HYDERABAD: Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) chief and member of parliament Asaduddin Owaisi Sunday urged the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to take immediate steps for providing reservations to Muslims across the country, saying any talk of bringing the community into the mainstream and doing justice to them without giving them quota will be "loose talk".Welcoming the recent statement of Union Law and Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid that the government was contemplating reservations for Muslims, Owaisi said many things need to be done for any concrete development of the community at the grassroot level."I am not saying reservations fpr Muslims will be a panacea for all the problems but it will be a major contributing factor towards overall development of Muslims," he told reporters here.Khurshid had last week indicated that the government would study the model of Andhra Pradesh, where Muslims have been provided four percent reservations in government jobs and education.Owaisi, a member of the Lok Sabha from Hyderabad, wanted the government to immediately implement the report of Justice Ranganath Mishra, who recommended 15 percent reservations for the minorities including 10 percent for Muslims."It is very unfortunate that the government tabled the report in parliament without an action taken report. A commission's report can't be and should not be tabled without an action taken report," he said.Owaisi said in the coming days and years, the Mishra commission's report would be a major electoral issue for Muslims.The MIM chief asked the government to grant the status of Dalits to Christians and Muslims by amending a 1950 presidential order as recommended by Ranganath Mishra.Terming the 1950 order a "communal law" he said it contravenes fundamental rights enshrined in the Indian constitution."The order says only a Hindu, a Buddhist and a Sikh can be Dalit. A Muslim and a Christian can't be a Dalit. You can't deny Dalit status to a Muslim just because I follow the religion of Islam," he said while empahsising the need to take steps like amending the order to bring a change.Owaisi also lamented that majority of the recommendations of Sachar Committee were not implemented even five years after the report was tabled in the Parliament.The committee was formed to look into socio-economic and educational status of Muslims."The major recommendations include creation of Equal Opportunities Commission and creation of diversity index. The commission bill has been made but the debate is still on which ministry should take up the commission."The Muslim leader hoped that districts from Andhra Pradesh would also be declared Minority Concentration Districts (MCDs) for multi-sectoral development in the 12th five year plan as the minority welfare minister has assured to correct the anomalies in the criteria for declaring a district MCD.Acting on the report of Sachar committee, the government has declared 90 districts across the country as MCDs during 11th five year plan (2007-12). No district from Andhra Pradesh was included in the list.Owaisi also announced that a report on the status of Muslims in Andhra Pradesh would be released on Sep 27.Abusaleh Shariff, a renowned economist who also served as member secretary of Sachar Committee, has studied the conditions of Muslims in the state and prepared the report at the request of MIM president.Shariff had earlier prepared reports on the status of Muslims in Gujarat and West Bengal.
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