Former Chief Election Commissioner of India, S.Y. Quraishi busts many myths and claims about the population of Indian Muslims in conversation with broadcaster Achala Sharma in this episode of ‘Kitaab Kaulum’.

The author of ‘The Population Myth: Islam, Family Planning and Politics in India’, published by HarperCollins, says India’s family planning programme policy has yielded solid results and is almost on track.

Quraishi’s book reveals how the right-wing spin to population data has given rise to myths about the Muslim rate of growth , often used to stoke majoritarian fears of a demographic skew. He uses facts to demolish these, and demonstrates how a planned population is in the interest of all communities. The book delves into the Quran and the Hadith to show how Islam might have been one of the first religions in the world to actually advocate smaller families, which is why several Islamic nations today have population policies in place.

SY Quraishi has also written a much acclaimed book: An Undocumented Wonder: The Great Indian Election: The Making of the Great Indian Election