NEW DELHI: The Delhi Minorities Commission has clarified that it has not been asked by the state government to carry out an assessment to check share of religious minorities in various departments of Delhi government, in view of the state Assembly elections that are scheduled next year.
“Various print and electronic media have published that Delhi government is conducting a survey of minorities (or Muslims) or that the Delhi government, with an eye on the forthcoming state assembly elections, has asked the commission to conduct such a survey. I am not aware if the Delhi government is conducting any such survey, but as far as the DMC is concerned, it has not been asked by Delhi Government to conduct such a survey,” Zafarul-Islam Khan, chairperson of the minorities panel, said.
Khan, however, added that the minorities’ commission compiles data on the subject every year. “The statistics about the representation of all six religious minorities in government departments and PSUs in Delhi are compiled every year by DMC and submitted to the Delhi government. That data is published in each annual report of the commission. This is not new.
“The only change this year is that earlier we used to do a sample survey of some 15 departments, but this time we have widened the net to include all Delhi government departments and PSUs working in NCT of Delhi,” Khan said. The chief of the minorities panel also emphasised that the data is not only about the representation of Muslims but about all six notified minorities.