NEW DELHI: A authorities panel report on the rise in Muslim inhabitants within the nation kicked up a political slugfest on Thursday with the ruling BJP concentrating on the Congress on its pitch for giving reservation to the minority group and the opposition accusing the saffron get together of making an attempt to create a communal divide amid ongoing parliamentary elections. This got here after a latest working paper by the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) stated the share of the Hindu inhabitants decreased by 7.82 per cent between 1950 and 2015 in India, whereas that of Muslims elevated by 43.15 per cent, suggesting that there’s a conducive atmosphere within the nation to foster range.
The paper titled ‘Share of Religious Minorities: A Cross-Country Analysis (1950-2015)’ additional stated the share of Jains within the inhabitants of India decreased from 0.45 per cent in 1950 to 0.36 per cent in 2015. Latching on to the report, the BJP expressed concern over the tempo of enhance in Muslim inhabitants within the nation and puzzled its influence on the reservation offered to SCs, STs and OBCs, claiming the Congress is “hell bent” on offering quota to the minority group if voted to energy.
“If you see the 1951 census, Hindus were having 88 per cent population and Muslims 9.5 per cent. In the 2011 census, Hindus (population) reduced to 79.8 percent from 80 percent while Muslims’ percentage went up by more than 14.5,” BJP nationwide spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi informed PTI, when requested for remark.
“But, the question arises that if by this pace the population is increasing and Congress is hell bent upon giving reservation to the Muslims on the basis of population, they will cut the share of the SCs, STs and the OBCs,” he added. Trivedi stated the Congress, if voted to energy, will then carry on “changing” the share of reservation in future with enhance within the Muslim inhabitants, “which is more likely because they (Muslims) are having possibility of multiple marriages”.
Muslims share within the reservation will carry on growing additionally due to “conversion and infiltration because they are having a secular cover from them (the Congress)”, he claimed. Hitting again, the opposition leaders accused the BJP of making an attempt to create communal divide over the report amid ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
CPI common secretary D Raja and RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav slammed the Union authorities for not conducting the census, and known as the working paper by the EAC-PM an try and get votes by creating strife. “Why has the PM’s economic advisory council come out with this report at a time when the country is going for elections?” he requested. “The prime minister is already trying to polarise people in the name of Muslims, talking about handing over keys of Ram Mandir to Muslims… He is taking up all such issues. That means there is an attempt to polarise people by bringing out such data. People should be cautious of such reports,” Raja alleged.
Slamming the BJP over the report, Yadav stated, “The census that was to happen in 2020-21 has not been done till now, it’s 2024.” “Their (BJP) aim is only to mislead the people of the country and to spread hatred. This is the agenda of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP. They have fooled people of this country for ten years, and they want to do that again,” the RJD chief charged.
Samajwadi Party MP ST Hassan additionally flayed the BJP over the report and stated its a conspiracy to create hatred and polarise the voters. “It’s election time. Any report can come… Modi ji is rattled,” he informed PTI. Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar stated the EAC-PM’s report raises many questions as a result of one explicit group is “increasing its population in a manner where demography of India is being altered, changed”.
“How much of this growth in Muslim community (population) is being caused by illegal immigration and conversion?…What will be the consequence when you have the Muslim community increasing its population so rapidly, from 9 per cent to 14.5 per cent and there are political forces that want to give them reservation?” he requested.
Union minister Giriraj Singh alleged that Hindu inhabitants within the nation has gone down because of the Congress’ politics of appeasement. “Hindu population is decreasing, Muslim population is increasing… It shows that in the days to come, they want to make India an Islamic state,” he charged. Amid debate over EAC-PM’s report, Population Foundation of India, a non-government organisation, stated the inhabitants development charges will not be linked to faith and the overall fertility fee (TFR) amongst all non secular teams is declining, with the very best lower noticed amongst Muslims.
