Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma. | Photo Credit: ANI The Assam Legislative Assembly recently decided to discontinue the British-era practice of providing a two-hour break for Jumma prayers on Fridays. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma said the decision was made unanimously by both Hindu and Muslim MLAs.The practice has been prevalent in the Assembly since 1937, when it was introduced by the Muslim League’s Syed Saadulla. The sudden move to abolish it has predictably led to heated debates. What is the rationale for this move? Has the proportion of Muslim MLAs in the Assam Assembly reduced, which led to a re-examination of this practice? Or do fewer Muslims offer namaaz on Fridays? Let us examine these two questions.EDITORIAL | Hateful, baleful: On the Assam Chief Minister and communally sensitive remarksTwo questionsIn the current Assembly, of a total of 126 MLAs, 31 are Muslim. The numbers have not changed significantly over the years. The 2016 and 2011 Assemblies had 28 Muslims MLAs each, while the 2006 Assembly had 25 Muslim MLAs, who mostly belonged to the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF). All the Muslim MLAs in the last four Assemblies belonged to parties apart from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). There was only one exception: Aminul Haque Laskar, who got elected on a BJP ticket from the Bengali-dominated Sonai Assembly constituency. He too later switched to the Congress. Thus, the change in rules will hurt the Muslim MLAs, who all belong to non-BJP parties. Surveys conducted by Lokniti indicate that there has hardly been any decline in the levels of religiosity among Indian Muslims. The practice of offering namaaz every day is widely prevalent. According to the survey, in 2014, 59% of Muslims said that they offered namaaz daily, while another 27% said that they did so weekly. Another 10% said that they offered namaaz only during festivals. This means that 86% of Muslims offer namaaz on a regular basis. A survey conducted in 2024 showed that the proportion of Muslims offering namaaz every day increased to 63%. Another 22% said they offer namaaz on Fridays and yet another 7% said that they do so only during festivals. The share of Muslims who offer namaaz daily has increased in the last 10 years. Thus, these surveys show that there has been no significant change in the levels of religiosity among Indian Muslims. That is, there is hardly any change in the frequency of offering namaaz.Therefore, neither of these two possible explanations seems to hold ground. So, why was this long-standing practice been changed? The Chief Minister said that the move “prioritises productivity” and sheds India’s “colonial baggage”. He argued that it was taken in view of the “secular nature of the Constitution”.Also Read | Assam Opposition forum files FIR against CM for ‘promoting enmity’CriticismsHowever, not everyone agrees. Some see political motives for this move. The AIUDF criticised the decision, claiming that it was aimed at targeting Muslims ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. The party alleged that this was yet another move by the BJP-led government to target Muslims for political benefits. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav also condemned the move, alleging that it had been taken to gain “cheap publicity”. He said that the BJP wanted to “bother Muslims in some way or the other”.The decision was opposed not only by Opposition parties but also by the National Democratic Alliance’s own allies — the Janata Dal (United) and the Lok Jan Shakti Party (LJP). JD(U) leader Neeraj Kumar accused the Chief Minister of undermining religious practices and questioned his priorities, suggesting that the government should focus on issues such as poverty alleviation and flood prevention. Mr. Kumar also raised questions about the constitutional protection of religious beliefs, asking whether similar bans would be imposed on Hindu traditions, such as animal sacrifices at the Maa Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati. Similarly, K.C. Tyagi, a JD(U) functionary who has since resigned, emphasised the need to uphold the Constitution’s protection of liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith, and worship. In response to these reactions, Mr. Sarma expressed surprise. Given the criticism, will the government reconsider its decision? This is not impossible, especially since we have seen the Central government take many decisions only to withdraw them following a backlash in recent times. Sanjay Kumar is Professor and Co-director, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi Published – September 17, 2024 12:36 am IST