This programme aims to monitor the implementation of 24 different schemes of Government of India (of 11 Ministries/Departments) and to see that equitable share of the schemes (except those schemes, which are implemented by the Ministry of Minority Affairs and exclusively meant for the welfare of minority communities) is spent for the welfare of minority communities.
Funds are allocated for different schemes by the respective Ministries/Departments. The target setting and their implementation for welfare of minorities is monitored by Ministry of Minority Affairs, being Nodal Ministry for implementation of 15 PP. Owing to the complexity of the programme and its wide reach, wherever possible, the concerned Ministries/Departments earmark 15% of the targets/outlays for minorities in areas with substantial minority population. These are (all funded through the budget of the concerned Ministries/Departments):
Besides above, various schemes being implemented for minorities by the Ministry of Minority Affairs are also included in the Programme, in which 100% of funds are utilised for the welfare of minority communities. These include:
A total of Rs. 2,534.53 crore have been expended during 2014-15 against these schemes, exclusively for the minorities by the Ministry of Minority Affairs.
Further, there are some other schemes included in the programme for which flow of fund to minority concentration areas is quantified, which include (all funded through the budget of the concerned Ministries/Departments):
Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) – Ministry of Urban Development
National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) – Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation
On implementation of these schemes, most of the people living in such minority concentration areas would be benefited although.
In addition to above, there are some special initiatives included in the Prime Minister’s New 15 Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities, which are as under (all funded through the budget of the concerned Ministries/Departments):
The Government has also issued instructions/guidelines regarding protection of minority interests. These are:
These are meant for the benefit of minority communities.
The details of the status of implementation of these schemes, along with physical and financial targets fixed and achieved, wherever applicable, are available on the website of the Ministry of Minority Affairs i.e. www.minorityaffairs.gov.in and on the websites of concerned Ministries/ Departments implementing the schemes.
This information was given by Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, the Minister of State for Minority Affairs in response to a written question in Rajya Sabha today. (INN)
]]>After launching of signature initiatives ‘Smart city,’ ‘Digital India’ and ‘Make in India,’ massive efforts are underway to tap the untapped renewable energy resources-mainly solar power. Official sources said the Ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) currently pushing solar city programme to reduce dependence on fossil fuel based energy has selected 50 cities to be developed as solar centres. Of these, 44 cities have already prepared master plans. Stakeholder committees have been formed in all the 50 selected cities.The programme entails that the selected cities will have to ensure desired level of generation from renewable energy resources .
India’s huge and vibrant market of 1.25 billion people has triggered interest among foreign players. Union Minister for Power and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, on completion of one year in office, said that steps were afoot to accomplish Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aim of ensuring 24×7 power to all and RE sector would play a major role. At least a dozen nations have signed MoUs to work with India in the development of renewable energy in past few years.During his recent visit to France, Mr Modi laid thrust on India’s vision towards solar energy. French companies are working in the solar sector here and they aim at contributing in a big way. President Francois Hollande has already conveyed France’s commitment to develop clean energy here.
If the goals set for the solar energy are realised, the country will surpass Germany which is a global leader in solar power generation by producing three times higher energy from the discipline. Though technology is getting cheaper , experts feel that the sector might be a game changer so the government should revisit its policy of financing of projects. They feel that at present India RE projects are financed for 10-12 years with an annual interest rate of 12-13 per cent while in Europe and US, the projects are funded for 17-18 years with an interest rate of 4-5 per cent.
To make 100 GW ( giga watt )solar energy target a reality, an ambitious scheme of creating sector skills has been launched recently under which 1,00,000-“Surya Mitras” will be trained to help achieve scaled up objectives and service the arena . Experts feel that the RE sector will create one million jobs by 2022 as the government has scaled up the target which includes100 GW from the solar sector and 60 GW from the wind energy by 2022. Various states are coming up with their own plans of regulatory norms and other policies. Almost every day, states are coming up with solar plant announcements as well as commencements.
The world’s largest solar project is going to be set up in Rewa ,which will have 750 MW capacity plant spread over 1,500 hectares of land. Similarly, M Chinnaswamy stadium in Karnataka has emerged as yet another hallmark of grid connected solar roof top system ,now luring others to follow suit. It has now 400KW of net metered rooftops power plant.About two dozen states have notified net metering policy, laced with incentives to promote the rooftop solar plants connected with grid.The net metering is the process through which discoms will generate bills to solar power plant owners as per consumption and credit will be given to the consumer of contribution to the gird is higher than the consumption.
In some areas in the national capital,the phenomenon is catching up,say experts ,contesting the perception that solar power is back up in case of regular breakdowns outage and insist that it is going to be hassle free power. Plagued by outages, increasing power tariffs , corruption in power companies, the aam aadmi is evincing keen interest in solar power –technology which was costly a few years back. Even in remote places kiosks selling solar panels can be spotted. Small LED bulbs are emerging another attraction among consumers.
A retired central government employee, Harish Chandra Bhardwaj, appeared upbeat by spotting such kiosks near his village Samadha in mofussil Unnao in Uttar Pradesh.” Solar power is becoming lucrative among poor people who buy some panels to harness the energy to recharge their mobiles and one or two lights in the house,” he asserts admitting cost is to be brought down.
