NEW DELHI: Communist Party of India (Marxist) Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat on Tuesday criticised Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh chief K.S. Sudarshan for his remarks on family planning norms. Population was a development issue and had nothing to do with Hindus and Muslims. "Mr. Sudarshan has got it all wrong because the decision to plan a family is taken by husband and wife together, irrespective of caste and community," she said. "He [Mr. Sudarshan] has tried to associate the issue with religious communities."

According to Ms. Karat, his statement makes a Muslim woman appear a child-producing machine. She was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a symposium on "Issues before Muslim women," organised by the All India Democratic Women's Association here. On the need to bring about reforms in the Sharia, Ms. Karat said things were moving in the right direction and more women were coming forward to seek changes in the Muslim laws for their benefit."There was a time when the All India Muslim Personal Law Board did not recognise the need for reforms but today it is open to talks with the community and is working towards resolving the contentious issues.''

Pointing out that women across the communities were oppressed, Ms. Karat said that when it came to Muslims there was more discrimination by the government. She cited its reluctance to give loans or have special schemes for women employed in the small sector. "Discrimination is unjustified,'' she said, calling on women of all communities to join the movement against state-sponsored discrimination.

Inaugurating the symposium, Sehba Farooqui of the AIDWA said it was unfortunate that issues related to Muslim women often revolved round their personal laws and not the routine problems they faced day-to-day. She called on the Muslim community to come out of its "shell" and fight for its rights. "The peculiar mindset about Muslims that they are uneducated, unhygienic and have a large number of children has to be got over.''

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