Bag business district in Kolkata until the new Mutawalli of the Prince Ghulam Mohammed Waqf Estate dragged the corporate house to the court.

Encroachment of waqf properties in West Bengal

So across the country, there are examples of the huge Waqf mess. West Bengal which has highest numbers of Waqf properties in the country is no indifferent and has higher record of property encroachment as well i.e., like 4,000 illegal occupants are in possession of a property in Calcutta known as the Mysore Family Fateha Fund Waqf Estate. There are over few hundred mosques in Calcutta and other adjoining districts where Waqf lands have been encroached upon unlawfully. Sixty-four other mosques in the state have been illegally occupied by outsiders. West Bengal which has approximately 184,000 Waqf properties, accounting for 31% of such properties in the country has suffered the most at the hands of corrupt Mutawallis or managers of Waqf properties with the help of officials belonging to the Ministry of Land and Land Reforms (during the left regime) have got many of them sold. The CPI (M) built party offices on several such wakf plots. The Left Front government also transformed a 50,000 sq m property in Tufanganj, Cooch Behar worth Rs 20 crores into a state bus depot and warehouse. In Midnapore (Kharagpur) a big departmental store and other commercial complex have come up on a land which was a Muslim Burial Ground (Kabrastan) not very long ago. Similarly hundreds of Bighas of Waqf land were acquired and transferred to private coal mining company in Burdwan districts for a mere pittance through some shoddy deals. So many prime Waqf plots and properties have changed character because of legal loopholes, thereby denying Muslims a religious endowment under Islamic law, where the income was meant for sole use in charitable purposes.

In Feb 1996, irregularities were first detected at a Waqf property on Collin Street, Kolkata, which involved the prime accused Mr. Hamidul Huda and his family. And with so many unanswered questions and mounting pressure the then chief minister of Bengal Late Com. Jyoti Basu appointed a one-man judicial commission headed by Justice Gitesh Ranjan Bhattacharya in March 1997. Testimonies from the representatives of several Muslim organizations and Imams were recorded. And after almost 5 years of investigation, the inquiry report was submitted on 31 Dec 2001 to the West Bengal government. And on the basis of the report, Mr. Hamidul Huda, a CPI-M leader and former member of the Waqf Board was arrested. But many still feel that prime accused Mr. Hamidul Huda was just being made a scapegoat to shield some CPI-M bigwigs. Many even feel that if the Left Front government desired to clear its name it should have taken upon itself very seriously and must have followed the recommendations made by Justice GR Bhattacharya Commission report.

Recommendations of Justice GR Bhattacharya Commission

-- Decentralize Waqf properties management and form district Waqf boards in view of the mess over listed and unlisted properties throughout the state.

-- Prevent concentration of power and plug the routes to escape responsibilities by the Waqf Board members and Waqf Commissioner.

-- Fix collective and individual responsibility and bar anybody from holding office for more than one term. A member or his close relatives should not be involved in transfer and transaction of Waqf property.

-- Laws and rules regarding lease and tenancy should be changed.

-- Complete survey and enrollment of Waqf properties in the quickest possible time.

-- Empower trustees of Waqf properties to move court against unauthorized sale.

-- No sale of Waqf properties to be registered without the board’s permission

Modus operandi of the scamsters

Outright sale

Builder or businessman identifies a Waqf property.
They approach members of the board.
The land is sold for a pittance.
Board members get their cuts.

Discounted rent

It happens in states where outright sale is not encouraged.
Builder/ businessman approach board members.
The land is given on a ridiculously low lease.
Land use is changed to facilitate commercial exploitation.
Members pocket their cuts.

Although Waqf is a national reserve for use in building institutions and earn income for Muslims, it is so awfully managed that it is the only system where practically no accountability is demanded. Cases of unashamed corruption flourish. Land is sold off to make way for private buildings, hotels, malls or factories for a trifle or given out for shockingly low rents to commercial interests. The boards have become an avenue for political patronage. Muslims who cannot be accommodated in ministries are sent off here. They mostly never do anything to help the community. In most cases, they are hand-in-glove with the land mafia and encroachers. The mess in the boards also reflects the apathy of state governments. Many have not constituted boards; none have carried out a survey of Waqf properties as required by the 1995 Act.

