Calling for a quota

Day after Sharad Pawar demands housing quotas for Muslims, minister of state says plan is being put in place and will be announced after current Legislature session, reports Zeeshan Shaikh.

On Wednesday, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar asked the state to consider reservations for Muslims in government housing projects. On Thursday, Minister of State for Housing Sachin Ahir said a plan is being formulated to make such reservations a reality and will be announced once the current session of the Legislature ends.

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In a survey conducted by Hindustan Times and Ipsos Indica Research, 53 per cent of the respondents said the high prices meant only houses on the city’s outskirts were affordable; 39 per cent said they couldn’t imagine buying a house in Mumbai at the current rates.

“I have come across several Muslims who have problems getting a house. Ahir should set up a committee to see if we can have reservations for them in government housing schemes,” Pawar said at a function celebrating the birth anniversary of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar.

“I have convened a meeting of officials to see how we can go ahead with this proposal. Care will be taken to ensure that the rights of other sections are not affected,” Ahir said.

This is not the first time a government constituent has demanded such reservations. In 2008, the Congress, which heads the ruling coalition, voiced a similar sentiment.

Then chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh spoke up at a function organised by the Ministry of Minority Welfare. However, no concrete decision was taken.

Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, of the Congress, heads the Housing Department, which needs to take a final decision. Ahir, his junior minister, is from the NCP. The Congress and NCP will need to work out how to proceed with the proposal, which has run into opposition from the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). “Why have reservations along religious lines,” asked senior BJP leader Vinod Tawde.