Muslim religious organizations, educational institutes celebrate R-Day

By TCN News,

Patna: Along with the nation, Muslim religious organizations and educational institutes across the country also celebrated 6oth Republic Day with traditional enthusiasm. Various religious organizations and educational institutes in Patna and New Delhi hoisted Tiranga and held special programs.




The official celebration in Bihar’s capital city of Patna, with parade and spectacular displays from different departments of the state government, was held at historic Gandhi Maidan in the heart of the city, institutions, schools, colleges, universities and many other places also witnessed several interesting programs.



Muslim religious organizations, schools and educational institutions in the city were also seen in the same tone and colour to mark the special day. Besides Tiranga hoisting, the great sacrifice of the freedom fighters who laid down their lives for the sovereignty of the country was remembered on the occasion.
Maulana Anisur Rahman Qasmi, secretary of the Imarat, hoisted the national flag at headquarter of Imarat-e-Shariah in Phulwari Shareef, wherein a number of madarsas students participated.



The celebration at Millat Urdu High School in the city started with flag hoisting which followed by singing national songs ‘Jana Gana Mana’ and Sare Jahan Se Accha Hindustan Hamara.’ The students of the school also presented cultural program.



A similar program was organized at Al-Asr Public School where Muslim teenagers paid homage to the martyrs of freedom movement and delivered speeches on different topics.



In New Delhi, there was something special to see at a private Muslim school. Shaheen Kausar, principal, New Vision Public School, hoisted the Tiranga with students and lady teachers covering dupatta or in Niqab standing in respect to the National Flag and the National Anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana.’

(With inputs from Mumtaz Alam Falahi in New Delhi and Manzar Bilal in Patna)

Report card: Muslim Rajya Sabha MPs outperform LS counterparts

By TCN News,

New Delhi: Muslim Members of Lok Sabha (Lower House of Indian Parliament) have again disappointed their constituencies as well as the community as majority of them remained tight-lipped not asking any question during the November-December 2009 Winter Session.

The session ran from November 11 to December 21 with 21 working days. According to official data available by January 2, 2010, of 30 Muslim Members of Lok Sabha 19 did not ask any question. However, once again, Asaduddin Owaisi, lone MP of All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslemeen (AIMIM) from Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh) laughed his way to the constituency retaining leadership of Muslim MPs with 41 questions.


This is the second time when TwoCircles.net is presenting the report card on the performance of Muslim MPs in the Parliament – the highest legislative body of the country – before the community and the country. No other media, Muslim or otherwise, has ever presented such report card. That’s why our last report card on July-August 2009 session of Parliament got much accolade from public and created flutter among some Muslim parliamentarians.


During the recent Winter Session, while 19 Muslim Lok Sabha Members did not ask any question, Asaduddin Owaisi asked the most – 41. This despite the fact that he was among the 32 MPs because of whose absence on November 30, 2009 the Question Hour was cancelled. These 32 MPs had questions listed against their name but were absent.


In good performance Owaisi is followed by BJP’s Syed Shahnawaz Hussain (Bhagalpur, Bihar) with 27 questions. Others whose questions touched double figure are J M Aron Rashid of Congress (19), M I Shanavas (Congress) 16, Monazir Hsasan of JD-U (11) and Badruddin Ajmal of AUDF (10).

As the ruling Congress has more Muslim MPs (11) in the present Lok Sabha, the party also has the largest share of ‘onlooker’ MPs (9 of 19 non-performers). Except J M Aron Rashid and M I Shanavas, all other MPs of the party – majority from North India including Asrarul Haq Qasmi and Muhammad Azharuddin, preferred to be silent.


BSP is the second top low performer as all four Muslim MPs of the party did not ask any question. The ranking is shared by Trinamool Congress (3 MPs) and Muslim League (2 MPs) – both parties are partners of the ruling alliance -- who also remained silent.


