India & 180 Million Muslim Population
The number was revealed by Indian Deputy National Security Advisor Dr Arvind Gupta in a meeting last Tuesday with Ahmed el-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, On Islam reported.
During the meeting, both leaders reviewed the conditions of the Islamic world.
Similar figures for the number of Indian Muslims were revealed during last year's general elections.
According to several media reports, Muslims account for 180 million of India's 1.1 billion people, the world's third-largest Muslim population after those of Indonesia and Pakistan.
Muslims have long complained of being discriminated against in all walks of life in Hindu-majority India.
Official figures indicate that Muslims, who make up around 13 percent of India's population, are lagging behind in literacy.
Muslims also complain of being discriminated against in jobs.
They account for less than seven percent of public service employees, only five percent of railways workers, around four percent of banking employees, and there are only 29,000 Muslims in India's 1.3 million-strong military.
