Educate, create jobs to wean away Meo youth from cybercrime: Mahapanchayat
Sumedha Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, November 3
Citing cybercrime as one of the biggest challenges in Mewat, various Meo leaders and social organisations have sough better education and employment from Rajasthan and Haryana Governments to wean youth from the crime.
Haryana is one of the biggest cybercrime hubs in the country with Nuh topping the crime chart. According to crime records, over 30 vllages falling in Nuh and Palwal districts are cybercrime hubs. The Haryana Police had an year ago launched a massive drive and nabbed over 5,000 cyber criminals in just one night.
Various political leaders, sarpanches, ulemas and maulvis got together at a mahapanchayat held at Somka village in Rajasthan’s Deeg district by Bharatpur-based Samriddh Bharat Abhiyan. The speakers, including Nuh MLA Aftab Ahmed, highlighted how Mewat still was untouched from education and employment avenues and this was forcing youth to take up crime.
“It’s sad but true that Meo youth are entangled in a web of cybercrime. Mewat in Haryana is stone’s throw from glitzy millennium city Gurugram, but it’s a different world all together. The education and employment avenues have been neglected and virtually non-existent for the past 10 years. With no dignified way left to earn for their families, youth are lured by criminals and the future of Mewat is being ruined. The government, both Central and state, needs to be more sensitive about needs of Mewat and take efforts as this is only way to wean our future away from crime,” said Aftab Ahmed.
The mahapnchayat decided to aid abhiyan in counselling Meo youth who are drawn to cybercrime, and to connect these them with activities such as poultry farming, pisciculture, beekeeping, and skills development.
Maulana Mohammed Rashid of Meel Kherla Madrasa, who presided over the mahapanchayat, said: “The Meo Muslim community is facing infamy today because of the criminal activities of some misguided youth. We need to get rid of all evil practices and introduce reforms. This reforms need to start at the grass-root levels and children need to be tapped from a young age.”