Quota not a bonanza for creamy layer
SC Feared Trouble While Staying Reservation
Dhananjay Mahapatra TNN
Gujjars’ demand for a demotion in their social position—from other backward class (OBC) to Schedule Tribe (ST)—first set Rajasthan on fire and later burnt the social fabric to erupt as a full-blown caste war. Their craving for an ST status did not go down well with the Meenas as it feared that it might have to share the fruits of reservations with another group, shrinking its access to government jobs. On the other hand, Gujjars feel that the OBC stable is full of many a caste stallion making it difficult for them to bag as much benefits as the Meenas have done through their ST tag. The Gujjars’ fight for ST status and the Meenas’ fear of having to share the reservation benefit in future led to clashes between the two. The damning consequence of promising castebased reservations in return for votes was not anticipated by the ruling BJP in Rajasthan and not realised by the UPA government, which recently doled out 27% reservation for OBCs, the creamy layer included. It is argued by quota pundits that reservation is a stick for the socially weak to help him learn walking. But, if the stick remains in his hand even after he has learnt to walk, he will use the stick for whacking. The supreme court foresaw this danger while staying implementation of 27% OBC quota in central educational institutions as the government had not done a survey as to who were backward and the basis of their backwardness. Neither had it intended to take the stick away from the creamy layer.
The indications of a possible caste war can be clearly read from the apex court’s interim order of March 29 when it stayed the 27% OBC quota. Following are the extracts from that interim order:
“It has also to be noted that nowhere else in the world do castes, classes or communities queue up for the sake of gaining backward status.’’
“Nowhere else in the world is there competition to assert backwardness and then to claim we are more backward than you.’’
It is a settled legal position that the state is constitutionally empowered to enact affirmative action measures to uplift backward classes. And no one would protest the needy getting reservation. If that is the mindset, why politicise inclusion and noninclusion of castes and classes in the lists of SCs,STs and OBCs, increasingly viewed as bonanza by the creamy layer among the backward communities. In fact, the apex court had warned, “Differentiation or classification for special preference must not be unduly unfair for the persons left out of the favoured groups.’’ This means, the policy of reservation cannot intend to be permanent or perpetuate backwardness at the cost of general category communities.
SC Feared Trouble While Staying Reservation
Dhananjay Mahapatra TNN
Gujjars’ demand for a demotion in their social position—from other backward class (OBC) to Schedule Tribe (ST)—first set Rajasthan on fire and later burnt the social fabric to erupt as a full-blown caste war. Their craving for an ST status did not go down well with the Meenas as it feared that it might have to share the fruits of reservations with another group, shrinking its access to government jobs. On the other hand, Gujjars feel that the OBC stable is full of many a caste stallion making it difficult for them to bag as much benefits as the Meenas have done through their ST tag. The Gujjars’ fight for ST status and the Meenas’ fear of having to share the reservation benefit in future led to clashes between the two. The damning consequence of promising castebased reservations in return for votes was not anticipated by the ruling BJP in Rajasthan and not realised by the UPA government, which recently doled out 27% reservation for OBCs, the creamy layer included. It is argued by quota pundits that reservation is a stick for the socially weak to help him learn walking. But, if the stick remains in his hand even after he has learnt to walk, he will use the stick for whacking. The supreme court foresaw this danger while staying implementation of 27% OBC quota in central educational institutions as the government had not done a survey as to who were backward and the basis of their backwardness. Neither had it intended to take the stick away from the creamy layer.
The indications of a possible caste war can be clearly read from the apex court’s interim order of March 29 when it stayed the 27% OBC quota. Following are the extracts from that interim order:
“It has also to be noted that nowhere else in the world do castes, classes or communities queue up for the sake of gaining backward status.’’
“Nowhere else in the world is there competition to assert backwardness and then to claim we are more backward than you.’’
It is a settled legal position that the state is constitutionally empowered to enact affirmative action measures to uplift backward classes. And no one would protest the needy getting reservation. If that is the mindset, why politicise inclusion and noninclusion of castes and classes in the lists of SCs,STs and OBCs, increasingly viewed as bonanza by the creamy layer among the backward communities. In fact, the apex court had warned, “Differentiation or classification for special preference must not be unduly unfair for the persons left out of the favoured groups.’’ This means, the policy of reservation cannot intend to be permanent or perpetuate backwardness at the cost of general category communities.
posted by Cliff | 8:34 PM
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