HYDERABAD: The Congress is likely to promise that it will implement the recommendations of the Sachar Committee as well as the Sudhir Commission in its “Minority Declaration” that it plans to announce on Thursday.
In 2016, the Sudhir Commission on the socioeconomic and educational conditions of Muslims in Telangana recommended 12%, or a minimum of 9%, reservations to the community in social and educational sectors.
The Congress, which has been accusing the AIMIM of splitting votes in every possible election, is seriously focused on consolidation of Muslim votes in its favour in the ensuing Assembly elections and has come up with the idea of declaring a slew of promises, most of which are longstanding demands of the Muslim community.
According to sources, the Minority Declaration of the Congress is likely to promise to implement a ‘Sub-Plan’ for religious minorities that would allow it — if it forms the government — to allocate a budget based on the community’s proportional population. The Congress is also likely to promise to give quasi-judicial powers to the Wakf Board to help it safeguard its immovable properties.
Additionally, the party is likely to promise to set up two finance corporations — a Christian Minorities Finance Corporation and a Muslim Minorities Finance Corporation — to enable financial assistance to these communities.
The Minority Declaration is also likely to promise to adopt a resolution in the state Assembly to grant SC status to Dalit Christians, a monthly honorarium of Rs 5,000 to pastors and priests of churches, and a monthly honorarium of Rs 6,000 to imams and muezzins of mosques. The party is also mulling the idea of promising to establish more hospitals and schools in areas where the population of religious minorities is highly concentrated, and modernising madrasas.
The Congress is further gearing up to release the “BC Declaration” and “Women Declaration” with promises on lines similar to the already-announced Farmers Declaration, Youth Declaration and SC/ST Declaration.