But in West Bengal at least the newly elected government has learnt from the Left’s mistakes and the incumbent Chief Minister Ms. Mamata Banerjee has taken a significant initiative towards sorting out the legal problems surrounding Waqf properties in the state so that their revenue can be distributed for the socio-economic benefit of the Muslim community. She has announced a CBI probe into the dealings of the previous Waqf board, and has launched many pro-minorities proposals which include a scheme of monthly honorarium for the Imams, which is duly linked with the funds at the State Waqf Board. In addition to all above she has sought data on the matter, as Waqf properties are worth more than Rs 70,000 crores in West Bengal, the highest anywhere in India. She is surely aware that Muslims will not need any government help if Waqf revenues are used fairly for their benefit, something which the Left Front ignored. The WB government has already taken action to avoid further dilemmas in managing the Waqf estates in the state. Measures are being planned to prevent recurrence of irregularities and lapses that happened in the past. Elections were held to the Waqf Board. Survey of Waqf property is being undertaken. Tribunal has been set up and more will be constituted if the situation demands. Responsibilities for Board members are now being fixed. Hence to add transparency to the working of the Waqf, “Tenure Restricting Bill” should also be considered.

As matter of fact WAQF is one of those areas in which accountability has not been demanded by anyone. The community itself has not demanded accountability, possibly because Muslims are ignorant about these issues. However, things tend to change once awareness builds up as it’s happening in Kerala, where Muslims are literate and demand accountability. The Waqf board is manned by professionals and headed by two advocates, not by racketeers. Even the Bureaucrats in the ministry of minority affairs in New Delhi cite the work done by Kerala Waqf board as example of good work and ask other states to emulate it.

There is no doubt that widespread misappropriation of the Waqf properties is taking place across India. Safeguarding the estates was the duty of the successive federal and state governments. But none performed their duty. The community itself is also responsible for the build-up of this Waqf mess. Muslims must understand that Waqf is a national resource that should have been tapped for use in the welfare of the “Muslim Community”.

http://twocircles.net/2012apr26/loot_waqf_properties_india.html

http://kashmirmonitor.org/05082012-ND-the-loot-of-waqf-properties-in-india-25992.aspx

http://theeasternpost.org/more_cover.php?id=132

Sri Lanka’s Muslims: Caught in the crossfire…

During much of the 25-year war in Sri Lanka, attention was focussed on the altercation between the majority Sinhalese and the largest minority Tamils. The views of the country’s Muslims, who constitute about 9 per cent of the population and see themselves as a separate racial group, have largely remained overlooked. Understanding their role in the conflict and addressing their political ambition are essential if there is to be a lasting peace resolution.

Atrocities of LTTE on Muslims
For centuries, the Muslim community has been scattered around Sri Lanka living in co-existence with the other two main ethnic communities (Sinhalese and Tamil) with very close socio-economic interactions among them. For years Muslim and Tamil children attended the same school but took different roles in cultural displays and sporting events. However as the ethnic crisis developed into armed conflict with Tamil youth taking to arms and the LTTE (Liberation of Tamil Tigers for Eelam) being formed, it became apparent that in the early eighties, in the east of Sri Lanka, there was a conflict of interest between Muslims and Tamils. Whilst this was initially at a manageable and political level, it slowly disintegrated in 1990 as the LTTE massacred worshippers in a mosque in Batticaloa and other attacks on Muslim civilians.

But before this, Muslims and Tamils had been traditionally included into local life as mutually supporting communities. There were Muslim traders, tailors, iron mongers, laborers and scholars. The Muslims in Jaffna had lived next to each other and therefore densely occupied a small part of this town. As part of the arena of culture and scholarship, Muslims formed an important part of the historic University of Jaffna. But when the development of districts took place in sixties and seventies, it hit the Muslims harder economically. A number of Muslim youth thus became convinced of Tamil militant ideology and joined the LTTE's military wing. In several Muslim villages and towns the LTTE opened its branch offices and was gradually gaining popularity amongst certain sections of the Muslim community. But soon this development received a setback when Tamil-Muslim riots broke out in April 1985, apparently over an incident in the town of Mannar in the north where three Muslim worshippers were said to have been gunned down by Tamil militants inside a mosque.