The session ran for 21 days. There were four Muslim MPs who remained present in the House on all these days but only two of them asked question -- BJP’s Syed Shahnawaz Hussain (21 questions) and Sk Saidul Haq of CPM (9 questions), the other two – Ismail Hussain (Cong) and Shafiqur Rahman Barq (BSP) did not have any question to ask.

The lowest performer in attendance was Mausam Noor of Congress (4 days).

Type of Questions

Questions are of three types:-

Starred, Unstarred and Short Notice Questions

A Starred Question is one to which a member desires an oral answer in the House and which is distinguished by an asterisk mark. When a question is answered orally, supplementary questions can be asked thereon. Only 20 questions can be listed for oral answer on a day.

An Unstarred Question: is one which is not called for oral answer in the House and on which no supplementary questions can consequently be asked. To such a question, a written answer is deemed to have been laid on the Table after the Question Hour by the Minister to whom it is addressed. It is printed in the official report of the sitting of the House for which it is put down. Only 230 questions can be listed for written answer on a day.

A Short Notice Question is one which relates to a matter of urgent public importance and can be asked with shorter notice than the period of notice prescribed for an ordinary question. Like a starred question, it is answered orally followed by supplementary questions.

---

Name: Mr Abdul Wahab Peevee
Age: 59
Conctituency: Kerala
Party name: Muslim League

Questions asked during session Nov-Dec

Full Report

Muslims in Manipur: A look at their socio-economic condition

By Mudassir Rizwan, TwoCircles.net,



Muslims who are also called Pangal in local terminology came to the Manipuri region in the late 16th or early 17th century. They are also called Meitei-Pangal which means indigenized and acculturated or simply Manipuri Muslims. They settled in this land earlier than many other communities.



They have since remained part and parcel of Manipuri society. They were very much part of the various ups and downs witnessed by the region, as it evolved from its tribal nature to its present status.





As per the Census 2001 Muslims constitute 7% of the total population of the state. They are settled in different pockets such as Lilong, Yairipok, Sangaiyumpham, Kshetrigao, Moirang, Mayang Imphal, Thoubal, Bishenpur, Chandel and Churachandpur. A section of the Muslims in the state also are migrants from Bihar and UP.



The present socio-economic condition of the Pangals or Muslims in Manipur is pathetic. At least this is what one concludes from the statistics provided by the All-Manipur Muslim United Coordinating Committee (AMMUCOC), a Muslim representative body in the state.



According to the Muslim body, the literacy rate among Muslims is 58.6 percent (male 75 percent and female 41.6 percent) much below the state’s average of 70.5 percent (male 80.3 percent and female 60.5 percent).

Out of 1,35,000 people (the Muslim population in the state ) by the end of the year 1995 there were only 5,704 matriculates, 1,822 graduates in addition to 86 technical and professional graduates.

There are only 51 Class I Muslim officers including three women, 101 Class II officers and 1,270 and 1,663 employees belonging to Class III and IV categories respectively.



At the root of their pathetic condition, as the community leaders feel, is the fact that the successive governments have done nothing worthwhile to uplift the community educationally and economically.



It is evident from the fact that the twenty-nine officially recognized tribal groups have 20-seats exclusively reserved for them in the 60-member Manipur state assembly and up to 31 percent reservation in all government jobs.



But by contrast Muslims have been forced to recoil in their own ghettos without any kind of help from the government.



Although in December 2006 Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh did announce a four percent reservation policy for the Muslim community in government jobs. But this half hearted announcement hasn't bore satisfactory results.



Their subhuman living condition is characterized by ethnic rivalry. Rivalry between Pangals and Meiteis.



Meiteis are the privileged majority community of the state. They are the most educated and economically well-off community. The clash between them and the Pangals (Muslims) in 1993 is one of the well etched communal scars in the history of Muslims in the state.





TCN talked to Sitara Begum, President of All Manipur Muslims Women Development Organization (AIMMWDO). According to her it started due to wild rumors and misunderstanding between Meiteis and Meitei Muslims.



Although an altercation did take place between the Muslim groups and the Meitei youths belonging to People's Republican Army (PRA), the neighboring Meitei villagers spread the rumors of molestation of some Meitei girls by the Meitei Muslims.



