ABSTRACT
Muslims constitute the second largest religious group and the largest religious minority community in India. In March 2015, Muslim population figures and decadal growth was mischievously leaked to the media and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) tried to instill fear in the majority community to garner political benefit. Generally, Muslims are concentrated in northern and eastern states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam. Substantial Muslim population is also found in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. The Government of India can identify the districts for focused attention on Muslims for socio-economic and educational progress to bring down the population growth. Communalization of social space and occurrence of communal riots are also responsible for high degree of urbanization among Muslims. Right wing organizations, that is the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, BJP and their affiliated organizations have been continuously using the issue of Muslim population for instilling fear in Hindus and spreading hatred between two communities.
