Indian Muslims for Civil Rights (IMCR) on Tuesday announced a 51-member National Monitoring Committee to pursue constitutional, legal and political remedies on issues affecting the rights of Indian Muslims, while stressing that the initiative was aimed at defending constitutional values, equality, democratic rights and the rule of law.
The announcement was made at a press conference organised at the IMCR headquarters. The initiative follows the National Convention of Muslim Leaders and Intellectuals held at the Constitution Club of India, New Delhi, on July 24, 2026.
Former Union Minister Salman Khurshid, former MP Mohd Adeeb, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind president Sadatullah Husaini, Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) National Secretary Nadeem Khan, All India Muslim Personal Law Board spokesperson S.Q.R. Ilyas and former Chief Justice of the Patna High Court Justice Iqbal Ansari spoke about the objectives of the initiative and the need for sustained collective action.
The 51-member committee comprises politicians, parliamentarians, former parliamentarians, administrators, former judges, religious scholars, social leaders, activists and representatives of different sections of society from across the country. The organisers also announced 10 secretariats to support the committee’s functioning.
Former Union Minister Salman Khurshid said one of the major achievements of the movement was bringing together people from diverse sections of society who had previously not considered working together.
He stressed that the initiative was not simply about raising demands for Muslims. Instead, it was intended to remind every Indian citizen about the constitutional rights available to them, including rights relating to culture, language and religion.
Khurshid said the objective was to protect India’s dignity, identity and shared national character. The security and dignity of one community, he argued, were closely connected with the security and dignity of every other citizen.
He called upon Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains and people belonging to other communities to participate in the effort through their respective platforms and strengthen dialogue.
Referring to discussions in Uttarakhand, Khurshid said concerns had been expressed that rapid development and tourism were affecting the region’s social and moral environment. He said the movement would support anyone willing to engage with it, regardless of their social, religious or political background.
Khurshid called for greater dialogue and collective action, saying India’s strength lay in its diversity and in the ability of its people to communicate, listen to each other and work together to preserve the country’s shared values.
Former MP Mohd Adeeb said a decision had been taken on July 24 to form a committee and launch a broader campaign to highlight concerns about the situation in the country.
He said a letter signed by around 100 eminent Muslims, including prominent public figures and Members of Parliament, had been sent to the President of India, urging attention to issues affecting the country’s largest minority.
Adeeb expressed disappointment that the President’s office had not even acknowledged the letter.
He said similar letters were also sent to various political parties, but no response was received from them.
Adeeb announced plans to organise another larger meeting in October, bringing together around 1,000 people from different parts of India to discuss their concerns and submit fresh representations.
He clarified that the initiative was not opposed to any political or social organisation and was not intended to compete with existing bodies. Its purpose, he said, was to bring people together, raise awareness about the challenges facing the country and strengthen collective efforts to uphold constitutional values and democratic dialogue.
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind president Sadatullah Husaini described the press conference as the beginning of a larger movement and awakening aimed at addressing issues concerning Muslims as well as the constitutional rights of citizens.
Husaini said the committee would continuously monitor developments and take necessary steps to intervene wherever required. Referring to the decisions taken following the July 24 meeting, he stressed that these were only the beginning of a broader and united movement.
He emphasised that the initiative was not merely a Muslim issue but concerned the entire country, the Constitution and the rule of law.
Husaini said the movement would maintain dialogue and cooperation with civil society, Hindu and Christian communities and secular political parties. Expressing his full support, he said he would remain actively involved in the movement.
Nadeem Khan, National Secretary of the Association for Protection of Civil Rights, said the organisation was witnessing a sharp increase in criminal violence, hate crimes, evictions, punitive demolitions and what he described as the misuse of stringent laws across the country.
He stressed that the scale of these developments had become so extensive that no single organisation could address them alone through litigation, advocacy or ground-level intervention.
Khan highlighted concerns over arrests under what he described as draconian laws, including the detention of a 17-year-old boy, Zakaria. He also referred to the prolonged incarceration and interrogation of activists such as Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam.
He said Uttar Pradesh was facing what he described as a constitutional crisis involving evictions, demolitions and alleged encounters, with Muslims disproportionately affected.
