‘What will people do when there is no electricity?’ Badruddin Ajmal explains the reason behind population explosion

AIUDF supremo Badruddin Ajmal has given his two bits on the issue of a disproportionate increase in population. Muslims, particularly, are known for producing many children. Allowed by the theological laws to engage in polygamy and produce children with multiple wives, the population explosion among the community has always been a cause of worry in India. Speaking from a position of experience it seems, Badruddin Ajmal, while conversing with a media publication, has said that poor people, with no electricity and no modes of entertainment, will end up producing children at night. For what else can they, as humans, do to entertain themselves?

Admitting that the rise in population is indeed a cause of worry, Ajmal sought to justify the same, or rather pin the blame of the same on the ruling government, who have not been able to provide poor and young couples with alternate modes of entertainment. Ajmal said, “What have you given them (couples) to entertain themselves? Do they have a television? They do not even have a house to live in. For cooling, they do not have fans. No electricity either. They are humans too. When a poor fellow wakes up in the night, husband-wife for instance, who are young, what will they do? Of course, they will produce kids, what else can they do?”

According to Badruddin Ajmal, the way to tackle population explosion is to educate and impart knowledge among children, so that they can differentiate good from bad later in life. According to Times Now, in October 2019, Ajmal had said that Muslims would listen to no one and would keep producing children. Ajmal had said that Islam does not believe in the concept of having ‘merely’ two children.

Read more: ‘Muslims will continue producing kids despite law’, Ajmal’s message for Muslims is both illegal and immoral

Ajmal had said back then, “Whatever laws you make, they will have no impact on the Muslims. Tampering with nature is not good. Muslims will do whatever they want to bear children. Don’t shout later that we have more children. Don’t fight with nature.” The comments came as a reaction to the 126-member Assam assembly in September 2017 passing a resolution adopting the ‘Population and Women Empowerment Policy of Assam’. According to the policy, the state government proposed to bar anyone with more than two children from contesting municipal and panchayat elections, getting government jobs and other benefits.

The demon of overpopulation can hinder any country’s progress as the resources start getting scarce and opportunities for a sustainable community diminish.  It is highly deplorable that Ajmal would try to discount the severity of the menace with a flimsy excuse as that of lack of entertainment among couples.