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| Image Source: https://www.change.org/p/prime-minister-narendra-modi-remove-the-caste-based-reservation-system-2 |
The demand for the removal of caste based reservation system is on the rise with many Indian citizens strongly believing why the caste based reservation system must be abolished.
Here is a justification of the caste based reservation system.
For many years, the Indian society had denied equality to select groups of Indians in the name of religion and its sacred scriptures. These groups of people were denied equal opportunity in education and economic opportunities owing to which they suffered in poverty and social isolation. Their presence/touch was considered unholy by the rest of the majority.
When monarchy went away and India became an independent democratic state, minority groups demanded separate nation so they can safeguard themselves from such social discrimination in the name of religion and sacred scripture. While many groups demanded separate state Pakistan (East+West) was the only one that was officially separated on the basis of faith.
One such minority group namely the Dalits (also called Harigan/Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes) asked for the same but were offered equal inclusion in the Union of India. Dr. Ambedkar who lead the Dalit upliftment efforts agreed to settle down for Dalits’ inclusion in India provided constitutional provisions were made to ensure the socially discriminated classes of Indians had, by law, opportunity across education and employment along with the formal declaration of such social discriminatory practices being unconstitutional and therefore illegal as per law.
While many opposed this demand from Ambedkar, they had to agree so everyone could get under one banner and the partition scenario could be relatively less complicated. Since Dr. Ambedkar himself was a Dalit and the popular religious opinion considered Dalits as outcast, the rest of the members of the committee responsible for writing the Indian constitution refused to collaborate with him on the same level as they considered it an insult. This is one of the reasons why the Indian constitution, for the most part, was compiled from other constitutions instead of being written from scratch.
As for the constitutional provision of caste based reservations, here are the clarifications that need to be cleared before the justifications are discussed:
- Caste based reservations are based on population-% and for inclusion of everybody so social discrimination based backwardness imposed on minorities go away. The constitutional provision comes along with 10 year timeline by when a socio-economic survey needs to be done to ascertain the extension or abolition of the reservation system. The moment data supporting socio-economic equality of castes are detected, verified and declared, the reservation system will come to an end. This is why every government collects the data and sits on it as divulging it will establish a solid case for extension of timeline for reservation. Caste-based reservations does not intend or aim at supporting mediocrity or inferior performance.
- Since the constitution demands 18% to be allocated to SC/ST’s when the required number is not available, the cut-off is relaxed to bring in the count. There are situations where the cut-off is raised to reduce the numbers, in cases when the applicants range in the thousands for positions in hundreds. Cut-off is not a baseline that is taken from thin air. It is usually a value calculated based on comparison of available positions and existing number of applicants in that category. If a certain post has 10 positions and the applicants are 2300 in number, the cut-off has to be very high to make sure the selection process ends up with say the Top-100. Interviewing 2300 is an administrative burden the government has to avoid and so they filter out candidates using cut-off marks. Check image below (SC/ST cut-offs have been rising from 2017 to 2018):
3. Indian constitution allows institutions to have a certain amount of administrative control over their operations and often times anti-reservationist mentality creeps in and what we have is a constant state of reservation cut-off’s being lower than that of general category. This is done only to convince the public can be convinced that reservation is bad and unfair so a public outcry can be caused for abolition of reservation.
4. Even inside a reservation category, candidates have to compete based on their marks. This fact is either not disclosed or deliberately ignored by those who demand the abolition of reservation.
Now for the justification:
- When the Indian society segregated a select group of equal Indians in the name of caste and the mandates of religious scripture [Manusmrithi etc.], the rest of the society watched and considered it normal and justified. Only when the post-independence constitution classified discrimination as illegal and compensated the discriminated classes, everyone wants an equal share of the compensatory benefits. Descendants of those who did not get discriminated had access to all the society had to offer but those of the discriminated classes had to suffer in spite of constitutional provisions made. As recent as 2018 saw Dalits denied entry into temples and as of 2011 Dalits were denied access to public well. There is much more to this that what we might get from media. Summing up, years of discrimination and segregation based on caste and religious practices has resulted in a social structure where Indians are not willing to consider fellow Indians as equal humans. This is translating in everyone choosing ‘THEIR OWN KIND’ every time they have access to some form of administrative power. The only solution to work around this is to have a constitutional provision of caste-based reservation such that no matter who controls what, all sections are represented proportionately as per the constitution.
- Reservation based on caste is not the cause of social discrimination. It is social discrimination that is the cause of the caste based reservation in the constitution. The challenge is that if social discrimination has to be completely eliminated, that will practically nullify the faith system based on which the caste system originated. Please read the following of you have the patience: WHY HINDUTVA IS ABSOLUTELY IMPORTANT FOR INDIA'S DEVELOPMENT
- Reservation for poor seems to be more popular these days. The claim is that reservation and benefits should be given to the poor and not to someone exclusively based on their caste/last-name. Here’s the paradox: When the minorities were denied equal economic and educational opportunities based on caste for centuries, nobody saw inequality and just when the constitution attempts to compensate for the same, everyone wants equal distribution of benefits based on economic status. read this if you have the patience: 10% RESERVATION FOR GENERAL CATEGORY FORWARD CASTES: BENEFITS BASED ON ECONOMIC STATUS
- Removing caste completely is logically a solution to set the basis for removing caste based reservation. However, removing caste means removing the credibility of the majority religion that is responsible for the caste system. If there is no caste, why would anyone believe in the existence of the god that tolerated the caste system in their respective shastras??!!? Do you know of a hindu who has no caste??!! Popularity of the major faith system will drop to the floor if the caste system is declared null and void. Google ‘dalit denied entry’ ‘dalit killed’ ‘dalit not allowed’ 'Dalit beaten' and you will see news bits covering inhuman practices. If those practices can be justified using phrases like ‘Yeah that happens’ ‘Dude that is law and order issue’ ‘This happens everywhere’ 'This has always been there' 'These are small insignificant instances' etc., then such justification automatically justifies the need for caste based reservation as defined by the Indian constitution. The fact that citizens are gently refusing to agree and perceive discrimination as discrimination indicates the presence of differences among the citizens who are inf act equal human beings. Under such circumstances, allowing the 'equal inclusion of all' as a 'Honour System' where those in power will have to execute their fair judgement for inclusive administration is neither rational nor fair. If those in power decide to be preferential and continue with discrimination, then the equality promised by the constitution is violated and the reservation policies as mandated by the constitution is present to avoid such circumstances as much as possible. [law, its interpretation and implementation are very different games]
“All humans are equal.” If this statement is hard to accept in public conversations (within and outside one's family) and/or at an individual level, then that apprehension is the real justification of caste based reservation as defined by the Indian constitution.
Best regards,