Following the above 1985 riots the LTTE changed its approach towards Muslims and unleashed some of its most ferocious acts of savagery on the innocent Muslims of Polonnaruwa in the Northeastern and Kattankudy and Eravur in the Eastern provinces. Tens and hundreds of Muslim men, women and children were massacred in their homes, fields, markets; the entire Muslim population of Jaffna in the north were evicted from their homes at gunpoint and turned into refugees overnight. They are still living in camps without any hope of returning to their places of birth. In short, the LTTE seems to have erroneously decided on a mission of ethnic cleansing in the Tamil districts. As a result of this mistaken strategy the LTTE lost all sympathy it had within the Muslim community and the animosity between the Tamils and the Muslims became widest.

Thus changing it all, on the 23rd of October 1990, Muslims were given an “expulsion ultimatum” merely 24hrs to exit from the so called ‘Tamil land’ by leaving all their possessions behind”. Armed LTTE cadres had gone round every village and handed over letters from their district leaders forcing the chief trustees /Imams/religious heads of all mosques to read out the letters over loud speakers. The letters ordered all the Muslims to vacate their respective villages within 48 hours and hand over all their belongings such as vehicles, radios, sewing machines, water pumps etc to LTTE cadres at a particular village school. They said the orders were from the LTTE high ranks and anyone trying to disobey shall be eliminated. After the deadline the armed cadres came round to push the Muslim residents out of their homes: men, women and children were herded through a narrow passage and, at the point of exit from the village they were bodily searched for ill-gotten gains. Metallic cutters were used to remove jewelleries that could not be easily removed, and each family was only allowed to take about 200 rupees (5 US dollars at that time). In some cases, the Muslims were not even allowed to change their clothing. All possessions of the Muslims were deemed by the LTTE to belong to Tamil Eelam.

The Muslims from other parts of the Northern Province (Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi) suffered the same fate as well. Approximately 95,000 men, women and children were expelled. (For details please refer to UTHRJ; Report 6, Chapter 3, andhttp://jaffnamuslims.lk) But this incident has been largely gone from the chronicles of the Sri Lankan conflict. Even the successive governments have failed to provide sufficient support to the displaced Muslims who find themselves in a political wilderness, without much of a voice, despite having representation in the government. Problems with education, proper shelter and sanitation plague the camps and so the displaced people were dependent on tedious jobs or handouts from generous donors or the government and charitable organizations.

Muslims didn’t agree with ceasefire of 2002
The 2002 ceasefire agreement (CFA) was dissatisfaction to many Muslims. They had no self-decisive representation at the peace talks, and many feared that any accord that gave the LTTE un-restricted control of the north and east, even in a centralized arrangement, would be critically damaging to their own welfare. Despite talks between Muslim leaders and the LTTE, they continued to suffer brutal attacks. Since the recommencement of large-scale military action in mid-2006, Muslims have again been caught up in the fighting in the east. Dozens have been killed and thousands displaced. Memories of LTTE cruelty are still fresh and bitter disputes with Tamils over land and resources remain compelling in the east. It is important to know that Muslims have never resorted to armed insurgency to assert their political position, although some have worked with the security forces, and few were members of early Tamil militant groups. But Muslims, mostly remained determined to peacefully channeling their annoyance through the political process by negotiating with the government and Tamil militants at different times. But there is no guarantee that this obligation to non-violence will be maintained, predominantly given the frustration visible among younger Muslims in the Eastern region. In some areas there are Muslim armed groups but they are small and not a major security threat. Fears of armed Islamist movements emerging seem to be overstated, regularly for political ends. But there is a clear and present danger they will take on a role in inter-communal clashes if the conflict continues to infringe upon their safety.

