Reserved for merit

It is exactly a year since the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) council has been caught up in the wrangle over its status ? minority or not.

It is exactly a year since the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) council has been caught up in the wrangle over its status — minority or not. In striking down the AMU Amendment Act of 1981, that granted the university minority status, the Allahabad High Court (upholding an October 4, 2004, judgment) has played spoilsport for the politicians. It is not without significance that the AMU faculty itself has been vociferously against reservation: seeing correctly in it little more than a dash of vote bank politics. AMU is one of India’s oldest institutions of repute and has played a great role in the intellectual life of Muslims in the country — its status of minority or not, notwithstanding.

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In reserving half the seats for minorities, the AMU was doing disservice to non-Muslim students as well as meritorious Muslims. The latter would especially suffer, being branded with the ‘minority’ tag. Within itself, the ‘minority’ tag is neither demeaning nor should it prove to be detrimental to a person’s life. Yet, such has been the tokenism of political leaders and exploitation by community heads that there are deeply negative perceptions over policies aimed at giving a leg-up, whether it be minorities, or backward castes. As it is, the precise meaning and import of ‘minority status’ is nebulous, which spurs controversy, but does not deter jingoistic political rhetoric. But crutches of reservation, in jobs or educational institutes, are not helpful, even with policies that seemingly benefit. Proponents argue that despite a section of Muslims not being deprived, the Muslim majority is underprivileged, and should be allowed the status of a backward community and linked allowances. But equality cannot be enforced at post-graduate levels of education, where every seat must be held by a meritorious student, irrespective of caste, culture, race or background. Leg- ups in the form of scholarships or flexible class timings (for those who may need to earn alongside studies) and access to educational tools can be the only incentives here.

There is another major consideration. Across urban India we are witnessing the emergence of Muslim ghettoes, even for those who are better off. By insisting on reservations, will we not be encouraging a similar process in an institution of higher education? The better option is for the community to work on a plan to enhance Muslim presence across the board in all Indian institutions of higher learning.