Friday, January 31, 2014

Meet the man who stood up, spoke out before Prime Minister - By Mumtaz Alam, India Tomorrow + You Tube








http://www.indiatomorrow.net/eng/meet-the-man-who-stood-up-spoke-out-before-prime-minister




Meet the man who stood up, spoke out before Prime Minister

31 Jan 2014 07:01 PM, IST



By Mumtaz Alam, India Tomorrow,

New Delhi, 31 Jan 2014: The man who made Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi speechless for a while on 29 Jan at Vigyan Bhawan was speaking normally to his patients today when I and my colleague Abu Zafar entered his clinic at House No. 1202 in Jafarabad area of the national capital. The 500-srong audience had got stunned when soon after the PM finished his speech and turned to his seat Unani medical practitioner and RTI activist Dr Faheem Baig stood up on his seat and started complaining, in a loud voice, about non-implementation of minority welfare schemes.
 
Interview:
 
What forced you to stand up and speak out at PM's program?
 
Dr Faheem Baig: First let me clear an allegation levelled in some media reports that I protested against our Prime Minister. I want to clarify that I did not oppose our prime minister; I just tried to strengthen our democracy which gives right and freedom to a common man to talk to their leaders and prime minister.

For last four years I have been making efforts that Prime Minister's Office listens to me. I sent queries highlighting problems of our area and seeking information about schemes being implemented in our area. I did not get any response from his office. I asked his office to fix an appointment to enable me to highlight several issues including education, health and sanitation of this Muslim dominated area in Delhi. I got no response. Then I started a campaign of letter writing - I wrote 150 letters - one letter every day. Leave aside a response; I did not get even an acknowledgment from PMO. I telephoned and faxed to his office. Once an officer picked my call to only say that the PM has no time to meet me, whenever he will have time, I will be informed. I was very disappointed that when our prime minister cannot meet an educated citizen of his country then how he will be thinking about common people -daily wagers and labourers.

Yet, I continued striving. I took the route of RTI - I filed several RTIs with departments of health, education, planning and social welfare seeking information about if any scheme under the Prime Minister's 15 Point Program has been implemented in our area since 1980 when the program was first launched. I was informed that this program is not under implementation in my area. This also disappointed me.

When I got to know that the PM is going to announce a new program (National Wakf Development Corporation) for the welfare of the Muslim community. I thought in my mind that when a program has not been implemented for last 30 years, then why the PM is going to announce a new program. I stood up after his speech at Vigyan Bhawan only to request him not to announce any new program. It is better he first implements the earlier schemes launched at the time of Indira Gandhi. The Sachar Committee set up by this government itself has documented that how Muslims are lagging in every walks of life be it education, health, sanitation.
 
You come from Jafarabad area in North-East Delhi, the only minority concentration district in Delhi and one of the 90 such districts in the country. What are the major problems of your area and district?
 
Dr Faheem Baig: Muslims are facing almost same problems everywhere. We are back in education and health; we don’t have many opportunities of employment. Most of the diseases of the country are found in Muslim areas for lack of sanitation and drainage facility and due to malnutrition.
 
You shouted for about a minute after the PM's speech at Vigyan Bhawan. Do you think your shouting has paid?
 
Dr Faheem Baig: Let it be clear. I had to shout and speak in a louder voice because Prime Minister was far away from me – he was about 25 rows ahead of me. Had he been near to me I would have conveyed to him my grievances silently. I had no option other than shouting. I had no intension to protest against him.

On behalf of Prime Minister, Minority Affairs Minister K Rahman Khan talked to me after the program. He said why I didn't put my points before him before the program. I told him I have already conveyed my points to his predecessor Salman Khurshid. I met Khurshid twice with the issue when he was minority minister and presented him with a memorandum. But no action was taken. Then I tried to meet PM but failed. I had got tired and disappointed and thought that when none have done anything what you can do for me. Mr. Khan, however, assured me that he will take me to the PM and I can put my queries and issues before him.
 
Do you think you have done a great job by standing up and speaking out before PM, Sonia Gandhi and others or you disturbed a big program for a while?
 
Dr Faheem Baig: No, I did not disturb the program. I followed the entire schedule of the event. I did not raise a voice when K Rahman Khan, Sonia Gandhi and PM Dr Manmohan Singh spoke. I stood up and spoke only after the PM finished his speech and turned towards his seat. The program was almost over at that time. I did not disturb the program. I raised my vice only after the program was over.
 
With your act, have you sent a message to the 15 crores Muslims in India to stand up and put up their grievances before the government?
 
Dr Faheem Baig: No, No, Not at all. I want to tell all countrymen and all members and youths of my community not to take it so lightly. First they should work on the ground as I did. I gathered all documents and exhausted all means -- letters, RTI, meetings with officers to put up my points. After doing all formalities and all efforts, when I got failed and disappointed that my voice is not being heard then only I took this step.
 
It will be wrong if any youth tries to make noises and shouting at such events because if the constitution of India has given us right to freedom and to express it also asks us to respect other's freedom and we have to execute our duties first. Even as the last resort, one should put their grievances while being within the constitution and laws as I did.
 
I want to tell all Muslims in the country and all the poor people that they should first use all means to put up their grievances before the authorities. When they fail to get any response from the system, then only in a civilized way and with wisdom they should put up their issues before the prime minister or any other authority of the country