Two comments,

A) It is unlikely that this religious budget quota will be actually implemented. As M.J.Akbar has eloquently put it in a recent column, “Muslims are the item-girl for the congress”. Come elections, out of nowhere, with no relevance to the screenplay, a raunchy number just to whet the appetite of the fans. The item-girl number ends as abrupty as the it starts – once the elections end.

B) If it is implemented in earnest, it will be even more dangerous. Political entrepreneurs will then arise who will promise similar separate budgeting for Vanniyar areas, Dalit Christian areas, Gujjar areas and so on.

In the ensuing mayhem, Dalits, the one and only group in my opinion who have a case for social justice in the form of quotas – are forgotten. They become video footage for NGOs.

Modi is right on the money.

Nitin,

That depends on their definition of secularism, which generally means bending over backwards to create that perception of equality though in practice it actually ends up favouring one community over the other, encouraging the divides that we are getting to see.

As I pointed out in a comment in Niket Kaisare’s blog, what should be most worrying is that in a roomful of chief ministers only one man, Narendra Modi, raised these objections. Now those who dislike Modi might have reasonable grounds for doing so. But what is more worrying is those who swear by secularism are doing nothing to prevent its slaughter.

Nowadays, it is difficult to agree with Modi on any issue and still be on talking terms with folk in certain charmed (cocooned) circles in Dilli and Mumbai, I hear.

Also, seems like this rush of minority welfare programs could signal an impending loksabha election, anyone?

So much for “inclusive growth”.