The Samajwadi Party government is likely to bring a Rssankalp’ (resolution) in the monsoon session of the state legislature to reaffirm its commitment for implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendation on Multi Sectoral Development Plan (MSDP).
The thrust of the resolution is likely to be on providing reservations to Muslims in government jobs. The implementation of the MSDP commenced in UP in 2007-08 and a provision of Rs 1,015 crore was made for it in the 11th Five Year Plan.
Official sources said the resolution to be moved in the Assembly by Minority Affairs Minister Azam Khan would be a statement of intent of the government to implement the report, which recommends 20 per cent reservations for Muslims.
The reservations will be not just in government jobs but also in tenders and state government schemes.
According to highly-placed sources, the Minority Welfare department is preparing a blueprint for the implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendation and it will be unveiled during the monsoon session of the state legislature beginning on Friday.
The blueprint will focus on improving the educational standards of Muslims with emphasis on upgrading schools in Muslim-dominated areas.
Separate secondary schools will be opened for Muslim girls from Classes 9 to 12 and majority of teachers in these schools will be women.
“We understand that Muslim girls are not too comfortable in interacting with male teachers and majority of the girls drop out of school that have co-education,” said an official in the Minority Welfare department.
The state government is also mulling the idea of introducing Urdu as a medium of instruction at the primary level in schools that have a large number of Muslim students.
The admissions under the Right to Education Act is also being lowered to class 7 level instead of the earlier class 10 level and children studying in madrasas will also be allowed to avail the RTE benefits.
The Akhilesh Yadav government further plans to provide hostel facilities to students in major institutions.
Besides, the government will appoint more Muslims as assistant teachers in school. “We are also negotiating with banks to provide easy educational loans to Muslim students so that bright students from the community may pursue higher education,” the official added.
To improve the social condition of Muslims, the state government is planning to open more health centres in areas that have a sizeable Muslim population.
The state government also wants to increase the participation of Muslims in politics and may moot reservation of seats for the community.
“We want Muslims to lead their own community and this is possible only when they start taking a keen interest in politics. The vote-bank politics will also come to an end once Muslims become their own decision-makers,” said a senior state minister.
The idea behind moving a resolution in the Vidhan Sabha is to send a clear message to Muslims that the Samajwadi Party is the sole custodian of their interests.
The Samajwadi Party, sources say, are wary of the entry of the Owaisi brothers in UP politics and are, therefore, trying to stitch up loose ends so that the Owaisis do not make a dent in its Muslim vote-bank.
When asked about the proposed resolution in the Assembly, Minority Welfare department Secretary SP Singh said “it’s a top confidential matter and cannot be shared with the media”.
Principal Secretary of the Assembly, Pradeep Dube, said as per Rule 86 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the UP legislative Assembly, 1958, a prior notice has to be submitted to the Assembly secretariat seven days before commencement of the Assembly session.
“So far the secretariat has no information about the resolution. For the government, the rules can be relaxed and it can also be 24 hours,” Dube said.
The Samajwadi Party, in its election manifesto for the March 2012 Assembly polls, had promised that those recommendations of the Sachar Committee thay could be implemented by the state government would go through, and, for the remaining recommendations, like reservation in jobs, the party would exert pressure on the Centre for their implementation.
In its manifesto for the May 2014 lok Sabha elections also, the SP had promised to implement the Sacchar Committee recommendations for the welfare of Muslim. The party also promised that Urdu mediym schools would be opened in Muslim-dominated areas, besides free coaching to Muslim student and 15 per cent jobs in police. The SP had also promised 20 per cent job reservation for Muslims in state services.
The Sachar panel was set up by the then Congress-led UPA government in 2005 to prepare the latest report on the social, economic and educational conditions of the Muslim community in the country.