Voices are increasing fast demanding a ban on Sudarshan TV for making a programme that claims to expose “infiltration of Muslims” in the civil services. As many as 91 retired civil servants Tuesday have called for strong administrative and legal action against Sudarshan News for its proposed television show, which was stopped from being telecast due to a Delhi High Court Orders. Jamia Millia Islamia University too had demanded action against the TV channel for its hateful content.
In a letter addressed to the home minister, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Chief Minister of Delhi and Chairman of News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA), among others, the retired officers called the show a “communally charged, divisive and sensational series”. The former civil servants also stated that they were not affiliated with any political party but writing as citizens who are “neutral, impartial and committed to the Constitution of India”.
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The signatories of the letter included Shafi Alam, former director general (DG) of the National Crime Records Bureau; Mohinderpal Aulakh, former DG of police (jails) in Punjab; Vappala Balachandran, former special secretary of the Cabinet Secretariat, GoI; S.Y. Quraishi, former election commissioner of India; N.C. Saxena, former secretary of the Planning Commission; and Parveen Talha, former member of the UPSC, among others.
Action Against Channel Demanded
The retired officers asked for strong action against the channel.
“It is completely perverse to allege that there is conspiracy to infiltrate Muslim officers into the services, or to use terms like ‘UPSC jihad’ or ‘Civil Services jihad’ in this connection. These communal and irresponsible statements amount to hate speech and are defamatory of an entire community,” the letter stated. In the letter, the retired civil servants explained what may happen if the show is allowed to air.
The former civil servants also stated that they were not affiliated with any political party but writing as citizens who are “neutral, impartial and committed to the Constitution of India”.
The signatories of the letter included Shafi Alam, former director general (DG) of the National Crime Records Bureau; Mohinderpal Aulakh, former DG of police (jails) in Punjab; Vappala Balachandran, former special secretary of the Cabinet Secretariat, GoI; S.Y. Quraishi, former election commissioner of India; N.C. Saxena, former secretary of the Planning Commission; and Parveen Talha, former member of the UPSC, among others.
The telecast, they wrote, will generate hatred toward Muslims without any basis and “add fuel” to “allegations of Corona Jihad and Love Jihad” against the community. It will also tar the UPSC’s reputation “by claiming that it is biased in its recruitment process”.
“The UPSC is one of the few institutions in the country that still enjoys an unblemished reputation for integrity and has enormous credibility with both the government and with the people of India. The telecast will destroy people’s faith in this highly regarded institution,” the letter stated.
It also said that the show will “spread a false belief that a disproportionate number of Muslims are being selected for government services, especially the IAS and IPS”.
Only 3.46 % Muslims in Bureaucracy
Muslims make up for 3.46 per cent of the country’s 8,417 IAS and IPS officers, much less than the percentage of Muslims in India (14.2 per cent), they said adding, “Over the last forty years, the number of Muslim candidates has been going up and down. In fact, there have been years when not a single Muslim candidate was selected in the IAS.”
The show’s telecast, it added, may encourage other caste, linguistic or regional groups to “look at their rate of success in the civil services examination” which will compromise the UPSC’s credibility.\Top
The letter also said the show’s telecast will malign the reputation of the Jamia Millia Islamia “which has recently been rated as the top central university in India”. The retired officers noted how the central university has been providing “free coaching services to disadvantaged candidates” and the show’s telecast could discourage such initiatives.
The show would divide the civil administration on religious lines and undermine the contributions made by administrators.
They retired officers have asked the administration that offences filed before the Delhi High Court against Sudarshan News, which include defamation and promoting enmity on grounds of religion, be thoroughly investigated, letter said.
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They have also asked the information and broadcasting ministry and the NBSA to investigate whether the telecast will fall in contradiction of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation Act) and the Code of Ethics and Broadcasting Standards.
The NHRC, Minorities Commission and the UPSC should take notice of the “vicious hate campaign to malign a particular religion and community through the propagation of slanted news,” stated the letter.
Jamia’s VC Reacts
“We have called a meeting to discuss the next course of action against the TV channel for airing mala fide content. Every student of Jamia’s Residential Coaching Academy who has cleared the UPSC exam should file an FIR against the channel for its hateful content,” Najma Akhtar, Vice Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia, said.
Of the 30 students from Jamia’s Residential Coaching Academy sho have cleared the UPSC civil services exam of 2019, at least half are non-Muslims, she said adding in jest, “if the programme was true, it would have created one of most secular Jihad in the world.”
Jamia Millia Islamia’s Residential Coaching Academy provides free coaching to civil services aspirants. This facility is exclusively open for candidates belonging to minorities, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe category. Women candidates are also eligible to avail this opportunity in which Jamia offers free coaching along with hostel facility.
Jamia Millia Islamia has also recently ranked first in the list of central universities released by the Ministry of Education. “Our achievement is more significant because of the challenging time the university has gone through in the recent past,” Akhtar said.