Tamil Sinhalese also targeted Muslims
When Muslims were heaved upon miseries by the vindictive LTTE, the non-Tamil Sinhalese leaders too targeted the Muslims. During the period the Sinhalese leadership had been instrumental in instigating the Sinhalese masses to attack Muslim lives and property. The racial riot of 1915 was the first major episode in the Lankan history when Sinhalese animosity towards the Muslims was violently expressed. The most celebrated Sri Lankan Buddhist evangelist of that time, Anagarika Dharmapala, was a leading campaigner against Muslim presence in the country. He (just like any other RSS leader in India) termed Muslims as 'aliens' and 'foreigners' who according to him, deserved to be deported to Arabia. Although Dharmapala is long dead, but the echo of his views can still be heard during times of Sinhala-Muslim tension. Many among the Sinhalese Muslims believe that the Muslim domination in business in the country should be reversed. Both the spiritual and secular branches of the Sinhalese middle class share this view, and it cannot be denied that most of the communal violence against the Muslims has had economic overtones.

Sri Lankan Muslims not fundamentalists
Till date there is no interest among Sri Lankan Muslims in fundamentalist versions of Islam, although there have been some negligible violent clashes between orthodox and Sufi movements. But this hostility remained limited and most Muslims show considerable lenience to other sects and faiths. Nevertheless, the conflict is at least partly responsible for some Muslims channeling their frustrations and identity issues into religious disputes.

Almost all Muslim peace proposals remain dependent on the politics of the major Tamil and Sinhalese parties. Whereas most of the times the government evades consultation with ethnic minorities (including the Muslims) and do not seem to include significant devolution of powers to local communities.

The war crimes
Apart from occasional ceasefires, from the 1980s through May 2009, the civil war raged across the country and the government along with the increasingly authoritative LTTE got engaged in widespread violence, often against defenseless civilians. Lankan forces are believed to be behind thousands of forced disappearances of Tamils (both Hindus and Muslims), mostly in the north and east. War crimes by both sides (the govt forces and the LTTE) in the last year of fighting may have contributed to as many as 40,000 Tamil civilian deaths. But it’s a big relief that the LTTE, the most dreaded terrorist outfit of south Asia, which took the life of our former Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi, is now extinct in Sri Lanka. The organization which killed and maimed lives of thousands of Sinhalese and Tamil Muslims, spread terror across the island carried out suicide bombings and attacked civilian targets, especially in Colombo and the villages bordering the Tamil-speaking Muslims in the north and east of the island country. These “border villages” suffered enormously during the conflict. Some of the major LTTE incidents include the 1985 attack at the Sri Maha Bhodiya in Anuradhapura, where it murdered more than 100 Buddhist pilgrims, the 1996 suicide truck bombing of the Central Bank in Colombo in which over 70 people died, the 1998 suicide truck bombing at the Buddhist Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, and the 2008 suicide bombing at the Colombo Fort railway station. The Tamil rebels also eliminated many political leaders, which include Sri Lankan deputy defence minister Ranjan Wijeratne in1991, President Ranasinghe Premadasa in 1993 and foreign minister Lakshman Kadirgamar in 2005.

There is hardly any doubt that the LTTE was an evil organization whose leadership had no reservations about killing Sinhalese civilians or Tamil political opponents ( including the unfortunate Muslims) to serve its own political and personal ambitions. At the same time many Tamils in Sri Lanka and abroad perceived that the LTTE was the only group that stood for them and presented their demands to the government and the majority Sinhalese population that had repeatedly targeted the Tamils. The complex 30-year relationship between the LTTE and the Tamil civilians cannot be judged by the government’s simple “with us or against us” paradigm, particularly after such a brutalizing and humiliating victory.

In the country's interest Sri Lanka continued their offensives against the LTTE, until the rebel group was literally wiped off. But the government is yet to pay any attention to the rights of the civilians. It was expected that The Sri Lankan government would set up camps, to provide shelter to thousands of innocent civilians fleeing the war zone. But it never happened. Post-conflict efforts to bring societies together are always burdened with difficulties, particularly in cases of deep racial division. In Sri Lanka the challenge is even greater, because the government denies that ethnicity was the driving factor behind the civil war. After all conflicts, issues of reconciliation and accountability arise. The Lankan government has tried to collapse the two and has said that both can be dealt with through domestic mechanisms. Reconciliation is a more forward-looking process of healing divisions between and within communities.

