General Secretary of Communist Party of India (CPI), S Sudhakar Reddy has said today that demonetization was not a coincidence or a hurriedly planned move, but it has turned out to be yet another hard blow on the masses in general and the minorities in particular. It was definitely a well planned act done with full homework to help the elites to continue exploit to the maximum the labour and life of the have- nots among whom at the lower strata are the minorities — Dalits, Tribals and Muslims.
In a press note here, he said when the national executive of CPI had decided in October last to observe December 6 as the ‘Day Against Communalism and Casteism’, the so called ‘new normal of surgical strike against the poor — Harijans, Muslims and other minorities in particular — was not there. This is a new development and the latest hard blow which too needs to be highlighted while observing the Day on December 6.
While marking the day our comrades must also keep in mind that Muslims, dalits and adivasis — three of the most vulnerable sections of Indian society — make up more than half of India& prison population, confirmed by an official report on prisons released last month. Although the proportion of these three communities in India adds up to only about 39 per cent, their share amongst prisoners is considerably higher at 53 per cent. India had 4.2 lakh people in prison in 2013. Nearly 20 per cent of them were Muslims although the share of Muslims in India& population is about 13 per cent according to Census 2001. Religion-wise data from Census 2011 is yet to be released but it is unlikely to be much different. Dalits make up 22 per cent of prisoners, almost one in four. Their proportion in population is about 17 per cent according to Census 2011. While adivasis make up 11 per cent of prisoners, their share in the general population is only nine per cent.
Sudhakar Reddy said what me must do is to make the December 6 –Day Against Communalism and Casteism’ a great success by mobilising maximum people and taking the message to widest possible sections of people– the massage of condemnation and resistance against the attacks on Dalits, Dalit students and all other people belonging to other minorities.(NSS)