The Minority Affairs Ministry (MAM) of Government of India has recommended setting up of three Universities, especially for minorities, where in essence up to 50% reservation can be made for Muslims only. The Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry is set to approve the proposal soon to start the universities in Bangalore in Karnataka, Ajmer in Rajasthan and Kishanganj in Bihar.
The Universities will be part of 30 universities to be set up in the country during 11th five-year plan period as promised by UPA government. Presently only Aligarh Muslim University is the only university that enjoys the ‘Minority’ status. But the ‘minority status’ of this university is Sub-Judie under Supreme Court.
As per an MAM official, these universities are aimed as central government funded and would be given enough autonomy to cater to the need of Muslim community in particular. The universities are being set up in the light of the Sachhar Committee report pointing out that the Muslim community have only 4% undergraduate students compared to 13.4% population share in the country.
As the plan to start these minority universities comes just ahead of Parliamentary elections due in April’09, the opposition, particularly BJP, sees this as ‘Politics of appeasement.’