The way ahead for Sri Lanka
Although reestablishing of cordial relations after long periods of conflict never happens quickly. And in Sri Lanka there is a serious risk that it may not happen at all. The government’s intransigence and triumphalism a full two years after declaring victory over the LTTE has meant the country is yet to see any semblance of compromise or inclusiveness for both the Tamil Hindus and Tamil Muslims. To avoid an eventual return to violence, the government must change course drastically. The 30-year emergency needs to come to an end, and government repression of the media and political opponents must stop. Restoring the rule of law and accountability in the island is essential, as is a political settlement to provide real devolution of power. Attention must also be paid to the many victims of these three decades of war and political violence from all three main ethnic groups – Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims. Indeed, rebuilding relations among those communities and getting to a point where each has some real understanding of what the others have gone through should be a central goal. All of this will take years, but the sooner the process starts it’s better for the country- the chances of resumption of another conflict will be less and less.

Summary of some of the identified Muslim civilians killed by LTTE -

26 Muslims were killed at Ottamawadi in December 1987
41 Muslims were killed at Karaitheevu in November 1987
35 Muslims were killed at Kinniya in April 1987
52 Muslims were killed at Mutur in October 1987
21 Muslims were killed at Sammanthurai Mosque in April 1989
67 Muslims were killed at Valaichchenai from April 1985 to July 2002
67 Muslims were killed at Kattankudy in December 1987
168 Muslims were killed at Kattankudy in July in 1990
147 Muslims were killed at Kattankudy Mosque in August 1990
58 Muslims were killed at Akkaraipattu in July 1990
14 Muslims were killed at Kattankudy Mosque in July 1990
13 Muslims were killed in November 1989
19 Muslims were killed at Alimnagar in August 1990
126 Muslims were killed at Eravur in August 1990
53 Muslims were killed at Ambalanthurai in August 1990
23 Muslims were killed at Sainthamaruthu in September 1992
15 Muslims were killed at Addalaichchenai in May 1990
?37 Muslims were killed at Pallitthidal, Akbarpuram in October1992
200 Muslims were killed at Kalmunai, Akkaraipattu and Pottuvil in June 1990
33 Muslims were killed at Ampara in August 1990
186 Muslims were killed by Police in June 1990
147 Muslims were killed at Alingippottanai in April 1992
30 Muslims were killed at Pottuvil in June 1991


http://twocircles.net/2012mar29/sri_lanka%E2%80%99s_muslims_caught_crossfire%E2%80%A6.html

http://malenadu.com/?p=7540

http://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/sri-lankas-muslimscaught-in-the-crossfire/

http://kashmirmonitor.org/03312012-ND-sri-lanka%E2%80%99s-muslims-caught-in-the-crossfire-23746.aspx

http://epaper.kashmirmonitor.org/3132012/default.asp
http://epaper.kashmirmonitor.org/3132012/default.asp


http://urdu.chauthiduniya.com/2012/04/chakki-ke-do-paton-ke-darmiyan-piste-srilanka-ke-musalman

Why Muslim headcount in Indian Army necessary?

The Indian army is expected to remain a truly secular institution, without any prejudice or bias towards any religion, caste or creed. The Chiefs of this national army have come from different religious backgrounds. But interestingly, none came from the Muslim community. The [much-talked] Sachar Committee which was formed by the government to map the Muslim participation in different social and economic spheres in the country recommended the headcount of Muslims in different levels of the army some years ago. However, the idea of Muslim headcount in the army was strongly resisted by the then Army chief, General JJ Singh, who said that any such survey would dent the core of the institution. But there was no harm in getting the information as the government has the right to know the current status of Muslims in India. National security should be a top concern for the government. But to know how the community is faring in all terms of development must also be welcomed as it may help the government chalk out various schemes to improve the social status of the backward community.

But this hue and cry then did not remain confined to the army HQs only. In January 2006, L.K. Advani, then Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, walked out from the house obviously over the proposal of Muslim headcount in the army. But Why Mr. Advani & Company was so afraid by the idea of Muslim headcount in Indian Army? What was so offensive, secret or classified info hidden in it? There have been similar surveys in police and paramilitary forces in the country.

Why Muslim headcount in Army necessary?
In fact there are four important reasons which support the move of the Muslim headcount in the army.

