Hyderabad: Telangana chief minister KCR has often claimed to be a proponent of the Ganga Jamuni culture, particularly when it comes to minority communities, especially Muslims. However, according to a minority rights activist, recent events raise doubts about the government’s commitment to this ideal. Discrimination between Muslims and the majority community in Telangana is evident in the treatment of temple priests vs imams, and muezzins.
While temple priests are now being paid salaries equivalent to government employees, with monthly payments akin to those of section officers, imams and muezzins have been relegated to a mere monthly honorarium of Rs 5,000.
As per the revised pay scale of 2020, the salary of section officers is in the range of Rs. 54220-133630.
This glaring disparity in treatment is attributed to the government’s advisor. Surprisingly, there has been no initiative from any quarter to provide official scales to imams and muezzins like their counterparts in the temples, nor has the government taken any steps in this direction.
Imams, muezzins have been deprived of honorarium for past four months
Compounding the discrimination, imams and muezzins have been deprived of their honorarium for the past four months, with the finance department showing little interest in releasing the budget. For imams and muezzins from impoverished backgrounds, who already receive meagre salaries at mosques, this has become an overwhelming burden, making it difficult for their families to survive. Despite their efforts to secure the Rs 5,000 monthly honorarium, they have been left disappointed as the funds have not been released.
A rights activist Mohammed Khaja said that even on important religious occasions like Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, imams and muezzins faced disappointment due to the delayed release of their dues. Had the funds been disbursed before Eid, they could have used it to meet the expenses associated with the festivities. Instead, there are consistent arrears of 3 to 4 months, and authorities attempt to pacify the imams and muezzins by releasing partial payments for a single month.
According to sources from the Waqf Board, cheques worth Rs 7.5 crore were issued for the honorarium of imams and muezzins, but the finance department’s lack of interest has led to delays in clearance and the funds have not been deposited into their bank accounts. The Finance Department’s reluctance to credit the cheques is preventing the budget from being released and reaching the intended beneficiaries.
Neither government nor any other entity shown interest in providing Imams, Muezzins with govt scale
Imams and muezzins lament that neither the government nor any other entity has shown interest in providing them with a government scale on par with temple priests. In Telangana, there are around 9,000 imams and muezzins receiving the honorarium, while another 10,000 applications have been pending for years without resolution.
The activist believes that with the upcoming assembly elections, there is speculation that the government may release some budget after two months in a bid to gain votes. However, during a meeting with Muslim religious and political leaders, the Chief Minister had already promised to release the honorarium for imams and muezzins, but to date, this promise remains unfulfilled. This delay and the apparent discrimination against imams and muezzins have caused disappointment and concern within the community.
