RSS continues to woo Muslim women: Gives monthly pension for divorced women
Lucknow: The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has begun a second and subtle round of wooing the minorities. The Muslim Rashtriya Manch (MRM) has adopted some 700 families under its unique pension scheme that is being run in Varanasi, Gorakhpur and the Bundelkhand region.
Denying any RSS role in these pro-minority moves, Indresh Kumar, the "guide" of the MRM, says the organisation was being run by "nationalist and well-meaning Muslims who wanted their community to shun dogmas and become progressive in life".
He added that initiatives like the monthly pension scheme of Rs 500 per divorced woman were efforts to "bring light" to the otherwise dark and gloomy setting these women are forced to live in.
"Ye rajnaitik nahin, ek imandaar prayaas hai ki jo ye andhera phailaya hai usme roshni bhari jaye" (this is not political, it is an honest effort to bring some light in their lives), Indresh Kumar told IANS.
The MRM has also rolled out a free foodgrain scheme for Muslim families in Modi's Varanasi parliamentary constituency. This scheme initially targets 800 families in poor slum dwellings and would be taken further as and when our resources increase, an official informed.
, the presence of a large number of Muslim women buoyed the spirits of RSS mandarins who feel that the "outreach's response is more than a trickle now". Muslim women openly spoke of their support to Modi's anti-triple divorce move and also extended their support to the demand of a grand Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya.
At a convention at the Ayodhya Shodh Sansthan auditorium this week, Shabana Azmi, a professor with the Arabic Culture Department at Lucknow University, told the crowd that Lord Rama was "one of the 1.24 lakh Nabis sent by Allah and that it was only natural that his grand temple be built at Ayodhya".
Insiders say the RSS has been trying to make inroads into segments that were not supporters so far -- and hopes that these efforts will fructify by the time of the next general election.
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Pakistan minister heading Asian cricket body, BCCI likely to withdraw from Asia Cup: Report
New Delhi: Following the recent escalation in India-Pakistan hostilities, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is reportedly set to withdraw from upcoming Asian Cricket Council (ACC) tournaments. The ACC is currently headed by Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as the chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The BCCI has informed the ACC about its decision to withdraw from the Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup in Sri Lanka next month and from the biennial Men’s Asia Cup in September, as reported by The Indian Express on Monday.
A BCCI source told the news outlet that the Indian team cannot take part in a tournament overseen by the ACC, which is currently headed by a Pakistani minister. “That’s the sentiment of the nation. We have verbally communicated to ACC about our withdrawal from the upcoming Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup, and our future participation in their events too is on hold. We are in constant touch with the Indian government,” TIE quoted the source as saying.
This development casts serious doubt over the Men’s Asia Cup that India was to host in September.
The BCCI reportedly believes that an Asia Cup without India's participation would be commercially unviable. Given India's major role in global cricket viewership and sponsorship, particularly the high-stakes India-Pakistan fixtures, the absence of the Indian team would significantly diminish broadcaster interest and financial backing.