In upscale colonies, RWAs now mull over installation of common solar powered system instead of going for big gen sets.At a number of public meetings, the Prime Minister recently put his government’s approval to step up of solar power capacity target under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) by five times.The target will principally comprise of 40 GW Rooftop and 60 GW through Large and Medium Scale Grid Connected Solar Power Projects. With this ambitious target, India will become one of the largest Green Energy producers in the world, surpassing several developed countries.
The total investment in setting up 100 GW will be around Rs. 6,00,000 crore. In the first phase, the Government is providing Rs. 15,050 crore as capital subsidy to promote solar capacity addition, official sources say. This capital subsidy will be provided for Rooftop Solar projects in various cities and towns, for Viability Gap Funding (VGF) based projects to be developed through the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and for decentralised generation through small solar projects.
Official sources said the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) intends to achieve the aim of 1,00,000 MW with targets under the three schemes of 19,200 MW. Apart from this, solar power projects with investment of about Rs. 90,000 crore would be developed using Bundling mechanism with thermal power. Further investment will come from large Public Sector Undertakings and Independent Power Producers (IPPs). State Governments have also come out with State specific solar policies to promote solar capacity addition.
JNNSM was launched in 2009 with a target for Grid Connected Solar Projects of 20,000 MW by 2022. In the last two to three years, the sector has witnessed rapid development with installed solar capacity increasing rapidly from 18 MW to about 3800 MW during 2010-15. The price of solar energy has come down significantly from Rs 17.90 per unit in 2010 to under Rs 7 per unit, thereby reducing the need of VGF/ GBI (Generation based incentive) per MW of solar power.
With technology advancement and market competition, Green Power is expected to reach grid parity by 2017-18. These developments would enable India to achieve its present target of 20,000 MW. But considering its international commitment towards green and climate friendly growth trajectory, New Delhi has taken this path-breaking decision.
Sources said steps are afoot to approach bilateral and international donors as also the Green Climate Fund to achieve this target. Solar power can contribute to the long term energy security of India, and reduce dependence on fossil fuels that put a strain on foreign reserves and the ecology as well. The solar manufacturing sector will get a boost with this long term trajectory of solar capacity addition.
This will help in creation of technology hubs for manufacturing. The increased manufacturing capacity and installation are expected to pave way for direct and indirect employment opportunities in both the skilled and unskilled sector. The new solar target of 100 GW is expected to abate over 170 million tonnes of CO2 over its life cycle. This Solar Scale-up Plan has a target of 40 GW through Decentralised Solar Power Generation in the form of Grid Connected Rooftop Projects.
While Decentralised Generation will stabilise the grid, it will minimise investment on power evacuation. To facilitate such a massive target, the Prime Minister’s Office has been pushing various Ministries to initiate supporting interventions, including incorporating changes in land use regulations and tenancy laws to facilitate aggregation and leasing of land by farmers/ developers for solar projects; identification of large chunks of land for solar projects and identification of large government complexes/ buildings for rooftop projects. Other steps include clear survey of wastelands and identification of transmission/ road infrastructure using satellite technology for locating solar parks; development of power transmission network/Green Energy Corridor; setting up of exclusive parks for domestic manufacturing of solar PV modules.
These interventions also aim at provision of roof top solar and 10 percent renewable energy as mandatory reform under the new scheme of Ministry of Urban Development; amendments in building bye-laws for mandatory provision of roof top solar for new construction or higher FAR and considering infrastructure status for solar projects.
These also envisage raising tax free solar bonds; providing long tenor loans; making roof top solar a part of housing loan by banks/ NHB and extending IIFCL credit facility to such projects by the Department of Financial Services; suitable amendments to the Electricity Act for strong enforcement of Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) and for providing Renewable Generation Obligation (RGO); incorporating measures in Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) for encouraging distribution companies and making net-metering compulsory.
Official sources said upto December last year,17 Solar Parks of aggregate capacity of 12759 MW were planned to be set up in 12 States and a grant of Rs 172.50 crore has been released to Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) towards development of solar parks. Further, proposal for release of Rs 80 crore have been initiated.
(By Neeraj Bajpai/ PIB Features)
]]>Leading industrialists Cyrus Mistry, Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Sunil Bharti Mittal, Azim Premji and many others who have pledged millions in investments feel that the government’s Rs.1.13 lakh crore programme would go a long way to wipe out the digital divide besides offering a slew of digital solutions in almost all sectors, including education, health, agriculture and administration.
The programme, envisaged by Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY), with coordination of ministries of communications & Information Technology, rural development, human resource development, health and others, will benefit all states and Union territories.
The existing ongoing e-Governance initiatives would be revamped for the alignment with the principles of Digital India. The objective of the programme is to transform the country into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. It would ensure that government services are available to citizens electronically. It also plans to usher in public accountability through mandated delivery of government’s services electronically.
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said recently the impact of Digital India by 2019 would range from broadband connectivity in all panchayats, Wi-fi in schools and universities and public Wi-Fi hotspots. “The programme will generate huge number of IT, Telecom and Electronics jobs, both directly and indirectly. Success of this programme will make India digitally empowered and the leader in usage of IT in delivery of services related to various domains such as health, education, agriculture, banking,” he added.
