Be it be the issue of salaries for priests and clergy members in Delhi or Modi and Kejriwal asking each other to retrospect their inner self in this high voltage season 4 of Delhi’s forthcoming assembly election things have taken a surprising turn. Recently, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal announced that if his party comes to power in Delhi, they will provide a monthly salary of ₹18,000 to temple priests and gurdwara granthis. However, there is no mention of salaries for clergy’s of mosques being stopped in Delhi. In fact, the Delhi Government had previously been providing financial assistance to Imams and Maulvis of mosques.
In CIC-verdict dated 07.08.2023 in file-number CIC/REVDP/A/2022/152053-UM on RTI applications filed by noted RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal against Delhi Waqf Board, Chief Minister’s Office and others, the Central Information Commissioner raised constitutional issues in paying salaries to Imams and helpers in mosques of Delhi. CIC-verdict highlighted news-report wherein the then Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced salaries also to be paid for imams and helpers of the mosques that are outside the domain of Delhi Waqf Board. It was for the first time that salary expense of such mosques would be covered by a government, as per news-report. The imams and helpers of mosques outside domain of Delhi Waqf Board were to be paid rupees. 14000 and rupees. 12000 per month subsequent to Kejriwal’s announcement made during an event organized by the Delhi Waqf Board. Salaries of Imams and helpers in mosques under domain of Delhi Waqf Board were announced to be hiked to rupees 18000 and 16000 respectively from earlier rupees 10000 and 9000 per month in the same event.
Affidavit filed by Delhi Waqf Board on CIC-directions made startling revelations about a sudden abnormal hike in allocation of funds by Delhi Government to Delhi Waqf Board after Kejriwal’s announcement. It reveals that total amount of salaries to imams and helpers jumped from rupees 23358333 in the fiscal year 2018-19 (when salaries were paid only to imams and helpers in mosques under domain of Delhi Waqf Board) to total rupees 654838000 in fiscal-year 2021-22 out of which rupees 71770000 were paid to imams and helpers in 208 mosques under domain of Delhi Waqf Board while rupees 583068000 were paid to imams and helpers of 1106 mosques not under domain of Delhi Waqf Board! Affidavit filed by Delhi waqf Board clearly states that all these salary-expenses were from grant-in-aid received from Delhi Government. However no salaries were paid after December 2021.
Other documents received from Union Home Ministry in response to CIC-verdict make it clear that such issues are in domain of state-governments. It may be mentioned that Article 27 of the Constitution of India prohibits the state from forcing citizens to pay taxes to promote or maintain a specific religion to ensure preventing the government from favoring or financially supporting any religion using public funds
ow big question is why Kejriwal is silent on practical problem faced by Aam Admi Party government in stopping salaries to imams and helpers in mosques while announcing a new announcement about starting paying salaries to priests of temples and granthis of Gurudwaras evidently to woo Hindu voters. Announcement still lacks any such pre-poll promise to priests of religions other than Hinduism, Sikhism (and earlier Islam). Will it be practically possible to fulfill such pre-poll promise, or the blame would be there on Union Government or Lt Governor of Delhi in case Aam Admi Party comes to pwer again because of such gimmick poll-promises.
Also there is a race amongst political parties where BJP has also be forced to join such a race to announce freebies and monthly payments to ladies and persons of some other categories evidently at cost of mute section of middle-income tax-payers overlooking past happenings in Srilanka when things went out of control because of such freebies. It is time to make people
self-dependent rather than burdening the public-exchequer in anticipation of freebies and monthly reliefs to select category of voters including ladies. Stay Tuned to season 4 of Delhi’s election to witness who is the Big Boss of Season 4
#law #india #aap #bjp #New Delhi
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