CUTTACK: Despite the recommendations of the Sachar Committee Report in hand for the last four years, the governments both at the Centre and State have not been able to mark interventions for the uplift of the Muslims.
Muslims continue to be the most economically backward and socially disadvantaged groups, with women of the community being the worst affected.
In a bid to draw attention to the problems faced by the minorities, a two-day programme on ‘Rights and problems of minorities’ was organised by city-based BIRD in association with Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) and Centre for World Solidarity here today. More than 55 marginalised Muslims and dalits from Cuttack, Bhadrak, Salepur, Khurda and Jajpur districts along with eight slums of Cuttack city took part.
A session on ‘Codification of Muslim Personal Law (MPL)’ seeking consultation of lawyers, teachers from Law institutes and social activists revealed that any discussion on it is shunned by all quarters of the Muslim society. State also does not want to touch it owing to vote-bank considerations.
As a result, Muslim women continue to face discrimination. Quranic rights are not accorded to them, triple oral unilateral divorce by husband is still rampant, polygamy is seen as a right as first wife gets abandoned for a second and even third and age of marriage is still very low, State convenor, BMMA, Farhat Amin said.