Minority Coordination Committee Gujarat demand allocation of ₹5,900 cr for minorities ahead of interim budget

The Minority Coordination Committee (MCC), Gujarat, has demanded that the state government should allocate ₹5,940 crore for the development of minorities, regretting, unlike Government of India, Gujarat has no separate budget for them.

In a letter sent to Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani ahead of the interim budget session of the state assembly, MCC convener Mujahid Nafees said, this situation is there despite the fact that Gujarat has 11% population of minorities, of which 9.7% are Muslims, and the total budget for 2018-19 was ₹1,825,000 crore.

Insisting that the minorities are "very backward" and need "protection", Nafees said, a new department of minority affairs on lines of the Centre should be created and it should be allocated ₹1,000 crore.

Other major demands are: A State Commission for Minorities which should be allocated ₹250 crore; ₹1,100 crore for the Multi-Sectoral Development Programme (MSDP) for Minorities; an allocation ₹500 crore for education, empowerment, skill development and livelihoods of minorities; special financial package for upliftment of minorities ₹1,200 crore; and ₹500 crore for rehabilitation of riot victims.