Mr Prasad said that during the week long Digital India celebrations, states across the country participated with enthusiasm which augur very well for the ambitious programme designed to link the nation through internet connectivity. Amid growing fancy for Digital India, many professionals air scepticism whether the ubiquitous broadband will be available to them or they will face frequent breakdowns in systems despite paying high cost for the internet connections. Their apprehensions stem from the fact that telecom companies after paying higher cost for the spectrum in open bidding will pass on the cost to consumers.
Once the Digital India campaign picks up steam, the net enabled services will transform the lives of people in longrun, ending the digital divide in the society, wizards of the sector say. For that, the government will have to fine tune its policies regarding telecom and data services to make it cheaper and affordable. More spectrum is bound to be made available. The defence ministry has agreed to release some spectrum per circle.but the bidding issue stares at the sector, which feels cheaper net availability should be ensured to make the programme more successful
Digital India, which is a flagship programme of this government, is being executed in a mission mode.Official sources said that the broadband connectivity to 2.5 lakh gram panchayats is also being pursued vigorously to ensure its availability to every nook and corner.
The work on laying of the optical fibre net work has been speeded up by 30 times in last months. National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) will support e-governance services, telemedicine, tele education, financial services .e-commerce and e- entertainment, and will provide non discriminatory access.
Idduki district in Kerala has already become the first fully connected. However, amid all the hype and hoopla the question remains — How will the district administration in hinterland bridge the gap between residents of urban areas with Internet connectivity at their disposal, though inadequate, and those living in rural areas, where the online world is yet to expand its sway? Also, all the public services being provided in the 22 recently opened Common Service Centres (CSCs) of the district are Internet-based and cannot function in the absence of net connectivity. With no Internet connectivity in hilly areas, the online services at CSCs remain ineffective.
Mr Prasad said the Modi government wants to ensure by 2019 a smart phone in the hands of every citizen . Currently, nearly 74 per cent of the population has mobile phones, most of which though is in the hands of urban India. “We want to ensure that all the services can be provided through a mobile handset, especially, health, education, various government services and retail,” Mr Prasad said. Referring to his consultations with global corporate honchos, Mr Prasad said companies such as American network equipment maker Cisco Systems wanted to access benefits of cluster manufacturing. “Facebook has also expressed interest in partnering with the government in delivering governance programmes such as e-education,” he said, referring to his meeting two months ago with the US social media company’s chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg.
Industry analysts are of the opinion NOFN has to meet its deadline if next generation connectivity (NGN) has to become a reality soon. Government is implementing the venture through state-run public sector units Bharat Sanchar Nigam, Power Grid Corporation and RailTel though there were suggestions that the private sector may be roped in for faster implementation.
Common service centres in villages will serve as critical pivots around which most goods and services will be delivered. Once connected to broadband, an entire village’s requirements of goods can be placed through these centres and people can use these facilities as one-stop shop for all their e-needs, said a senior official at the telecom department. But for the success of Digital India campaign, the government would rely heavily on the IT industry and their involvement in process of setting up the platform for a big leap in connectivity which will ultimately bridge the wide gap and make India a wired country.
(By Neeraj Bajpai, Source: PIB Features)
]]>Educational Empowerment Schemes
i. Pre-Matric Scholarship
ii. Post-Matric Scholarship
iii. Merit-cum-Means Scholarship
iv. Maulana Azad National Fellowship
v. Free Coaching & Allied Scheme
vi. Support to minority candidates clearing Prelims conducted by UPSC/SSC, State Public Service Commission (PSC) etc.,
vii. Padho Pardesh- Interest Subsidy on Educational Loans for overseas studies.
Area Development Scheme
i. Multi Sectoral Development Programme (MsDP)
Skill Development Schemes
i. Seekho Aur Kamao
ii. Upgrading the Skills and Training Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development (USTTAD)
iii. Hamari Dharohar
Women Empowerment Scheme
i. Nai Roshni
The details of the above schemes are available on the website of this Ministry at www.minorityaffairs.gov.in.
Representations/grievances received from time to time under the Educational Empowerment Schemes are addressed as per scheme guidelines and laid down procedures.
The Multi-sectoral Development Programme (MsDP) being a Centrally Sponsored Scheme is implemented by the State Governments/UT Administrations through different implementing agencies under their control. References regarding grievances/problems relating to implementation of scheme received by the Ministry are sent to the concerned State/UT for necessary action at their end.
Under Skill Development Schemes, one complaint was received in respect of one Project Implementing Agency (PIA) in Delhi under “Seekho aur Kamao” in April 2015 regarding non-disbursal of stipend and employment. This complaint was later enquired by the Ministry and was found to be false.
Under Women Empowerment Scheme, no complaints have been received. Only representations of individuals are received for their grievances which are addressed as per procedure.
Under the Educational Empowerment Schemes, self-certified certificate for religious community is acceptable under all above mentioned schemes w.e.f 2014-15.
Self attested certificates are accepted under the Skill Development Schemes and Women Empowerment Scheme from the Project Implementing Agencies (PIAs) and trainees.
]]>The DoPT has issued guidelines to all concerned authorities to give special consideration to minorities in appointments. As per information made available by DoPT, the representation of minorities in Government jobs has increased from 6.24% in 2011-12 to 8.50% in 2014-15.
]]>The death of Bahadur Yar Jung in 1944 created a vacuum in the Muslim leadership. However, it did not decrease the popularity of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen among Muslims. After his death, Abul Hasan Syed Ali became Majlis president and he was succeeded by Mazhar Ali Kamil. Two years later, in 1946, Moulvi Syed Qasim Razvi was elected as the Majlis president.