Referring to punitive demolitions, Khan cited a figure of 10,620 cases between 2016 and 2024 and said Muslims constituted the majority of victims. He also raised concerns over large-scale evictions in Assam, alleged “pushback” operations targeting people as Bangladeshi nationals, and demolitions of religious structures in Gujarat and Rajasthan.
Khan said the organisation had identified three major areas of intervention: criminal violence and hate crimes, including hate speech and mob lynching; evictions and bulldozer demolitions; and harassment through special legislation, including the Waqf law and Uniform Civil Code-related measures.
He said that the organisation had decided to strengthen coordination between civil society and Muslim community leadership through visits to areas facing crises.
A delegation had recently visited Uttarakhand and held meetings with civil society representatives and Muslim political, social and religious leaders.
Khan said this organisation had already undertaken legal and documentation work in Uttarakhand and planned further meetings in the Kumaon region, including Haldwani, where thousands of houses face the threat of eviction.
He added that Bengal and Assam were among the organization’s next priorities. Teams were addressing alleged mob-lynching cases and electoral-roll-related concerns in Bengal, while Assam would receive further attention through joint initiatives involving civil society and Muslim leadership.
S.Q.R. Ilyas, spokesperson for the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, said the decisions taken at the July 24 programme must now be implemented practically.
He expressed concern over what he described as the growing marginalisation of Muslims, citing issues related to the NRC, Uniform Civil Code, attacks on madrasas and mosques, lynching and inflammatory rhetoric.
Ilyas also questioned the recent emphasis on Vande Mataram, alleging that such issues could divert attention from the country’s real problems and intensify communal divisions.
He said an 51-member committee would examine the situation facing Muslims and work on appropriate responses.
However, Ilyas stressed that the initiative would not be limited to Muslim concerns. The effort would seek solidarity with Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Dalits, Adivasis, OBCs and other marginalised communities facing injustice.
He said the broader objective was to collectively defend constitutional rights and oppose oppression.
Former Chief Justice of the Patna High Court Justice Iqbal Ansari, while highlighting the challenges faced by the people of Assam, assured them of his support and cooperation.
His participation in the committee, alongside political leaders, administrators, religious scholars, activists and civil society representatives, reflects the organisers’ stated objective of creating a broad-based national mechanism to monitor developments and pursue constitutional, legal and political remedies.
The 51-member National Monitoring Committee
The following 51 members were announced as members of the National Monitoring Committee:
1. Mr. Farooq Abdullah
2. Mr. Mohammad Adeeb
3. Mrs. Mehbooba Mufti
4. Mr. Salman Khurshid
5. Mr. Najeeb Jung (IAS)
6. Justice Iqbal Ansari
7. Mr. Wajahat Habibullah
8. Mr. Ali Ashraf Fatmi
9. Mrs. Syeda Hameed
10. Ml. Khalid Saifullah Rehmani
11. Mr. Syed Sadatullah Hussaini
12. Maulana Sajjad Nomani
13. Mr. E. T. Basheer
14. Mr. Md. Ali Shabbir
15. Mr. Zafrul Islam Khan
16. Ml. Obaidullah Khan Azmi
17. Mr. Kalbe Jawwad Naqvi
18. Prof. Salim Engineer
19. Mr. Rizwan Arshad
20. Ml. Mohibullah Nadvi
21. Mr. Mansoor Khan
22. Ms. Iqra Hasan
23. Mr. Ziaur Rahman Barq
24. Mr. Imran Masood
25. Mr. Agha Ruhullah Mehdi
26. Mr. Kunwar Danish Ali
27. Mr. Mohammad Salim
28. Mr. Abu Asim Azmi
29. Mr. Arif Masood
30. Mr. Imran Khedawala
31. Mr. Gyasuddin Sheikh
32. Mr. Mohammad Muqeem
33. Ml. Syed Ashraf Kichauchvi
34. Mr. Malik Mo’tasim Khan
35. Prof. Mohammad Suleman
36. Mr. Khalid Rasheed
37. Adv. Huzefa Ahmadi
38. Mufti Usman Rehmani Ludhianvi
39. Dr. S. Q. R. Ilyas
40. Ml. Yasin Ali Usmani
41. Mr. Umar Shafiq
42. Mr. Rashid Chaudhary
43. Adv. Fuzail Ahmed Ayyubi
44. Mr. Farman Naqvi
45. Mr. Mohd. Khalid Khan
46. Dr. Azam Baig
47. Ml. Zahid Raza Rizvi
48. Mr. Juma Rayma
49. Prof. Md. Ali Mehmoodabad
50. Mrs. Uzma Naheed
51. Mr. Nadeem Khan (APCR)
The organisers also announced 10 secretariats to facilitate coordination, documentation, legal intervention, communication and implementation of the committee’s decisions.
