Minorities absent in BSY ministry

After a long time, the State Cabinet does not have any representation from any of Karnataka’s religious minority communities.

While this points to the BJP’s lack of electoral success among minorities, it also cuts right at the heart of growing absence of a prominent minority leader cutting across party lines.

A Cabinet without minorities has not been sworn-in for five decades at least, according to experts.

Experts argue that the absence of a minority minister in the current Cabinet was an indication of growing alienation of minority communities from national parties. The BJP, maintaining that it has not made inroads among minority communities, did not field a single Muslim or a Christian candidate in the Assembly polls last year.

Speaking to DH, Prof Muzaffar Assadi, department of Political Science, University of Mysore, said that a perception has crept among all parties that ‘Muslim presence is a negative factor’ which will drive away votes from the majority community. “The minorities are sidelined without any resistance,” he said.

Not including Muslims as ministers, he said, was not exclusive to the BJP. In the recent Congress-JD(S) coalition government, JD(S) did not include any Muslims due to the notion that Muslims have stopped backing it, he said.

Parties such as the BJP “demonize” minorities to consolidate Hindu votes, adding that while Lingayat community with around 18 per cent population had eight ministers, Muslims with 14 per cent population had none.

Always under-represented

Political scientist Harish Ramaswamy said that though there was still time to induct minorities, having no minority leaders in a new cabinet was probably a first. “Minorities, it seems, are being deliberately kept out since 2014 even though they were always under-represented in State politics,” he said.

The trend, according to him, reveals three issues: The first being Muslims as a community has no assertion. “Secondly, it was always seen that the Congress championed the cause of minorities - which is untrue. Thirdly, the BJP projects itself as benevolent to minorities only during policy making and not by giving them representation,” he said.

“BJP knows that it cannot fool minorities. They are waiting for an opportune movement to induct a minority leader. However, there are no major Muslim or other minority leaders,” he said.

Having said that the BJP may look to bring on board ex-Congress leader R Roshan Baig, subject to the outcome of the Supreme Court petition challenging his disqualification as a legislator.