DEHI DIARY, AUGUST 31-SEPTEMBER 7

UNCLAS NEW DELHI 004095 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D COPY CAPTION E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV KIRF KISL PHUM ENRG IN SUBJECT: DEHI DIARY, AUGUST 31-SEPTEMBER 7 REF: 06 NEW DELHI 8243 ¶1. (U) Below is a compilation of political highlights from Embassy New Delhi for August 31-September 7, 2007 that did not feature in our other reporting, including: -- Chennai Yawns through New President's First Visit -- Playing the Muslim Card: Congress Prepares for Possible Mid-term Elections -- MEA to Establish an Energy Security Division -- Snapshot Report: Photo Fatwa Chennai Yawns through New President's First Visit -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The gulf between north and south India was on display when new President of India Pratibha Patil received a tepid response during her first official visit to Chennai, August 31-September 1. "Poor response" was one newspaper's characterization of the public reaction to the visit, which featured a dinner hosted by the Governor of Tamil Nadu at this official residence, and functions at the Rajiv Gandhi Memorial and Rajiv Gandhi Foundation in nearby Sriperumbudur, where the former Prime Minister was assassinated. ¶3. (SBU) Although the Government of Tamil Nadu, led by Chief Minister Karunanidhi and other ministers, turned out in good order for the Raj Bhavan event, the function was perfunctory. The President and the Chief Minister, whose only common language is English, appeared not to converse at all when they sat next to each other at dinner. The dinner and preceding cultural program lasted only a very brief (for India) 90 minutes, and ended before guests could be served their tea and coffee. ¶4. (SBU) In sharp contrast, Patil's predecessor, Abdul Kalam, who has returned to his native Tamil Nadu, continues to make a series of very popular appearances and lectures. Indeed, at the same time President Patil was receiving "feeble applause" at her event, elsewhere a crowd waited patiently for two hours to cheer Kalam, "the people's president." Playing the Muslim Card: Congress Prepares for Possible Mid-term Elections -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The United Progressive Alliance (UPA)-led government is insulating itself against possible Muslim backlash stemming from the Central government's increasingly cozy relationship with the United States. In March 2005, the government set up the Sachar Committee to study the social, economic and educational status of Muslims in India. The results and recommendations were introduced in the Indian Parliament in November 2006 (reftel). Based on these recommendations, the government presented the Action Taken Report (ATR) to Parliament on August 30. ¶6. (U) The ATR identified 338 towns in 90 districts that lacked basic civic amenities and stifled opportunities for the Muslim population. To rectify this, the report proposed a number of attractive programs that encourage easier access to credit, education and other basic services, including self-employment ventures for youth and the opening of more branches of public sector banks in Muslim neighborhoods. In addition, the ATR recommended opening more schools for Muslim girls, proposed a number of policies to increase Muslim literacy rates and suggested offering mid-day meals to madrassas, just as they do in public schools. The ATR announced three scholarship schemes targeting minorities at different educational levels with a special focus on Muslim women and instructed banks to more quickly disperse loan cases. States will be asked to ensure Muslims are more adequately represented in police stations. Minority Affairs Minister AR Antulay announced that his Ministry will set up an Equal Opportunity Commission (EOC) during the Monsoon Session of Parliament to examine the Muslim community's grievances and allegations of discrimination. ¶7. (U) Muslim and minority institutions welcomed the ATR recommendations. Minister Antulay called it "a historic occasion and a historic statement." Abdul Hameed Noumani, Secretary of the Muslim organization Jamait Ulema-I-Hind, SIPDIS commented that the announcement in the Parliament reflects the government's seriousness in implementing the Sachar Committee's recommendations. However, many Indians correlate the government's attention to Muslim issues with the possibility of early general elections (currently scheduled for May 2009). The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticized the ATR as an attempt by the government to appease Muslims and is agitating the public opinion against the implementation of Sachar Committee recommendations. BJP President Rajnath Singh called the committee's recommendations "discriminatory" and commented, the "UPA's lust for vote bank politics will result in creating an atmosphere of distrust and divisiveness in the country. We are now moving towards communal based development expenditure and communal budgeting." ¶8. (SBU) Comment: The Union Cabinet cleared the ATR in May 2007, but it was not presented to the Parliament until August, suggesting that the UPA government was waiting for the opportune time to curry favor with India's large Muslim population. Growing ties with the United States has been unpopular in many Muslim circles. With possible elections around the corner, this move could help the government woo the much-needed Muslim votes to come back to power - especially in states like Uttar Pradesh where they have lost their vote bank. While announcements have been made to ensure developments in the social, economic and educational sectors, the government has steered clear of including Dalit Muslims as Scheduled Castes, and from carving out a Muslim quota within the larger Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota. MEA to Establish an Energy Security Division -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Media outlets are reporting that the GOI is planning to set up an energy security division within the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The division would reportedly "sensitize and assist Indian missions abroad" in identifying opportunities for Indian companies, maintain coordination with the ministries concerned and support their international engagement through appropriate diplomatic interventions, support the efforts of Indian corporations in acquiring energy assets overseas, promote the transfer of emerging energy technologies to India, and interface with leading energy security think tanks and experts in India and abroad on energy-related issues. Comment: This move reflects both the realization that energy security is a vital need for India, as well as Foreign Secretary Menon's initiative to restructure the MEA to reflect India's current needs. End comment. Snapshot Report: Photo Fatwa -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Dar-ul Uloom Deoband's new fatwa banning photography, saying it is unlawful and against the Shariat, has created a flutter in several Indian Muslim communities. Interestingly, the Islamic seminary, located in Muzaffarnagar, has made it compulsory for students to affix their photographs to admission forms. Further, the fatwa's timing is noteworthy as 100,000 Indian Muslims are preparing for the Haj pilgrimage and must travel with passports and photos. Meanwhile, a member of the Shariat Court and President of Uttar Pradesh Imam Organization acknowledged that, despite being illegal under Shariat law, photos cannot be avoided in all situations. The ban likely applies to photographs during marriage ceremonies, social functions or for commercial use. Like other fatwas that appear incongruent with modern times, overexposure within media circles may focus public criticism on the growing disparity between conservative and progressive Muslim communities. MULFORD