Maharashtra sets up panel on Pasmanda Muslims, signals BJP’s outreach push | Mumbai News

The move mirrors the BJP’s national outreach to Pasmanda Muslims, marking a shift from treating Muslims as a single political constituency towards engaging socially and economically backward Muslim communities separately. The outreach gained prominence in July 2022 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged BJP workers to reach out to “deprived and downtrodden” sections among Muslims, particularly Pasmanda Muslims. Since then, the party has consistently projected Pasmanda welfare as part of its “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” narrative.

Who are Pasmanda Muslims?

Pasmanda Muslims broadly refer to socially and educationally backward Muslim communities, many of whom belong to traditional artisan and occupational groups and are recognised as Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Maharashtra. These include communities such as Ansaris, Qureshis, Pinjaris, Mansooris, Nadafs and Attars.

While Muslims constitute around 11.5 per cent of Maharashtra’s population, there is no official estimate of the Pasmanda population because neither the Census nor the state maintains caste-wise data for Muslims. Muslim OBC organisations estimate that 70-80 per cent of the state’s Muslim population belongs to backward communities and say around 80 Muslim castes receive reservation benefits under the OBC, Scheduled Tribe and Nomadic Tribes categories.

This is not Maharashtra’s first exercise to study the condition of Muslims. In 2008, the Congress-NCP government constituted the Mahmood-ur-Rehman Committee, which submitted its report in 2013 recommending reservation in education and public employment for socially and educationally backward Muslims.

“There are around 80 Muslim castes that receive reservation benefits. The government’s move is welcome. We have sought time from the committee to understand its methodology. Since there has been no caste census, we would like to know how the committee proposes to identify these communities and assess whether government welfare is actually reaching them,” said Iqbal Ansari, national president of the All India Muslim OBC Organisation.

The absence of caste-wise data is also one of the central questions surrounding the committee’s work, with activists asking how it proposes to identify beneficiaries and assess gaps in welfare delivery.

The government’s decision has, however, drawn criticism from some Muslim organisations, which argue that the committee could deepen divisions within the community.

The issue also carries political significance. After the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, where the INDIA bloc won 30 of Maharashtra’s 48 seats, BJP leaders alleged a consolidation of Muslim votes, describing it as “vote jihad”, and subsequently stepped up calls for Hindu consolidation during the Assembly election campaign. Against that backdrop, some activists see the committee as part of the BJP’s broader Pasmanda outreach strategy.

“I do not know what the government intends to achieve because there is no caste-wise data available in the state. It would have been better had the government undertaken an empowerment survey of the entire Muslim community. I do not think this study will necessarily translate into structural welfare improvements or greater representation for any section of the community,” said Aamir Edresy, president of the Association of Muslim Professionals.