New Delhi : In a move that could stir the political pot, the Rural Development Ministry, under Congress leader C P Joshi, has proposed “automatic inclusion” of Muslims in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) list of families along with Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).

Aware of the political sensitivities involved, the Ministry plans to replace the word “Muslim” with “Minority” to pre-empt opposition, especially from BJP-ruled states.

Inaugurating a conference of Social Editors, Rural Development Minister Joshi said that to simplify the process and ensure that vulnerable sections are not left out from the BPL list, his department favoured automatic “inclusion” and “exclusion”.

It has been proposed, he said, that SCs, STs and minorities be automatically included in the BPL list and then well-off families excluded on basis of Income Tax returns, land records etc.

And certain categories will be “automatically” excluded from the BPL list: families with double of a district’s average irrigated land, those with a four or three-wheel motor vehicle or mechanized farm equipment, a government or private sector employee earning a salary above Rs 10,000 per month.

Joshi justified automatic inclusion citing that “SCs, STs and Minorities together form less than 37% of the population” — less than the BPL population pegged by the S C Saxena and Suresh Tendulkar committee reports released recently.

“There is a feeling that vulnerable sections are being excluded from the BPL list due to competitive politics. We are trying to address the problem”, Joshi said. He, however, said that his Ministry was waiting for the NSSO survey to decide the mode to be adopted for the new BPL survey.

Joshi’s proposal goes beyond what the Saxena committee report — it was appointed by the Rural Development Ministry — recommended. While it said that weightage should be given to certain social groups, including Muslims, it did not favour automatic inclusion. According to the Saxena report, SCs/STs would get three points and Most Backward Castes (MBC) two points. The Saxena report said that Muslims and OBCs be given one point each.

Automatic inclusion of Muslims in the BPL list could be the first major attempt by the Congress-led UPA government to woo the vote bank that roughly constitutes 18% of the country’s population. The decision could be significant given that Uttar Pradesh and Bihar go to state polls in 2012 and 2010 respectively, states where the Congress is desperately trying to get a foothold.

Inclusion and exclusion from the BPL list is a big issue in villages, particularly in the Hindi heartland, since benefits of most Central and state-sponsored welfare schemes like Indira Awas Yojna, old age pension are decided on the basis of the list.