Indian Muslims: Challenges and Opportunities

The barren desert of south west Asia has given birth to 3 Abrahamic religions in which Islam is most hyped, dominant and static religion. Indian Muslim constitutes around 13.6% of India’s population and inspite of being the largest minority they are comparable, some time even worse, to SCs by all means of socio economic indicators. Though there are numerous movements which preached to improve the condition of backwards and dalits but unfortunately there is none by and for Muslims.

The Divide et impera policy of Britishers has created the gulf between Hindus and Muslims and the composite culture (and Ganga-Jamuna tehjib), which evolved over centuries and which we inherited from mighty Mughals, was destroyed and ruined with in no time. After the independence, Indian Muslims are being seen as the main culprits of partition by Hindu fundamentalists. This prejudice has created the feeling of in group and out group amongst the Muslims in India. Since independence, due to partition, they are misperceived as a separate group, the interests of which is not seen as same as that of Hindus. Our politicians, who became king (from slaves) overnight, encashed this misperceived conflict of interests between Hindus and Muslims and further widened this gulf and since then they have never been channelized into the main stream of India.

 

Thus the basic problem with Muslims in India happens to be the illusion of identity. They are more interested in maintaining their identity than anything else even some time sacrificing their own socio economic interests. This misperceived conflict of interest has made few shrewd politicians CMs, PMs but the real cause of Indian Muslims was never politicized in the same way as that of Dalits and backwards in India.

Though the periodic steps taken by the government, in the form of Sacchar committee, Rang Nath Mishra committee, minority commission etc, may help them in winning the parliamentarian debates over opposition but the real emancipation of poor fellows would remain a distant dream. Moreover Indian Muslims will continue to live and remain in destitute poverty as long as they would be guided by the leaders who are more interested in satiating their own political ambitions and who treats Muslims no more than a means to earn power.

The real solution of their agony lies in their own political determination. Rather than being guided by such conventional political leaders, they should launch their own version of Mandal movement and that too in consonance with fellow Hindus. This will not only ameliorate the prejudice among both communities but also would help in their empowerment. Muslims in India enjoy a unique position. They have been rulers here, they have been ruled and now they are sharers in power (of course, junior partners). They are not in majority but they are also not negligible minority. Rather than being the mute spectator, they should be proactive towards day to day problems of India. Muslims in India have yet to react on the problems of national and social interests and problems which are secular in nature.

In due course they may have to make some sacrifices too, as the cost  of being largest minority but this would prove beneficial for their own socio economic development in long term.
Because as they say “When Prophet Mohammad entered into a treaty with the rival group at Hudayliyah, it appeared to be abject surrender even to his staunch supporters. However the Quran described that as clear victory and it did prove so. Within a short span there from Muslims entered the Mecca as victors, and not a drop of blood was shed."  

India as compared to China.

There is hardly any doubt that China is far ahead than any developing economy including India. Pathetic infrastructure, terrifying unskilled population, wide rampant corruption, naxalite problem is the few factors which pulls India way behind China. But if we look at future prospect, scenario is very different.

China's rise is more because of manufacturing revolution while India’s because of services sector. To counter this, India is coming with a new plan of establishing NMIZs (National Manufacturing and Investment Zone) for repeating the success of services and making India a manufacturing hub. This will try to address the problems regarding inflexible labour laws, infrastructural bottlenecks, FDI inflows and such other problems. Further, India has already established the National Skill Development Corporation to tap the demographic dividend of the country. Huge and massive investment in to infrastructure is planned and will surely erode the infrastructural bottlenecks to a larger extent.

Beside other factors, one major factor which contributes towards China's phenomenal rise is the absence of venues which can offer them stiff competition in terms of investment. As they say, it is much easier to enter into China but very difficult to operate in China. Google controversy is not hidden and manifests this fact. Now when a country i.e. India, the largest democracy, the oldest continuing civilization on the face of earth, is slowly but steadily marking its presence felt, it is not very difficult to imagine where India will share this space with authoritative and communist china .

Moreover, most of the western countries are becoming sick of industrial productions because of rising concern of climate change, aging population and dwindling profit at home. This would certainly make these plants to shift to newer and much profitable places. And no place will be more lucrative than democratic India with largest young and English speaking population.

Since the manufacturing sector requires huge raw materials, it would be very difficult to sustain this higher growth with the domestic raw materials and resources in future. This will enable the China and other countries including India and other emerging economies to look for the raw material away from their homes. This will generate huge competition among the developing nations, eroding the competitive advantage of China.

Moreover, India’s strategic location in the Indian ocean, places India in much better position than China in exploiting the raw material and other resources from Africa , Australia, southwest and south east Asia. India is being encouraged by various ASEAN members to actively participate in their region to counterbalance the rising presence of China. Further, various south west Asian countries are actively being encouraged to invest their oil earned forex in India.Further, the friendly and old cordial relation with mineral rich Russia would also an advantage for India in near future

Further, as far as service sector is concern, India, with largest English speaking population in world, will continue to climb the ladder much faster than any country across the globe.

Moreover, it is not all about becoming the super power and comparison of growth rates rather it is the comparison of both the nation as a whole. It is impossible not to be astonished by India. Nowhere on the face of Earth does humanity present itself in such a dizzying, creative burst of cultures and religions, races and tongues. Enriched by successive waves of migration and marauders from distant lands, every one of them left an indelible imprint which was absorbed into the Indian way of life. Every aspect of the country presents itself on a massive, exaggerated scale, worthy in comparison only to the superlative mountains that overshadow it. It is this variety which provides a breathtaking ensemble for experiences that is uniquely Indian. Perhaps the only thing more difficult than to be indifferent to India would be to describe or understand India completely. There are perhaps very few nations in the world with the enormous variety that India has to offer. Modern day India represents the largest democracy in the world with a seamless picture of unity in diversity unparalleled anywhere else.

As rightly said by Mark Twain, “India is, the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most instructive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only”.