Now, Arjun talks of quota for Muslims

New Delhi: In the midst of controversy on the OBC quota in elite educational instituions, HRD Minister Arjun Singh on Wednesday said that Muslims could be given reservation under the Constitutional norms of backwardness.

At the same time, he made it clear that there was no plan to give reservation to any community on religious basis.

Talking to reporters at the conclusion of a two-day meeting of National Monitoring Committee of Minority Education in New Delhi, the HRD Minister said, "Under the Constitutional norms, Muslims can get reservation."

Singh sidestepped the demand of the Kerala government for inclusion of the controversial Self Financing Colleges Bill, passed recently by the state assembly, in the ninth schedule of the Constitution.

"There are Constitutional matters and should be taken up in a Constitutional manner. There is a procedure and the Home Ministry handles the whole thing. Centre-States matters should not be discussed and decided like this. It needs careful examination," he said.

The Kerala Bill had come under attack from section of Muslim and Christian communities which are running such institutions in the state. Singh added that the Centre has no plans to intervene to resolve the controversy in Kerala.

Asked whether government plans to have a Central law which would be a model for regulating the self-financing educational institutions, he said there was a proposal to have a model law which was not pursued as the states were "more comfortable" with their laws.

"I am not bothered what those in UP were saying on political level. Our job is to see that the issue of minority education is carried out sincerely whether it is in UP or Bihar", Singh shot back when asked about the UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's attack on the Centre on the issue of minorities.

Observing that the Monitoring Committee had gone into the issue of modernisation of Madarsas, he said that there was welcome response from the Madarsas. He, however, made it clear that in no way there would be any interference on their

religious teachings.

Singh said that there was a proposal to start Urdu schools on the pattern of Navodaya Schools in minority dominated 125 districts of the country.

He said it was a welcome suggestion and a scheme on this lines could be brought

up in the 11th Plan.

He said Vice Chancellors of Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia Islamia and Maunala Azad Urdu University would be asked to look into the issue of Urdu teachers training.