1. The Sachar Committee was constituted to look into the representation of Muslims in various segments of private and public sector employment. So if it was seeking the details of Muslim employees in various levels, what was the fuss about this information in the armed forces?

2. Army already has region or community based regiments in place since British colonial days. The battle cries are based on religion and gods of different religions. Then why there was all this noise about Muslim headcount?

3. Muslims are underrepresented in the army. To rectify it we ought to take a headcount in the first step. This has already been done in the police and paramilitary. So why should army object to this?

4. And most importantly, the army chief is to serve the government as we have seen in the case of incumbent army chief, his valid grievance and the outcome so far, then why the then army chief questioned a decision of the government? And if, is it acceptable in a democracy?



Khaki and Ethnic Violence in India : Book by late Omar Khalidi investigated the religious composition of the armed forces, paramilitary and police.
Perhaps the reasons for keeping things such secretly wrapped are the substandard statistics of Muslims serving the army. While there is no official report, but the strength of Muslims is roughly around 2% and the figure comes around 29,000 in the million-strong Indian army, according to a news channel survey programme titled Minority Report. And If the number of Muslims serving in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) infantry that has over 50% Muslims and those in other wings not directly dealing with warfare are excluded, the proportion is definitely too low. So out of a Muslim population of nearly 20 crores, barely 29,000 Muslims were found suitable for Indian Army. Is it not pathetic!

Adding to the woes it’s equally regretful that there has not been a single Muslim Army Chief except Air Chief Marshal Idris Hasan Latif, PVSM who as the first Muslim Chief of Air Staff of the IAF was involved fully in the re-equipment and modernization plans of the air force. He convinced the government to approve the procurement of the Jaguar strike aircraft, a proposal which was lying dormant for over 8 years. He also held negotiations with the Russians and saw the induction of the MiG-23 and later, the MiG-25 aircraft into the IAF. And what could be more unfortunate than the incident that even Rasoolan Bibi, wife (widow) of Hawaldar Abdul Hameed- who was conferred the nation’s highest gallantry award Param Vir Chakra posthumously during the 1965 India-Pakistan war, literally had to beg President Pratibha Patil’s intervention to get her cataract operated in 2008.

History of Muslim under-representation in Indian army
But coming back to the real issue, the reason for the Muslim under-representation in the Indian army lies partly in history, and its public revelation must harm nobody. Whatever the exact percentage, a huge Muslim under-representation in our army is a fact. So is a huge Sikh over-representation. See the contrast. Sikhs form 1.86 per cent of India’s population but number around 8 per cent in the Indian army. While Muslims comprise about 18 per cent of India’s population but are 2 per cent in the army. Why is this truth about Muslim under-representation in the armed forces going censored? But an illogical love of confidentiality causes Indian rulers to hide information whose public admission would harm nobody. Just as Muslims are under-represented in the army, so are the Bengalis, Biharis, Oriyas, south Indians or Gujaratis. And just as Sikhs are over-represented, so are the Jats, Dogras, Garhwalis, Kumaonis, Gurkhas, Marathas and others. The Indian army’s recruitment pattern was set 150 years ago by India’s 1857 uprising. Shocked by the revolt, the British army adopted a recruitment strategy that punished the groups which rebelled against them and rewarded the ones that stayed trustworthy. Because Muslims of Awadh, Bihar and West Bengal led the uprising against the British, the British army stopped hiring soldiers from these areas. Also blacklisted from these places were high-caste Hindus whose regiments in Bengal were also mutineers. In disparity, the British raised the recruitment of castes that had stood by the British to put down the revolution and honored as martial races, they received preferential treatment in army recruitment for the following 90 years. Like any institution, the Indian army is a prisoner of the past.

Even today, the Indian Army favors enlisting men from the martial races. Their over-representation in the Indian army is enormous and figures bear this out. Of 2.87 lakh jawans hired by the army in between 2004 to 2006, a disproportionate 44,471 came from three “martial” states, Punjab, Haryana, and the mountain state of Uttaranchal. So these states which account for 5 per cent of India’s population provided 15 per cent of India’s army jawans.

