Minorities commission to hold hearings from Sept

Hyderabad: The Commission of Inquiry, which was constituted by State government to study the socio-economic and educational status of Muslims in Telangana State, will hold public hearings from September in all districts.

Speaking to media persons here on Tuesday, Commission chairman G Sudhir said that public hearings would be held in all districts to obtain information on the status of Muslims in Telangana State. He said all the departments were asked to send data pertaining to Muslims.

The Commission also directed the entire department to furnish data regarding implementation of welfare programmes intended for Minorities. Sudhir said that the Commission did not have the data compiled during Intensive Household Survey (IHS) by the State government. The religious Census 2011 too was not available.

However, he hoped that the Commission would gather relevant data, complete analysis and prepare a report within next six months. He said that the Commission would seek extension in its term, if required. Commission member Amerullah Khan said compared to other communities, the income-levels of Muslims have come down in the last one decade.

He said that income levels and representation of Muslims in various elected and nominated bodies would also be covered in the survey. When asked whether the Commission's report would be used to provide 12% reservation to Muslims in Telangana, he said it was a political decision to be taken by the State Government. However, he said Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao is proposing to emulate Tamil Nadu which provided 69% reservation as per Schedule 9.