Qasim Razvi was born in a middle-class family of Latur (now in Maharashtra) on 31st May, 1900. He did his graduation in law from the Aligarh Muslim University. When Bahadur Yar Jung appealed to the Muslims for funds, he donated all his properties to Majlis. Bahadur Yar Jung himself gave him the title of “Siddiq-e-Deccan” for this act. By donating whatever he owned, he emulated the first caliph of Islam Hazrath Abu Bakar Siddiq who donated everything for Islam.
Many historians described Qasim Razvi as honest and brave, but an emotional politician. According to Badar Shakeeb who authored “Hyderabad Ka Urooj Aur Zawal” (The Rise & Fall of Hyderabad) in 1964, Qasim Razvi was a good orator, but he had no control over words. His speeches repeatedly provoked the Indian Union in general and the Indian Army in particular. He had no idea about the military strength of either Hyderabad or the Indian Union. His hate speeches also angered the Hindu population. Even his deputies used to speak in the same tone. Their speeches and tall claims created a wrong impression that every Muslim in Hyderabad was a Razakar. Though none of them lost anything, but such speeches indirectly led to the massacre of lakhs of Muslims during Police Action. Razvi never tolerated criticism nor had the ability to take advise from others. But despite all negativities, he was honest towards the Muslim community and the Hyderabad State.
But another author M.A.Azeez in his book “Police Action” gives a different picture of Qasim Razvi. According to Azeez, many speeches or statements which hurt the Hindu sentiments were attributed to him and he was defamed in a systematic manner. Primarily, the Hyderabad lobby comprising of Nawabs, Jagirdars, Senior officials in Nizam’s government and others were not happy with Razvi getting elected as the President of a powerful organization – Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.
Mohammad Mazheruddin, a close friend of Qasim Razvi, in his book “Police Action ke khaufnak mahaul mein” stated that Razvi was a very pious person. He never had any kind of hatred towards the Hindus and that was the reason why several non-Muslims also joined the Razakar movement to defend Hyderabad. He even instructed all the Majlis workers that they should not collect any donation from Hindus for the organisation. But he used to hate people who were against the freedom and sovereignty of Hyderabad on religious grounds.
Another historian Narendra Luther described Kasim Razvi as the man who gave Hyderabad its only traumatic experience in its history. “More than anybody else, he invited the ‘Police Action’ on Hyderabad”, he said.
Qasim Razvi was elected as Majlis president at the fag end of 1946. The years – 1947 and 1948 have witnessed so many changes that the situation became highly volatile in Hyderabad and all his reactions and moves were termed as anti-Hindu or anti-India. The partition of India, brutal communal riots in different parts of the country and the arrival of nearly 10 lakh Muslim refugees from India to Hyderabad aggravated the communal atmosphere.
Unlike Bahadur Yar Jung who confronted the Nizam, Qasim Razvi not only tried to be friendly, but he projected himself as the savior of the Nizam’s throne. He even claimed that he would hoist the flag of Asafjahi Dynasty on Red Fort and the waves of Bay of Bengal would wash the feet of Nizam. Another author Akhtar Hussain, one of the members of the Progressive Writers Association, after meeting Qasim Razvi once quoted him as saying “There is no institution of kingship in Islam, but we want to keep our King alive, administering him morphine so as to guard the interests of Muslims and it is in their interests that this state should continue its existence.” This shows that Razvi was under the impression that he was using the Nizam to protect the Muslim community.
Despite the contradictions, Razvi’s honesty towards Muslims and Hyderabad State was undisputable although it got superceded by emotions and political ignorance.
However, the ugliest role in this part of the history was played by the Nizam himself. He was an extremely selfish, greedy and power-hungry king. He tried all means to stay in power. At one side, he projected himself as the last sign of Muslim power and some of his sycophants used to praise him saying that “Teri hukumat se Musalmanon ka nishaan baaki hai” (Muslims are in existence because of your kingdom). But on the other side, he was trying to project himself as a secular king. Several historians quoted Nizam as saying that Hindus and Muslims were like his two eyes. But he apparently failed to realise that both his ‘eyes’ were not happy with him and they were not willing to see what he was wanted to see through them..i.e., continuance of his rule.
India achieved independence on 15th August 1947. On the same day, the Nizam too declared independence of Hyderabad State. He declared, “We are neither with free India nor with Pakistan, we are free and independent.” He went to Mecca Masjid to offer thanksgiving prayer. A congratulatory meeting was held at Abids crossroads because now His Highness had become “His Majesty”. Offerings were made to him at this meeting.
The Nizam had made it clear that unlike other Native States he would not sign the Instrument of Accession with the Indian Government after independence. He sent a three-member delegation to Delhi for talks with Lord Mountbatten. The talks dragged on until the end of September1947. After tortuous negotiations, the Nizam finally entered into a `Stand Still Agreement’ on November 29, 1947, with India for one year to maintain status quo, which existed between the British and the Nizam before August 15, 1947. In the meanwhile, the Nizam sent a delegation to the U.N.O. to refer the Hyderabad case to the Security Council.