Letter urges political parties to state positions on eight resolutions
A major part of the initiative is the letter addressed to the President of India and recognised political parties, through which IMCR has urged political parties to publicly declare their positions on eight resolutions adopted at the National Convention of Muslim Leaders and Intellectuals held at the Constitution Club of India, New Delhi, on July 24, 2026.
The appeal, made by Mohamed Adeeb on behalf of IMCR, stresses that Muslims are equal citizens of India and seek neither special privileges nor favours, but equal concern, respect and protection guaranteed under Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution.
The letter criticises the political tendency to treat Muslims as a vote bank, alleging that they are courted during elections but overlooked in public policy and political debate. IMCR maintains that Muslim citizens have the same right as every other Indian to be heard, represented and have their concerns addressed publicly.
The organisation also emphasises that political parties have a constitutional responsibility to defend fundamental rights without discrimination. According to IMCR, the Constitution cannot be defended selectively, and violations of the rights of Muslims should receive the same political attention as violations affecting other sections of society.
The first resolution concerns alleged police excesses against students who participated in a peaceful gathering in New Delhi on July 20, 2026. It calls for an independent, time-bound judicial inquiry and registration of FIRs against those responsible.
The second resolution calls for greater solidarity among different communities. It seeks to strengthen social harmony, fraternity and unity based on a common national identity and the constitutional vision of an inclusive India.
The third resolution addresses the demolition order concerning Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar University, Rampur, issued on July 15, 2026. The convention described the action as retrospective and selectively enforced, arguing that it threatens the constitutional protection granted to minority educational institutions under Article 30(1), and called for withdrawal of the order.
The fourth resolution deals with places of worship. It condemns what the convention describes as selective demolition and sealing of mosques and dargahs, asserting that such actions violate constitutional protections under Articles 14, 25 and 26 as well as the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. It calls for such actions to cease and for an independent review.
The fifth resolution concerns Jammu and Kashmir and seeks restoration of full statehood, referring to the assurance recorded before the Supreme Court of India.
The sixth resolution concerns the proposed Uniform Civil Code. It states that any UCC restricting communities from following the tenets of their faith would conflict with constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion and conscience.
The seventh resolution focuses on the dignity and autonomy of Muslim women. It condemns online and offline harassment and discriminatory dress-code restrictions while affirming women’s freedom of choice and expression, religious freedom and participation in public life.
The eighth resolution concerns political representation. It rejects the treatment of Muslims as a captive vote bank and announces the formation of a 51-member Monitoring Committee to pursue constitutional, legal and political remedies.
IMCR has clarified that it does not expect every political party to agree with every resolution. Rather, it wants political parties to clearly and publicly state where they stand on each issue.
The appeal argues that silence on questions concerning the equal rights of a significant section of citizens is itself something voters have the right to assess. The organisation has enclosed the full Declaration and resolutions with its appeal and requested considered responses from political parties.
The formation of the 51-member National Monitoring Committee, the announcement of 10 secretariats, the proposed October meeting of around 1,000 participants and the appeal to political parties collectively indicate IMCR’s intention to develop the initiative into a continuing national mechanism for monitoring developments and pursuing what it describes as constitutional, legal and political remedies.
The organisers have maintained that the initiative is not intended to replace or compete with existing political, religious or civil society organisations. Instead, they say, it seeks to create greater coordination among different sections of society and provide a collective platform for defending constitutional rights, democratic values, equality, fraternity and the rule of law.
