Jews to get minority status in Gujarat

AHMEDABAD: Jews in Gujarat will be given the status of religious minority

Updated At : 06:55 AM Jun 30, 2018 IST

Manas Dasgupta

Ahmedabad, June 29

Jews in Gujarat will be given the status of religious minority. This was announced by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who is currently on a six-day tour of Israel, his first foreign visit as the CM.

Rupani, who held a 45-minute meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, said his government had taken an in-principle decision to give the Jews in the state the religious minority status and an official notification to this effect would be issued by the state government after his return to Gandhinagar.

The number of the once-prosperous Jews has shrunk to mere 170 in the state of whom 140 live in Ahmedabad alone, where the community also has the Magen Abraham Synagogue, the only synagogue in the state.

The demand for giving them the minority status was pending for long. The demand was renewed two years back when Anandiben Patel was the CM. The state government then had given the assurance of considering their demand but no follow-up action was taken.

A delegation of the Jews had called on Rupani during the last session of the Assembly, reminding him about the state government’s assurance on this count.