Several authors have elaborated on how and why the ‘Stand Still Agreement’ was violated and the reasons that led the Indian Union to send army for the annexation of Hyderabad. A strong case was built against the Nizam accusing him of violating the agreement conditions. A large scale propaganda was carried out portraying the Razakars as barbarians who loot, plunder, rape and kill innocent Hindus. Though several contemporary writers have confirmed that the Razakars did atrocities on Hindus in some areas, there was no large scale violence against the community. Some ‘freedom fighters’ still narrate not easily believable tales of atrocities committed by Razakars.
I found most of those stories to be factually incorrect and exaggerated. They were all part of the war propaganda initiated by the Indian Union. But it is undeniable that the Nizam was trying to use Razakars to defend his throne. Neither Nizam nor Qasim Razvi realised that they were not enjoying the support of the entire Muslim community. The number of Razakars were limited, untrained and were not even armed properly. Both Nizam and Qasim Razvi were neither aware of the military might of the Indian Union nor they were aware of their own strengths.
General J.N.Chowdary who led the ‘Operation Polo’. in his book ‘Armoured Division in Operation Polo’ made some interesting observations. According to him, “the Nizam had a regular army of 22,000 men. They had modern weapons including tanks. Besides these, it has three regiments of armed cars. In addition, it has an irregular army of 10,000 men and nearly 75 per cent of them have light weaponary. Arab Army is of nearly 10,000 men with light weaponary. Police and Custom Forces too are of 10,000 men armed with modern rifles and sten guns. There are nearly 2 lakh Razakars and nearly 20 per cent of them have modern rifles, guns and pistols. The rest have spears, swords and missile loading guns.”
Chowdary further opined that, “The common Muslims of Hyderabad by nature are not warriors. They are peace-loving and they were tired of Razakar. A majority of them were also not happy with Nizam’s Government. Except for some, common Hindus will support the Indian Union.”
About Nizam’s Army, he said, “Nizam’s Army and Razakars were although more in numbers, but they were not trained in modern warfare. The commander-in-chief Al-Idroos was inefficient and useless person. The army is not happy with him and he was not so loyal to Nizam as he pretends to be. Al-Idroos even used to leak information about his own army.”
Hyderabad State was an inseparable part of India even before the Mughals conquered it and even before it got its name. Hyderabad’s formal merger with India was just a matter of time. Even the Nizam knew it. But the power-hungry Osman Ali Khan tried everything to retain his seat and wealth. But lack of political wisdom led him to trust more on Razakars than on his own army. He could not even sense the political changes that were happening in the kingdom although other intellectuals perfectly observed and predicted the fate of Hyderabad.
Jamaat-e-Islami’s founder Abul Aala Mawdudi too expressed this opinion which has been mentioned in the book, “Mawdudi and the making of Islamic revivalism by Seyyed Vali Reza Nasr”. It says, “Writing on the glories of Islamic history in the last bastion of Muslim rule in India, Mawdudi was pained to see the steady erosion of the power of the Nizam. In later years he lamented that when Hyderabad was ruled by Nizam Osman Ali Pasha, all commerce was in the hands of the Hindus. Mawdudi also came to believe that the communists, who advocated the emancipation of Hyderabad’s mainly Hindu peasants, were agents in a conspiracy against the Muslim rule. He held them responsible for the increasing Hindu belligerency towards the Nizam’s rule.”
Mawdudi further observed, “He no doubt misunderstood the grievances of the poor, and enraptured as he was with the glories of Islamic history and the symbolic meaning of the Nizam’s state, he was unable to distinguish between protecting the political rights of Muslims and defending an unjust socio-political order. He was locked in a communalist outlook, where all social and political questions were subsumed under the Hindu-Muslim conflict. He became increasingly distrustful of the direction that Hindu politics was taking, and as a result, his views on the sailent issues, ideas, and movements of his time were distorted.”
Other observers too predicted the fall of Nizam in 1930s itself. William Dalrymple in his work ‘The lost world of Hyderabad Deccan’ mentioned that, “Yet by the late 30s, more far-sighted observers realised that the Nizam’s world could not last. “All the power was in the hands of the Muslim nobility. They spent money like water, and were terrible, irresponsible landlords, but they could be very charming and sophisticated as well. In many ways Hyderabad was still in the middle-ages and the villages we would pass through were often desperately poor. You couldn’t help feeling that the whole great baroque structure could come crashing down at any minute.”
In all, the political conditions were against the Nizam and he was destined to lose his crown. The agitation against Nizam was gaining strength with the Congress, RSS and other organisations actively participating in both armed and unarmed struggle against the Razakars and Nizam. In Hyderabad proper, the entire Telugu press and a section of Urdu press was also vocal against the Razakars and MIM. Shoaibullah khan was one of those patriotic urdu press men who fearlessly wrote against the Nizam and Razakars. He was brutally murdered as a consequence of his boldness.
The Nizam had reportedly advanced Rs 20 crore as help to Pakistan and stationed a bomber plane there. In fact, the then British Chief of Indian Army, Sir Rob Lockhart, had told Nehru that Pakistan would invade India and Hyderabad too had built up a strong military forces under his pal Gen. El Droos so that it could resist Indian forces for many months. Nizam also made unsuccessful attempts at making President Truman and UNO to back his scheme of independence with the support of Pakistan. But nothing worked in favour of Nizam.
