Affirmative action exists for Indian Muslims, but it must be restructured to address the hierarchy within the community. It is Pasmanda Muslims who sit at the bottom.
The real problem lies in the widespread urge to take pride in the conquests of ancient rulers. Pasmanda Muslims must acknowledge that they have no connection to invaders of the past.
Mukhtar Ansari, Atiq Ahmed, Mohammad Shahabuddin did not rise to power on their own accord; rather, they were nurtured and supported by political parties serving their interests.
Ashraaf leaders seem indifferent to the concerns of Pasmanda Muslims. Instead, they exploit this marginalised group for electoral gains, trapping them in a narrative of perpetual victimhood.
Muslims—both Pasmandas and upper ‘castes’—want political representation at the national level, seats in universities, and govt job quotas. But they have different ideas on how to get it.
From blaming ‘lower’ caste Ansaris for the 1857 revolt to not allowing them into AMU, the university's founder Syed Ahmed Khan has, on many occasions, discriminated against Pasmandas.
Dalit Muslims and Christians have been mobilising to be duly added to the SC list. This is a fit case for the Supreme Court to exercise the power of judicial review.
BJP is drawing on legacy of ‘Pasmanda icon’ APJ Abdul Kalam for its outreach campaign for ‘backward’ Muslims. Party leaders say goal is to corner 50% vote share in Lok Sabha polls.
For an industry globally classified as hazardous, protections such as health insurance and a provident fund for workers are necessities. In Sivakasi, they remain elusive.
The industry forecasts exports are set to grow 16% in 2025-26, boosted by surplus domestic production and a drive to push into 26 underserved global markets with strong potential.
Indigenisation level will progressively increase up to 60 percent with key sub-assemblies, electronics and mechanical parts being manufactured locally.
It is a brilliant, reasonably priced, and mostly homemade aircraft with a stellar safety record; only two crashes in 24 years since its first flight. But its crash is a moment of introspection.
They are dumb. Not that the average Hindu is smart. But average Muslim is dumber. They support and oppose blindly, and are used by leftists, to bring in bad policies.
They are dumb. Not that the average Hindu is smart. But average Muslim is dumber. They support and oppose blindly, and are used by leftists, to bring in bad policies.
They are certainly not privileged, in any sense of the term. Have never understood what the word Appeasement means.