Opinion Census conundrum

Taking a contrary view,the daily Akhbar-e-Mashriq,published from Delhi,Kolkata and Ranchi,says in an editorial on May 31 that the “caste system ( zaat-paat ) is the worst curse,and those pleading for it want to take the country back.” Jamaat-e-Islami’s organ,bi-weekly Daawat,in its front page lead article on May 7,has critically analysed the form being used for the current census. It reveals that in column 15 of the first set of 35 questions,entitled ‘Census of India 2011: Houselisting and Housing Census Schedule’ there is a query about the caste of the head of the family,with a note,“If SC,ST or Other; SC-1,ST-2,Other-3” (instructing how these details are to be numerically recorded). But there is no column for “religion”,according to the paper.

Dawaat,as well as many other papers have criticised the absence of a query on “religion” and “language” from the census questionnaire form. Delhi-based daily,Hindustan

Express (May 22) reports from Deoband,the statement of the General-Secretary of All-India Mosques Coordination Committee,Maulana Abdullah Ibn-ul Qamar,exhorting the imams of the country’s mosques to motivate people “to take full part in the census operation.” But dwelling on the absence of “religion” as a column,he writes; “later on,there will be another round that will have a column for ‘religion’. The government should clarify if it is true or not.”

The Maoist challenge

Expressing great concern over the rise in Maoist violence and disruption,Rashtriya Sahara in an editorial entitled,“Politics on train accident,” (May 31),writes: “The spate of political statements about the Jnaneshwari Express tragedy is the result of the lowering level of our politics and the mental bankruptcy of our politicians. These political battlelines prove that we are perhaps becoming insensitive and personal political gains are dearer to us even in the large-scale loss of human lives.”

Akhbar-e-Mashriq,in a May 30 editorial queries: “The Maoists have started targeting the common people. Will the government even now not deploy the army against them?… After all,are we not taking the services of the armed forces against and insurgency and separatism in Jammu and Kashmir and the North-East because of which situations there are getting considerably under control?”

A commentator in Delhi-based daily

Hindustan Express (June 1) writes caustically: “In fact the Maoists are also Indian citizens and it is said that their movement is for getting justice to the oppressed people of the society. Evidently,there is a clear difference between the terrorists and those involved in a struggle for their demands — that they are Muslims and Maoists respectively. In other words,it can be said that the Maoists cannot be terrorists because they not are Muslims.”

Science and God

The success of the team of the American biological scientist,Dr Craig Venter in producing an artificial living cell has created a debate in religious and scientific circles around the world. Many Urdu papers have lauded Dr Venter’s achievement. The daily Sahafat (May 20) has described it as “the greatest invention of the century.” Describing the view of some religious leaders to the effect that Dr Venter’s achievement amounts to equating human beings with God as a “backward mindset”,the paper says: “How can human being compete with God? Human being is only knocking at the closed doors of mysteries of creation which should be welcomed.”

Hindustan Express (May 25) writes: “If we think seriously,this feat certainly does not amount to man’s equality with nature. Yes,it is getting to know some of the many secrets of nature and making use of the knowledge acquired and positive and negative uses of any knowledge are possible.”

Compiled by Seema Chishti