On the other side, Indian Union was ready with its plan of military annexation. On 11th of September 1948, Mohammad Ali Jinnah passed away. While Jinnah’s death was being mourned across India, Pakistan and Hyderabad, Sardar Patel gave go ahead to the Indian Army to annex Hyderabad. On the morning of September 13, 1948, five infantry battalions and an armored regiment led by Gen. Chaudhry entered Hyderabad as a part of ‘Operation Polo’ or popularly called ‘Police Action’.
Razvi gave an emotional speech on 13th September 1948 while addressing the condolence meeting of Mohammad Ali Jinah at Goshamahal Stadium. He informed thousands of audience that India has attacked the Hyderabad. While asking the Muslims to defend Hyderabad, he gave clear instructions, “You should ensure that you do not harm any non-Muslims of our country (Hyderabad). Remember, our war is against the Indian Union, and not against Hindus. You should not attack women, children or elderly people. Don’t attack the unarmed and helpless enemy. Allah never helps those who do attrocities.” This speech during a war-situation clarifies that Razvi was not anti-Hindu as he was projected.
Some historians in their works have mentioned that after hearing this speech, hundreds of Razakars directly marched towards the borders to fight the advancing Indian forces. Most of them, it is believed, were not even properly armed and went to borders with their sticks. However, this could not be substantiated from the documentary records. Those historians have remained silent about the logistical arrangements that Qasim Razvi made to transport those Razakars to border areas. Gen.Chowdhary himself has stated about not facing much resistance. This speech was largely quoted to justify the killing of thousands of Muslims by the Indian Army in ‘self-defence’.
Some historian exaggerated this saying that Qasim Razvi had made feeble attempts to organize the dispersed strength of the Razakkars. History would never forgive him for not prohibiting the dispatch of unarmed Razakkars to the border areas. Quite a few were slain in their enthusiasm with no artillery worth the name and with no squadron stationed at Karachi, as was widely rumoured, a token and helpless struggle lacking planning and foresight against the Indian Union forces with a complete military division lasted for 5 days. The Razakkars were demoralized and fought vain battles. The area commander had no instruction in the event of an attack. With the small army and large frontier to defend, little resistance was in evidence except for the first two days.
But this was the ugliest and bloodiest time the Deccan had ever seen. In just one week, thousands of Muslims were brutally murdered, both by the Indian Army and the Hindu extremists. Those incidents had a great impact on the mindset of the Muslim community. (To Be Continued….)
(For any queries or more info contact the author: [email protected])
]]>Dr Muhammad Hamidullah was a Muhaddith, Faqih and a scholar of Islamic law. He was an academic author with over 450 books cited in WorldCat.org, the world’s largest bibliographic database.
Dr Hamidullah was born, brought up and educated in Hyderabad. He hailed from a family of scholars. The youngest amongst three brothers and five sisters, his ancestral roots belong to the Nawayath community and his ancestors belonging to the famed Meccan tribe, the Bani’ Hashim, some of whom migrated to India, settling first in Madras few centuries ago and were eminent scholars in their own right.
He earned his BA, LLB and MA at Osmania University. He travelled to Germany and was awarded DPhil by Bonn University in 1932. After serving in the faculty of Bonn as a lecturer in Arabic and Urdu for a short time, he went to France and registered at Sorbonne University for his second doctorate. He was awarded D.Litt by the university after 11 months. He taught international law at Osmania University between 1936 and 1946.
In 1946, Hamidullah was appointed by the Nizam as part of the delegation sent to London and the United Nations in New York to seek support against the possible invasion of the Hyderabad State by Indian Union. Subsequently, he moved to Pakistan and was involved in writing of Pakistan’s constitution, but did not to settle there as he found the cultural environment not to his liking. Nevertheless in 1985, he was awarded the Hilal-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award of Pakistan. The award included a substantial money amount but this was donated by him to the Islamic Research Academy, Islamabad.
In 1948 he returned to France, living there for the rest of his life, apart from travel to teaching posts he held in Turkey for a number of years. He also held a post with French National Centre for Scientific Research from 1954, which ended in 1978.
Hamidullah was the last remaining citizen of the erstwhile Hyderabad State and never obtained the citizenship of any other nation. Classed as a Refugee of Hyderabad by the French Government, which allowed him to stay in Paris, he remained exiled from his homeland after its annexation by the Indian Government in 1948.
He devoted his whole life to scholarship and did not marry. His ancestors and extended family are jurists, writers and administrators. His great grandfather Maulvi Mohammed Ghauth Sharfu’l-Mulk (d. 1822 CE) was scholar of Islamic sciences, writing over 30 books in Arabic, Persian and Urdu, including a seven volume exegesis of the Holy Quran. His maternal grandfather Qadi Mohammed Sibghatullah was a jurist and an scholar of repute writing an exegesis of the Holy Quran as well as other books. He was also appointed Chief Judge of Madras in 1855 CE.
Hamidullah’s father Mufti Abu Mohammed Khalilullah, was also scholar of Islamic jurisprudence, a director of revenue in the government of Nizam of Hyderabad, and the pioneer in establishing an interest-free banking system in Hyderabad.
Hamidullah is known for contributions to the research of Hadith history, translations of the Quran into multiple languages and in particular into French language (first by a Muslim scholar) and for the monumental biography of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in French. He is also famous for discovering a missing work on Prophet Muhammad regarded as one of his great contributions to the Hadith literature. The earliest Hadith manuscript still extant today, Sahifa Hammam bin Munabbah, was discovered in a Damascus library. Hammam bin Munabbah being a disciple of Abu Huraira one of the Sahaba. It proved, that the earliest manuscripts had been absorbed into the much bigger later compilations.
