Assam government to offer identity cards to six religious minority communities

Identity cards would be given to Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis

The BJP-led government in Assam on Sunday decided to offer identity cards to six religious minority communities, which they can submit to avail benefits of the schemes meant for the minorities.

A meeting of the state cabinet on Sunday decided that identity cards would be given to the Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis by the state minority affairs department.

"Now the minorities are provided benefits of the government schemes as per their religion but there is no identity cards for them as such. So the cabinet today decided to offer identity cards to the six religious minority communities like the identity cards given to the STs, SCs and the OBCs," Assam cabinet minister, Keshav Mahanta told reporters in Guwahati after the meeting.

"They can submit the identity cards for availing benefits under the government schemes meant for welfare of the minorities," he said.

The step is seen as an interesting one in view of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's statement in April that Muslims in some districts are no longer minorities and are in fact, majority. A committee set up by the state government also recommended that identity cards should be provided to the state's "indigenous Muslims" as indigenous community in order to protect their distinct identity. Sarma later said there is cultural differnce between the indigenous Muslims and those speaking Bengali.