National

Muslim leaders’ plea

LUCKNOW: A delegation of Muslim leaders on Tuesday met President Pratibha Patil here and demanded that terror incidents in the past five years should be probed by a commission headed by a retired Supreme Court judge.

“All terror incidents that have taken place in the last five years and all the arrests that have taken place in this connection should be probed by a Commission headed by a retired Supreme Court judge,” the five-member delegation led by Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahli said in a memorandum submitted to Ms. Patil.

“The President assured us that she would take up our requests with the Central government,” he told reporters.

The delegation under the banner of Islamic Centre of India also demanded that a Muslim Planning Commission should be set up under the Planning Commission, new Muslim Universities established on the lines of the Aligarh Muslim University and a high-level intellectual board consisting of Muslim MPs and MLAs be set up to alleviate the condition of the community in the country.

The delegation, in its one-page memorandum, also asked for the implementation of the Sachar Committee recommendations, which was set up to look into the social, economic and educational status of Muslims.

It also demanded that recommendations of the Sri Krishna Commission, which probed the post-Babri riots in Mumbai, be implemented. — PTI

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