Najmuddin A. Farooqi.
There is a dimension of India’s present policy environment that deserves a more constructive and optimistic examination by the Indian Muslim. It may be described as a grey area, a policy paradox, or simply an unexplored opportunity. Whatever terminology we choose, the underlying point is important: Indian Muslims should not measure its prospects solely by the number of government schemes created specifically in its name. It should increasingly look at the much larger universe of schemes available to every Indian citizen.
The political reality of contemporary India cannot be ignored. The Bharatiya Janata Party supported by a deeply organised ideological and political network, has built a formidable electoral base. Questions concerning Hindutva, identity politics and the political positioning of minorities particularly Muslims are therefore likely to remain part of the political discourse.
At the grassroots level, social-media campaigns and local political narratives can sometimes amplify even minor incidents involving Muslims, creating an atmosphere of polarisation. Such narratives can have a dual effect: they consolidate sections of the majority community while simultaneously creating anxiety and insecurity among Muslims. It would be unrealistic to pretend that these political dynamics do not exist.
But politics is only one side of the picture. The other side is the constitutional and administrative responsibility of the State towards every citizen of India.
India has hundreds of millions of citizens belonging to minority communities. Muslims alone constitute a very substantial section of the population. No government, regardless of its political ideology, can permanently govern by excluding such a large segment of its citizens from the benefits of national development.
This is where the Muslim community should perhaps reconsider its approach. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has repeatedly used the expression “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas” and generally addresses the people of India as a whole rather than presenting Muslims as a separate administrative category in every development programme. Whether one agrees with the political philosophy behind this approach or not, the Muslim community can utilise its inclusive dimension to its own advantage.
Stop looking only for schemes carrying the word “minority”. For decades, there has understandably been considerable emphasis on minority-specific educational scholarships, welfare programmes and development schemes. Such schemes remain important wherever they exist and where eligibility is genuinely community-specific. But there is a danger in assuming that the absence or reduction of minority-specific schemes automatically means the disappearance of opportunities.
It does not.
India has an enormous network of universal and category-neutral government programmes covering education, scholarships, skill development, entrepreneurship, employment, housing, health, social security, financial inclusion, women’s empowerment, rural development and assistance to economically weaker sections. Many of these programmes do not ask an applicant to belong to a particular religious community.
They ask instead:
Is the student academically eligible?
Is the family economically weaker?
Does the applicant belong to an eligible social category?
Is the person a woman, a student, a worker, an entrepreneur, a farmer or a person with a disability?
Does the family satisfy the prescribed income or other eligibility conditions?
These are precisely the doors through which a large number of Muslim citizens can enter. EWS and other economic criteria deserve particular attention. One of the most significant developments in public policy has been the increasing recognition of economic disadvantage as a basis for assistance. For eligible citizens who do not fall within other reserved categories, Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) provisions and other income-based benefits can create opportunities without requiring a person to belong to a particular religious community.
This should not be viewed as a substitute for legitimate minority-specific measures where such measures are constitutionally or administratively justified. Rather, it should be viewed as an additional avenue of opportunity. The same principle applies to education.
A Muslim student should not ask: “What scholarship is available for Muslims? The question should be:
“What scholarships am I eligible for as an Indian student?”
That single change in approach can dramatically expand the field of possibilities. From entitlement-consciousness to opportunity-consciousness. There is an important psychological shift involved here. A community that constantly searches for schemes specifically labelled for itself can unintentionally restrict its own field of vision. Conversely, a community that learns to identify every programme for which its members are legally eligible becomes much more capable of competing for opportunities.
This is not about abandoning the legitimate demand for equality or representation. It is about maximising what is already available. Suppose a government scheme offers assistance to ten lakh eligible students without reference to religion. A Muslim student who qualifies should not feel that the scheme is somehow “not meant for Muslims”. It is meant for eligible Indians and Muslims are Indians. There should be no hesitation in claiming that entitlement. The real challenge is awareness. Perhaps the biggest weakness is not always the absence of government programmes but the absence of information about them.
A student in a small town may know about a minority scholarship because a local institution has publicised it, but may know little about other scholarships, fellowships, entrance based financial assistance, skill development programmes or educational loans for which he or she may qualify.
The same problem exists among entrepreneurs, women, artisans, professionals and economically weaker families.
Therefore, instead of spending all our energy asking how many schemes have been withdrawn, we should simultaneously ask: How many existing schemes are we actually utilising? That question could lead to a very different conversation. A change in strategy, not a surrender of rights
There is an important distinction here. The Muslim community should continue to demand constitutional equality, non-discrimination, educational advancement and fair representation. If a government scheme specifically intended for an eligible minority group is discontinued without adequate justification, legitimate democratic and constitutional mechanisms remain available to question that decision. But while pursuing those legitimate objectives, the community should not overlook the opportunities available through universal programmes.
Demand your rights but never neglect your opportunities. That should perhaps become the new approach.
Turning adversity into opportunity
If minority-specific welfare programmes become fewer, the immediate reaction may understandably be one of disappointment. But there is another way of looking at the situation. If government policy increasingly presents welfare and development schemes through universal eligibility, then Muslims should become among the most enthusiastic participants in that universal system.
Let Muslim students compete for every scholarship for which they qualify.
Let Muslim entrepreneurs utilise every eligible credit, training and enterprise programme.
Let Muslim women participate fully in every women-oriented development initiative.
Let economically weaker Muslim families utilise every income-based welfare provision available to them.
Let young Muslims enter every skill-development and employment programme for which they meet the criteria.
And above all, let the community develop a culture of information, documentation, application and follow-up.
The opportunity hidden in the paradox: The apparent contradiction is therefore worth examining carefully. A political establishment may find it electorally useful to maintain a particular identity narrative, while the administrative machinery of the State simultaneously continues to deliver large-scale programmes to citizens on the basis of economic, educational, social and other objective criteria.
That administrative space is real and it should be used intelligently. The Muslim community does not have to wait for a government to create a scheme bearing the word “Muslim” before it can progress. A scholarship does not become less valuable because it does not carry a religious label. A government loan does not become less useful because it is available to all. A skill-development programme does not become less relevant because Muslims are not named separately in it. If a Muslim citizen fulfils the eligibility conditions, the opportunity belongs to him or her as much as it belongs to anyone else.
The road ahead
The future of Indian Muslims cannot and should not depend exclusively on government concessions nor on the charities collected within the community. It must increasingly depend on education, competitiveness, awareness, entrepreneurship, professional excellence and intelligent utilisation of every legitimate opportunity available within the Indian constitutional framework. The community needs better information centres, scholarship-awareness campaigns, career counselling, digital assistance, documentation support and systematic monitoring of government schemes.
Every district could potentially have a small network of volunteers or civil-society organisations whose task is simply to identify government programmes, explain eligibility and help deserving applicants complete the process. That would convert government policy from something Muslims merely discuss into something they actively utilise.
Conclusion
The abolition, modification or reduction of a minority-specific scheme should not automatically be interpreted as the closure of the door to progress. Sometimes the door may simply have moved. The question is whether we are looking for it. The Indian Muslim should therefore adopt a dual strategy: remain vigilant about equality and constitutional rights, while simultaneously embracing every universal opportunity for which its members are eligible.
This is not surrender. It is not political submission. And it certainly does not mean abandoning legitimate demands. It is simply a recognition of a basic principle. If a benefit is available to every eligible Indian, Muslims should compete for it as confidently as anyone else. The future should not be built around what is given to Muslims as Muslims. It should increasingly be built around what Muslims can achieve as equal citizens of India. And that, ultimately, may be the more empowering path.