In contrast, the fewest recruits came from “non-martial” West Bengal and Bihar. These two states account for 30 per cent of India’s population, but they provided only 14 per cent of army jawans in this three-year period. So the Indian army has not only a religion-based disparity in recruitment, but also one based on caste and region. A glimpse of this discrimination was provided by a press release issued by a defence office in Jammu ten years ago. Seeking recruits for the Indian army, the press release said: “No vacancies for Muslims and tradesmen.” Meaning that aggressive Dogras were welcome to apply, but not Hindu business castes like the Baniyas and the Khatris.

Why does India have separate regiments for the Sikhs, Jats, Dogras, Garhwalis, Kumaonis, Mahars, the Nagas, even the Gurkhas, but not a single regiment for the Muslims? This is tragic but it’s the truth which shouldn’t be suppressed. It should be recognized and dealt with. Muslim under-recruitment in the Indian army is an outcome of Partition. India and Pakistan’s antagonism is seen in both countries as Hindu versus Muslim terms, which is absolutely incorrect. But this chauvinism in itself discourages qualified Muslim youths from applying, which drives down Muslim numbers even more. Hence it’s quite right that the Muslims under-recruitment in the army strips the community of a good, life-long source of employment. It’s a sad situation which is not so easy to correct.

India’s armed forces are averse to hire Muslims as soldiers because they suspect the community’s loyalty to India. This discrimination is a natural outcome of the bitter rivalry between India and Pakistan over 60 years. In similar situations, the same thing happens all over the world. The Israeli army doesn’t trust its Arab soldiers in jobs related to defence security. The Buddhist Sinhalese army under-recruits its Hindu Tamils for fear that their sympathies could lie with the Tamil Tigers. And After 9/11, US army recruiters would probably screen a Muslim American volunteer more thoroughly than a Christian American.

Composition of Indian Army
This under-representation of Muslims and other caste or regional groups benefits the over-represented ones. The composition of the Indian army is totally awry numbers-wise. West Bengal’s population is eight times that of Uttaranchal. But Uttaranchal provided almost the same number of army recruits as West Bengal almost every year. Compare a “martial” Punjab with a non-martial Gujarat. Punjab’s population is half that of Gujarat. But it provided four times as many people to the Indian army as Gujarat. The Indian army hired far more recruits in Rajasthan than in Tamil Nadu though Tamil Nadu’s population is higher. So basically, the Indian army is subjugated numbers-wise by Sikhs and Hindi-speaking Hindus of north India. This imperfect current status quo must go. Why Muslims are expected to wear patriotism on their sleeves and there is absolutely no reason to disbelieve or distrust people of this community. Muslims are as much Indian as any other in this country and have always stood firmly on the forefront whenever there’s a call of duty for the country. A few untoward stray incidents must not stand in account for the test of loyalty always, as because going by such biased benchmark it may initiate an awful precedent. As many such incidents had offenders, perpetrators who were not from the minority community.

This unwritten divisive law of mistrust and bias must go. But none of it will end until we help make these things end by taking some proactive steps. This current state of mind and pertinent approach will only lead to more divergence and separation between the largest minority (Muslims) and the ruling majority (Hindus). And the entire country will be perpetually distrustful, forever looking over our shoulders and living a life in fear, that fear framed by metal detectors, security cameras, and sharp glances at people who appear to be with grown beard and a skull cap. Hence in the end following the chart below will enlighten the vocabulary of the people who presume Muslims as alien or anti Indians.

Muslim soldiers who made India and community proud
The following chart divulges the names of some who made not only the community but the country proud:

Param Vir Chakra
Company Havildar Major Abdul Hamid, (4 Grenadiers)

Maha Vir Chakra
Mohammed Ismail: 1947-48 Operation
Brig. Mohammed Usman: Indo-Pakistan War

Kirti Chakra
2007: Mohd. Shan Ahmed (posthumous) was posted as Cash Overseer at post office Jhansi. On 26 December, 2005, resisted looting of cash and in the attempt succumbed to fatal injuries inflicted by armed miscreants. He belonged to Jhansi (UP).