In the riot which followed the rumors, 150 Muslims and 4 Meiteis died in the valley districts and 149 were injured. One hundred and one cases were registered by the police and 423 persons arrested in connection with the incident.



Fortunately, it ended abruptly though healing of wounds took a bit long.

And it is because of this fight between two unequal groups that according to Institute of Peace & Conflict Studies, North East India, militant Muslim groups like the People's United Liberation Front (PULF), Islamic Revolutionary Front (IRF), Islamic National Front (INF), United Islamic Revolutionary Army (UIRA) and United Islamic Liberation Army (UILA) came into existence in Manipur to protect their communities after the Meitei-Pangal clash that took 150 Muslim lives in 1993.



TCN talked to Azimuddin Choudhary, about the socio-economic conditions of the Muslims in the state. Mr. Choudhary is the General Secretary of Markaz Maarif and also runs a madarsa in Lolang.



He too expressed concern over pathetic socio-economic condition of the Muslims in the state. He stressed that they are in urgent need of quality education and economic empowerment.

So it is high time that the government must take concrete measures to ensure fair participation of Muslims in the economic and social mainstream. Otherwise the day is not far when they will be reduced to non-entity.


(With inputs from Delhi-based journalist Md. Ali)

Link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meitei_people#External_links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangal#External_links

Report card: Majority of Muslim Lok Sabha MPs remain silent, Owaisi again leader

By TCN News,

New Delhi: Muslim Members of Lok Sabha (Lower House of Indian Parliament) have again disappointed their constituencies as well as the community as majority of them remained tight-lipped not asking any question during the November-December 2009 Winter Session.

The session ran from November 11 to December 21 with 21 working days. According to official data available by January 2, 2010, of 29 Muslim Members of Lok Sabha 18 did not ask any question. However, once again, Asaduddin Owaisi, lone MP of All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslemeen (AIMIM) from Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh) laughed his way to the constituency retaining leadership of Muslim MPs with 41 questions.


This is the second time when TwoCircles.net is presenting the report card on the performance of Muslim MPs in the Parliament – the highest legislative body of the country – before the community and the country. No other media, Muslim or otherwise, has ever presented such report card. That’s why our last report card on July-August 2009 session of Parliament got much accolade from public and created flutter among some Muslim parliamentarians.


During the recent Winter Session, while 18 Muslim Lok Sabha Members did not ask any question, Asaduddin Owaisi asked the most – 41. This despite the fact that he was among the 32 MPs because of whose absence on November 30, 2009 the Question Hour was cancelled. These 32 MPs had questions listed against their name but were absent.


In good performance Owaisi is followed by BJP’s Syed Shahnawaz Hussain (Bhagalpur, Bihar) with 27 questions. Others whose questions touched double figure are J M Aron Rashid of Congress (19), M I Shanavas (Congress) 16, Monazir Hsasan of JD-U (11) and Badruddin Ajmal of AUDF (10).

As the ruling Congress has more Muslim MPs (10) in the present Lok Sabha, the party also has the largest share of ‘onlooker’ MPs (8 of 18 non-performers). Except J M Aron Rashid and M I Shanavas, all other MPs of the party – majority from North India including Asrarul Haq Qasmi and Muhammad Azharuddin, preferred to be silent.


BSP is the second top low performer as all four Muslim MPs of the party did not ask any question. The ranking is shared by Trinamool Congress (3 MPs) and Muslim League (2 MPs) – both parties are partners of the ruling alliance -- who also remained silent.


The session ran for 21 days. There were four Muslim MPs who remained present in the House on all these days but only two of them asked question -- BJP’s Syed Shahnawaz Hussain (21 questions) and Sk Saidul Haq of CPM (9 questions), the other two – Ismail Hussain (Cong) and Shafiqur Rahman Barq (BSP) did not have any question to ask.

The lowest performer in attendance was Mausam Noor of Congress (4 days).