A prolific writer, his extensive works on Islamic science, history and culture have been published in several languages and many thousands of articles in learned journals. His scholarship is regarded by many as unparalleled in the last century. A polymath, he was fluent in 22 languages including Urdu (his mother tongue), Persian, Arabic, French, English, German, Turkish etc. He learned Thai at the age of 84.
Books Authored by Dr Hameedullah:
The Muslim Conduct of State (1941)
Introduction to Islam (1957)
Battlefields of the Prophet Muhammad (1992)
Die Rezeption Europaischen Rechts in Haiderabad (1953)
Emergence of Islam (1993)
Islam in a Nutshell (1996)
Le Coran – Et la traduction française du sens de ses versets (2001)
Le Saint Coran: Traduction Et Commentaire de Muhammad Hamidullah Avec La Collaboration de M. Leturmy (from 1959 onwards)
Embassy of Queen Bertha of Rome to Caliph al-Muktafi Billah in Baghdad (1953)
The First Written Constitution in the World (1975 and 1986)
Introduction to Islam (1969)
Islamic notion of conflict of laws (1945)
Islam: a General Picture (1980)
Islam, Philosophy and Science: Four Public Lectures Organized By Unesco June 1980 (editor) (1981)
Kuran-ı Kerim tarihi: Bir deneme (Ilmi eserler) (1991)
Le “Livre Des Genenalogies” [D’al-Baladuriy by al-Baladuri] (1954)
The life and work of the Prophet of Islam (1998)
Muhammad Ibn Ishaq, the biographer of the Holy Prophet (Pakistan Historical Society. Publication) (1967)
Muhammad Rasulullah: A concise survey of the life and work of the founder of Islam (1979)
Muslim conduct of state: Being a treatise on Siyar (Siyar), general introduction (1953)
The prophet of Islam: Prophet of migration (1989)
The Prophet’s establishing a state and his succession (1988)
Why Fast? Spiritual & Temporal Study of Fast in Islam (Centre Culturel Islamique Paris Series) (1982)
Hyderabad was the largest Indian princely state in terms of population. According to the estimates of 1941 census its population was around 16.34 million with Muslims accounting for nearly 12 %. Its ruler, the 6th Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan was the richest man in the world at that time.
Hyderabad, not only had its own Army, but also had its own Railways, Airline, Postal Service, Radio Broadcasting network and currency. The Nizam and his court ruled over it with the British Resident keeping a close and watchful eye over everything. The British Army also had a permanent garrison, just in case the faithful ally of the King Emperor was found lacking in faith. The Nizam was the first to sign the Subsidiary Alliance with the British and had remained steadfastly loyal to the empire. Even during the Mutiny of 1857, he managed to keep his state free from uprisings.
While the rest of India was engaged in the freedom struggle, Muslims in Hyderabad were visibly living in peace. Since the kingdom was being ruled by a Muslim king Mir Osman Ali Khan and the entire administration was largely under the control of Muslim officials and nobles, the community in general must have felt that it was completely safe. But this safety was superficial and temporary.
Unlike common perception that the Muslims were the ruling class, power was being enjoyed by a small section of the community. The rich and the elite were ruling the kingdom. They were not concerned about the common Muslims. Illiteracy and unemployment among Muslim masses was as rampant as it is today. The political conditions were extremely volatile.
The 6th Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan was ruling the Hyderabad since 1927. India was fighting its war for independence. Being a faithful ally of British, Nizam had no major threats from outside. But the political conditions within the state were heading for a major change. Some clerics and intellectuals floated Majlis-e-Bainul-Muslimeen and its first executive committee meeting was held on 12th November 1927. The meeting was convened by Moulvi Mohammad Mahmood Nawaz Khan and presided by Moulvi Haji Fatehullah.
On 15th of March 1929, Majlis declared its constitution with three main objectives — to unite all sections of the Muslim community, to protect the cultural, educational and social rights of Muslims and to promote loyalty towards the country (Hyderabad) and respect the law of the land. The organisation was later renamed as Majslis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. Later, the Arya Samaj, Hindu Mahasabha and Hyderabad State Congress came into existence. The State Congress was formed in 1938 and was immediately banned by the Nizam Government.
While the Majlis was trying to unite the Muslims and preparing them to defend the HyderabadState, Hindu Mahasabha on the other side, was mobilising the Hindus against Nizam. But Majlis, in its initial days, failed to make an impactful appeal to the Muslim community. All governments servants and the elite class stayed away from Majlis.
In 1940, Nawab Bahadur Yar Jung, one of the founding member, was elected as the Majlis President. He was a Jagirdar, a great orator and highly respected Islamic cleric.
Unlike common perceptions, a majority of Muslims were living a deplorable life in the Nizam’s rule. The literacy levels were very low. Except for a government or private job, Muslims were not indulged in any major commercial activity. A majority of the Muslim population was poor. After getting elected as Majlis President, Bahadur Yar Jung prepared a five-year plan for the economic and educational upliftment of the community. He appealed for a donation of 5 lakh rupees to implement the plan, but he did not get the desired support from the rich and elite class of Muslims. The Majlis was trying to do what the Nizam failed to do as the ruler.