2009:
Lance Havildar Aziz Mohd: 20 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles (Posthumous)
Sapper/Operator Executive Machinery Budhu Khan (Posthumous) Naik Mohd Sadiq

2008:
Rifleman Abdul Hamid Chara: 162 Infantry Battalion TA (H&H)JAK LI/18 Rashtriya Rifles(posthumous)

2007:
Rifleman Raiece Ahmad Ganaie: Jammy & Kashmir Light Infantry/50 Rashtriya Rifles

2006:
Havildar Mohammad Maroof: 23 Rajput Regiment,
Havildar Abrahim: Jammu And Kashmir Light Infantry/47 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Riyaz Ahmad Bhat: Assam Regiment/35 Rashtriya Rifles

Sena Medal (gallantry)

2009:
Havildar Ilyas Ali: 32 Assam Rifles
Lance Naik Javaid Ahmad Wani: Jamm and Kashmir Light Infantry// 44 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Mohamad Hadish: 24 Assam Rifles (Posthumous)

2008:
Subedar Mohd Rashid: Jammu and Kashmir Rifles/28 Rashtriya Rifles
Naik Mohammed Amin Bhat: Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry/62 Rashtriya Rifles
Sepoy Abdul Hamid: 153 Infantry Battalion (TA) Dogra
Sepoy Abdul Hamid: 156 Inf Bn TA (H&H) Punjab/58 Rashtriya Rifles
Sepoy Qumer-ud-din Beg: 156 Inf Bn TA (H&H) Punjab/58 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Ishtiaq Ahmed: Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry/18 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Mehmood Ahmed Itoo: Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry/33 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Mohd Yousaf Lone: 161 Infantry Battalion TA (H&H) JAK LI
Rifleman Mazafar Iqbal: 14 Assam Rifles

2007:
Captain Anas Ahmad: 19 Kumaon Regiment
Lance Naik Mehmood Shah: 3 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry
Sepoy Mohd Sharief: 159 Infantry Batallion (TA)(H&G) Dogra, 23 Rashtriya Rifles
Sepoy Jabir Khan: Mechanised Infantry/9 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Gohar Ali Khan: Jammu & Kashmir Light Infantry/19 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Mohammad Sayed Mantoo: Jammu & Kashmir Fiels/18 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Abdul Rahim Dar: 162 Infantry Battalion (TA) JAK LI/14 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Nazir Ahmad Wani: 162 Infantry Battalion (TA) JAK LI/14 Rashtriya Rifles
Rifleman Md Ibrahim Khan: 33 Assam Rifles

2006:
Company Havildar Major Mohammad Ashraf Sheikh: 22 Maratha Light Infantry.
Lance Naik Farooq Ahmad Rather: 20 Jammu And Kashmir Rifles

Param Vishisht Seva Medal
The Param Vishsish Seva Medal is awarded to recognize "distinguished service of the most exceptional order" to all ranks of the armed forces. In practice, however, the award tends to be granted only to the most senior officers of the various branches of the Indian military. The award may be granted posthumously and subsequent awards are represented by a bar worn on the ribbon. The award carries with it the right to use "P.V.S.M." as post nominal letters.

2008:
Lieutenant General Zameer uddin Shah, SM, VSM: Regiment of Artillery(General Cadre)
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal

2009:
Major General Syed Ata Hasnain, SM, VSM: Infantry: HQ 19 Infantry Division

Vishisht Seva Medal

2009:
Air Commodore Naseem Akhtar: Flying (Pilot)

2008:
Group Captain Zia Ahmad Rizvi: Logistics

Sena Medal

2009:
Brigadier Khurshid Maneck Balsara: Naga Regiment
Brigadier Pattiarimal Mohamadali Hariz, VSM: Mechanised Infantry/ HQ 91 Infantry Brigade

2008:
Colonel Steve Muzaffar Ismail: 2/1 Gorkha Rifles
Subedar Mohd Ilyas: 3, Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry Regimental Centre

Vayu Sena Medal (gallantry)

2009:
JWO Jawed Hussain Siddiqi, Flt Eng

2009:
Rakshak:
Lance/Naik Abdul Rashid Khan: Territorial Army, 5 Rashtriya Rifles
Rhino:
Captain Mudassar Iqbal: 2 Bihar


http://twocircles.net/2012mar13/when_will_indian_armed_forces_do_justice_muslims.html