Type of Questions

Questions are of three types:-

Starred, Unstarred and Short Notice Questions


A Starred Question is one to which a member desires an oral answer in the House and which is distinguished by an asterisk mark. When a question is answered orally, supplementary questions can be asked thereon. Only 20 questions can be listed for oral answer on a day.

An Unstarred Question: is one which is not called for oral answer in the House and on which no supplementary questions can consequently be asked. To such a question, a written answer is deemed to have been laid on the Table after the Question Hour by the Minister to whom it is addressed. It is printed in the official report of the sitting of the House for which it is put down. Only 230 questions can be listed for written answer on a day.

A Short Notice Question is one which relates to a matter of urgent public importance and can be asked with shorter notice than the period of notice prescribed for an ordinary question. Like a starred question, it is answered orally followed by supplementary questions.

---

Name: Mr. Abdul Mannan Hossain
Age: 57
Constituency: Murshidabad (West Bengal )
Party name: Indian National Congress(INC)

No of days present : 08/21

No. of questions: 0

[The report has been compiled by Mudassir Rizwan of TwoCircles.net Patna Correspondent]

More

Patna police uprooting Muslim traders selling cane-made items, govt. silent

By Manzar Bilal and Mudassir Rizwan, TwoCircles.net,

Patna: Abdul Jalil (30) has been selling cane chairs and sofas made with cane in his open-air shop near Gandhi Maidan in Patna for years. Himself an expert in making cane-made items, Jalil has 10 employees to meet the demand for his items. His father has been doing this business for the last 40 years and following into his footsteps, Abdul Jalil along with his three brothers adopted the same trade.

He originally hails from Gaya district in Bihar but lives with his family in Phulwari Shareef area in Patna – the capital city. He has been able to earn Rs.10000-15000 per month which, according to him, goes up to 20000 in season such as in January-February in which demand for the products increases.





Abdul Jalil says their sofas and other cane items are bought not only by the people in the state but they are also transported to other parts of the country. Thus they were able to get better income.





Jalil is not alone in the trade in that area. In fact, there are several dozens of businessmen – almost all of them Muslims – who are involved in the trade and running shops like Jalil’s. Everything was going fine for them till a few weeks ago. But now they are much worried about their future.





About one month ago – all of a sudden, without giving any notice – the Patna Police forcibly stopped them from selling their goods at that place where they have been for decades, without giving them any alternate place. This ‘anti-encroachment’ or ‘city beautification’ drive has snatched the livelihood of hundreds of people.


“For the last one month the local police are not permitting us to open our shops. Police come here many times in a day and if they find any sofa at roadside, they beat the owner and also take the sofa with them. There is no surety that the owner will get back the item from the police station. Thus they lose at least Rs. 5000 which is a big loss for people like us. Therefore, we are frightened and put our goods inside the streets,” Abdul Jalil told TCN.





It is not only Abdul Jalil but there are many shopkeepers who told the same tale. They have been putting their shops everyday at roadside to sell the cane items. They buy cane from the market and made different types of beautiful pieces of furniture like sofas, chairs and tables. Some of them make these items at their homes and put here for sale while some others prepare it here itself.


Mashooq Alam, another sofa-maker and lone bread earner for his family, said: “I am doing this business for the last 18 years. I learnt it from my late father. My three children are pursuing education in schools and I have been fulfilling their needs from this business. But now it is getting difficult as police disturb us every day. They stopped us from opening our shops at the place where we have been doing the business for decades but they are not giving us any alternate place for our business.”





25-year-old Muzaffar Alam also seemed somehow worried. He said that just two years ago he started this business and was happy with it but now he is getting nervous as he has little saving to set up his shop in a new place as police is not allowing him to do the business here.


While we were talking to them, a police jeep arrived and traders got frightened. Some of them fled the scene leaving their shops at the mercy of the policemen. Some of them later said that though their shops were inside the street they feared the police would beat them.



Mashooq Alam


Whether the government will provide these traders with any alternative or just continue letting the police terrify them – and make money in the process – is to be seen.











Police jeep