Sachar Committee recommendations not sacrosanct: Salman Khurshid

The Sachar Committee report is not sacrosanct like the Quran and has to be looked at with a critical eye and not viewed as something special given to Muslims, Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said here today.

"Sachar Committee report is not Quran. It could be wrong and its recommendations and observations need to be looked at with a critical eye. The recommendations should not be seen as a special thing given to Muslims," he said at a function here.

The Rajinder Sachar Committee was appointed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for preparing a report on the social, economic and educational status of Muslims and was tabled in Parliament on November 30, 2006.

Khurshid said a committee was studying a proposal to recommend that the government rename his ministry as Ministry of Equal Opportunities.

His ministry, he said, was often looked at as the only one responsible for welfare of minorities, while the fact was that other ministries too have a similar role.

"The Minority Affairs Ministry has only Rs 5,000 crore but the HRD Ministry has Rs 65,000 crore. So it is not only the Minority Affairs Ministry but other Ministries also that have to look after the minorities," he said.

Asked if a separate quota for Muslim women could be created in the proposed 33% reservation for women in Parliament, he said it was a "tricky" issue and hoped that a satisfactory solution would be found.

He urged minorities in South India to open educational institutions in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam to promote development.