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02/08/2005
AMU
reservation, a good step
S.M. Faizan Ahmed & Sanjay Suman
T
he issue
of reservations for Muslims at Aligarh Muslim University worries many. Ignorant
of the complexities of socio-economic and educational backwardness among Indian
Muslims, the CPM and Sangh Parivar have expressed disagreement with the view
that the community is economically as well as educationally backward. They are
also unaware of the history of AMU, the motives behind the setting up of this
university.
So they dub the new admission policy in AMU providing 50 per cent reservation
for Muslims on the basis of all-India competitive tests - which was recently
approved by the UPA government - as 'communal', 'anti-national', 'divisive',
'an attempt at appeasement', and so on Yet no one can dispute that it is the
responsibility of the Union government to take the necessary measures to overcome
the backwardness of the second majority community of the country. The express
motive of the Aligarh movement was the educational empowerment of Indian Muslims
primarily. According to the terms of reference of the AMU, given in the Aligarh
Muslim University (Amendment) Act, 1981, the institution is supposed to "promote
especially the educational and cultural advancement of the Muslims of India."
This new policy is, in fact, the best possible way of ensuring security to education
and educationally mainstreaming the Muslim masses. The reason why economically
and educationally backward Muslims need such state support is because they comprise
a huge mass of people who, because they do not have adequate qualifications,
have been unable to use state resources. This vicious cycle has ended up disempowering
the entire community.
Needless to say, reservations have been an effective tool in bringing about
a positive transformation in Indian society. The new AMU admission policy is
just a first step towards achieving this. At the same time, the new policy sends
out a clear message nationwide that now even non-Muslims can take admissions
in AMU - something that was not at all clear earlier. More importantly, one
must not forget that there's just 50 per cent reservation for the Muslims, the
rest is in fact being 'reserved' for all communities.
There is a related question: how can this reservation policy at AMU help in empowering the community? Can poor Muslim families afford today's privatised education? Even if they were to get free/subsidised education in government schools and colleges, is that enough? Clearly, no. The government should, therefore, now ensure that the 'creamy layer' within the Muslim community does not avail of the 50 per cent reserved quota. In other words, the new policy must lay down 'economic' criteria as well.
The other fear is that a reservation policy in AMU will "depreciate the value of AMU's degrees in the public eye". This is an old fear. The job market in India today is too dynamic to reject alumni from one institution or the other. This is not to say that brand does not matter. But it matters only when you are a product of institutions like St Stephens College, LSR College, Xaviers, Loyala, Presidency, SRCC, the various IITs, IIMs, and so on. For the rest, it is individual performances that matter.
In any case, to make AMU a brand in itself, we need to embark on a long and complex journey to preserve and strengthen its All-India character. At present, its students and teachers are mostly from the states of UP and Bihar. There is tremendous "inbreeding" because of the lack of a fair recruitment policy. Today, AMU must not fail to recognise its liabilities and, towards that end, take the initiative to decentralise all its entrance tests that are presently being conducted locally in Aligarh. Conducting entrance tests all over India and introducing a fair recruitment policy for teachers are two possible ways through which AMU can bring back its lost glory and maintain its all-India character.
*S.M. Faizan Ahmed is president, Society for Social Research, Delhi, and
Sanjay Suman works with the Centre for the Study of Developing Studies, Delhi
(courtesy: The Indian Express)