Muslims used to address Bahadur Yar Jung as ‘Qayed-e-Millat’ or the ‘Chief of Muslim’ community. Some historians say that Nizam was personally not happy with the popularity of Bahadur Yar Jung. On 8th September 1941, the Nizam issued a ‘firman’ or order imposing ban on Jagirdars from participating in politics. But Qayad-e-Millat was determined to stay in politics by strengthening the Majlis. On 3rd October 1941, he surrendered his Jagir, all titles and privileges to Nizam and continued his political activities.
While Bahadur Yar Jung’s leadership was posing a great threat to the Nizam within Hyderabad, the Britishers were not happy with his active participation in the activities of Muslim League outside the HyderabadState. Qayed-e-Millat emerged as the undisputed leader of the community. He continued to expand the Majlis in all the areas of HyderabadState. Besides focussing on socio-economic growth, Bahadur Yar Jung also wanted the Muslims to learn military skills. On 15th of April 1943, the Majlis Headquarters Darul-Salaam was established by purchasing the property at a cost of Rs.90,000. Even to mobilize this fund, Bahadur Yar Jung wrote letters to many rich Muslims seeking help. But it was with great difficulty and contribution from the community that he could buy property for Darul-Salaam.
So far, Majlis did not enjoy any royal patronage nor the dominant rich-class was supporting the organization. But the common Muslims were joining the Majlis. Due to his sincerity and oratory skills he was able to pull thousands of people towards Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. But his approach was neither violent nor communal. In fact, there were several instances when he prevented Muslims from resorting to any kind of violence.
Prior to becoming Majlis President, Bahadur Yar Jung was holding the post of joint secretary. In 1938, Arya Samaj activists killed two Muslims youth – Nawaz Khan and Banda Miyan in Dhoolpet area. They were said to be close relatives of Bahadur Yar Jung . The news spread like wildfire and thousands of armed Muslims gathered at Bahadur Yar Jung’s house Bait-ul-Ummat in Begum Bazar. They were waiting for a signal from him to take revenge. Security forces were deployed all over the city to maintain law and order. Hyderabad’s Prime Minister Sir Akbar Hyderi, Home Minister T.G.Tasker and the Nizam himself were worried that it would be impossible to control the outbreak of communal riots in Hyderabad. They personally telephoned Bahadur Yar Jung requesting him to maintain restraint. Even Sarojini Naidu, who used to treat Bahadur Yar Jung as her son visited his house.
The crowd was shouting slogans seeking his permission to take revenge. He came out of his house and stood in front of the crowd. He did not say a single word. His silence had a strong message. The crowd dispersed peacefully. Sarojini Naidu hugged him like a child and said, “I have seen many leaders who provoke crowds, but I haven’t seen anyone who control them like this. This is the gift of God.” Later, many Muslims started gathering at Chanchalguda with weapons. But Bahadur Yar Jung deputed his close associates to protect Hindu population and properties en route funeral procession. Nearly 25,000 people attended the funeral. Before the start of procession, Bahadur Yar Jung made an impressive speech appealing for peace in Hyderabad. People used to love him so much that despite being emotional they followed his instructions.
After getting elected as MIM president, Bahadur Yar Jung tried to create a disciplined organization. The Nizam sensed a potential threat for his authority. On the other hand, his active participation in the activities of Muslim League also angered the British Government. To counter Bahadur Yar Jung’s popularity, he imposed the ban on Jagirdars from participating in politics. But Bahadur Yar Jung surrendered his Jagir instead of bowing before the Nizam.
Shocked by this move, Nizam then tried to lure Bahadur Yar Jung by offering him a ministerial berth. But Bahadur Yar Jung refused to become Nizam’s minister three times till 1944. Referring to these offers, in one of his speeches Bahadur Yar Jung said, “I was born to become dust of streets which could revolutionise the hearts and not to sit on a ministerial chair and think about the state’s schemes. I’m a labourer whose job is to construct a road on which the vehicle of Muslim community could pass comfortably and reach its destination. My association with Prophet Mohammad is sufficient for me to be proud of.”
Later, Nizam tried to please Bahadur Yar Jung by offering to return his Jagir and everything that he surrendered. Originally it was planned that Nizam would make this announcement on his birthday on 23rd June 1944. Since Bahadur Yar Jung did not show any signs of kneeling before the Nizam, this idea was dropped. Instead, the Nizam was ready with another deadly plan. Two days after Nizam’s birthday, a dinner was hosted at Hashim Ali Khan’s house, a senior official of the State High Court. Before the dinner, Bahadur Yar Jung was served a ‘huqqa’ mixed with poison. He died instantaneously.
Bahadur Yar Jung’s contribution for the Muslim community cannot be described in a few paragraphs. Nazeeruddin Ahmed has written his biography in three volumes of over 300 pages each and after reading them I felt that whatever was written about Qayed-e-Millat was too little.
Though the death of Bahadur Yar Jung created a vaccuum in the Muslim leadership, but it did not decrease the popularity of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. After him, Abul Hasan Syed Ali became Majlis president and he was succeded by Mazhar Ali Kamil. Two years later, in 1946, Moulvi Syed Qasim Razvi was elected as the Majlis president.
(For more information or queries write to author: [email protected])
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