Reservation, not a Charity
Dr. Rahul Kumar Balley, MA. PhD
Samaj Weekly , UK- Reservation has always been an issue of debate in India. The majority of Hindus remain opposed to it without having understood the necessity of Reservation for the socially and economically backward Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs). The chief architect of Indian constitution Bharat Ratna Baba Saheb Dr.B. R. Ambedkar raised this demand and achieved it despite several hurdles. Hindus are responsible for the wretched conditions of the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs). The Hindus, at large, must go through the historical background of Reservation and stop crying over it. In order to seek repentance Hindus must welcome Reservation.
The Laws of Manu
Manu prohibited education for the Untouchables. The trade was hereditary. On other accounts, the untouchables in the villages were either village servants or landless labourers. Economic conditions of the Untouchables depended on Hindus. Dr Ambedkar wrote: “The Untouchables have no way of earning a living open to them in a village. He cannot do any business such as selling milk or vegetables, because he is an Untouchable, no one will buy these things from him. He cannot take to any trade because, all trades being hereditary, no one will accept his service. His economic dependence upon the Hindu is complete and the Hindu takes a complete advantage of it whenever the untouchables prove arrogant, or naughty in the eyes of the Touchable[1]. The Hindus snatched educational and economic rights from the SCs/STs therefore making them backward.
Historical Background
Dr. Ambedkar represented the depressed classes at Round Table Conferences held from 1930 to 1932 in London. In his submission to Simon Commission, Dr Ambedkar emphasised that the oppressed classes should be treated as a distinct, independent minority distinct from caste Hindus and he requested for separate electorates. Between Ambedkar and Gandhi, a formula on the principle of the joint electorate was signed on September 4, 1932 called the “Poona Pact”.
The vision of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
Dr. Ambedkar wrote that “welfare of large classes of people” could not be left in the hands of administrators drawn from a community that was ‘opposed to the rest of the population in its motives and interest Dr. Ambedkar’s advocacy for reservation policies was not just about providing temporary relief to marginalized communities but about creating an inclusive society where everyone had equal opportunities to succeed. He saw reservations as a tool to correct historical wrongs and to ensure that the most oppressed sections of society could access education, employment, and political representation.
Emphasis on Education
In 1881, Jotirao Phule wrote: “Without education, wisdom was lost; without wisdom, morals were lost; without morals, development was lost; without development, wealth was lost; without wealth, the Shudra were ruined; so much happened through lack of education.” In 1927, during a debate in the council on the Bombay University Bill, Ambedkar argued, “The backward classes have come to realise that after all education is the greatest material benefit for which they can fight. We may forgo material benefits … but we cannot forgo our right and opportunity to reap the benefit of the highest education to the fullest extent.”
Relevant Constitutional Provisions
Several constitutional provisions are pertinent to the discussion on reservation and sub-classification:
- Article 15(4): Allows the State to make special provisions for the advancement of socially and educationally backward classes, including SCs and STs.
- Article 16(1): Ensures equality of opportunity in public employment.
- Article 16(4): Permits the State to make provisions for the reservation of appointments or posts in favor of any backward class of citizens which, in the opinion of the State, is not adequately represented in the services under the State.
- Article 341: Empowers the President to specify the castes, races, or tribes to be deemed as SCs.
Quota of Reservation for SCs/STs in government institutions
Scheduled Castes (SC) are given 15% quota in jobs/higher educational institutions while Schedule Tribes (ST) are given 7.5% quota in jobs/higher educational institutions. Reservation in Lok Sabha – There are seats reserved for Scheduled castes, Scheduled tribes. In earlier times, the quota of Reservation was fixed for 10 years but the political parties keeping in mind the caste/ identity politics extended the time period for Reservation from time to time.
Sub-quotas within the SC reservation.
Recent Supreme court judgement permitting sub-classification of “Scheduled Castes (SCS) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) for reservation purposes. These legislative actions aimed to ensure that the most marginalized sub-groups within the SCs also receive the benefits of affirmative action. In Punjab and Tamil Nadu, it has been done. The issue of sub-classification within SCs for reservation purposes is a multifaceted and complex one. Dr. Umakant, who has co-authored a widely-cited book, Caste, Race and Discrimination: Discourses in International Context (2004) along with former UGC Chairman Prof. Sukhdeo Thorat, raised the issue that under Article 341 of the Constitution, Parliament had only the power to reclassify the castes and tribes within the SC and ST community. According to him, states had no role in it, but the Supreme Court judgment is now leaving the matter to the states. On the judgment of the Supreme Court, Dr. Umakant said the language used by the honourable judges in the case was “very patronizing.” “While reading the judgment, I felt that a deliberate attempt was made to prove the point that states have the right to re-classify.”
Mohan Bhagwat`s statement
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat had called for a review of the system of quotas but later on he gave a statement that reservations should continue for as long as there is discrimination in society. Several top leaders of the BJP also said that Reservations should continue. If that is the case, then where is the problem? The problem is that whatever BJP/RSS is unable to do, due to political compulsions, that task is done by the judiciary. The issue of Creamy layers, Merit, Efficiency are being raised by the judiciary at the behest of BJP/RSS. There is no measurement of Merit, Efficiency hence it is simply a shoddy mentality of the Hindus to demoralise the illiterate, poverty -stricken, oppressed and tortured Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Castes (STs) since civilisation.
Caste Discrimination/ Atrocities/ Crime
It is often blamed that BJP/RSS is an anti-Dalit party. To some extent it is true. Since 2014, the BJP/RSS combine have not launched any nationwide movement against Untouchability. The increase in atrocities against SCs/STs by the upper caste Hindus in BJP ruled states have reached unprecedented levels. The administration is in the hands of Hindus and they further crush the weaker sections under the pressure of members of the upper caste Hindus who hold wealth & power. Similarly, the crime against Dalit women and children has been on the rise. It is a false propaganda by the so-called pro-BJP scholars and media persons that there is caste discrimination within the SC communities. A tiny percentage of members of SC communities raised their social and economic status by availing government jobs. Reservation as a tool for bringing social equality for SCs/STs have failed miserably because the respective governments did not fulfil the quota of Reservation as mandated by the constitution of India. What to talk about discrimination within the communities. Rather, the Hindus are seen erecting social, economic, political and judicial barriers on several pretexts in the advancement of socially and economically backward SCs/ STs. Not a single Hindu outfit works for the annihilation of the caste system. Not a single Hindu outfit works for the removal of Untouchability.
Conclusion
Since the inception of the Reservation system for the upliftment of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), the Hindus and Hindu outfits have been working against it for their vested interest. If we observe closely the reality is different. Hindus and Hindu outfits are working on the HIT & TRIAL method meaning they throw the issue in the public domain and observe. If it is opposed by Dalits at large then the BJP/RSS retreat. If they think that there is no opposition, they implement it. From this, the Dalits should accept that neither the BJP nor the RSS want to annihilate the Reservation system. Therefore, the Reservation system would continue forever because it suits the Hindus and Hindu outfits. By continuing Reservation, the BJP/RSS want the Dalits to avail only a limited benefit of government policies. In addition to that the BJP/RSS is working day and night in cutting funds allocation meant for the advancement of the SCs/ STs. The socially and economically backward Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) deserve Reservation. Hindus must understand that Reservation is not a charity, reservation for socially and economically backward SCs/STs is due to historical injustices Hindus had inflicted on them.
v Dr. Rahul Kumar Balley is PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is a freelance columnist. He writes on social, political and international issues. He is editor of Bheem Patrika. Views are personal.
[1] Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Writings and Speeches (1989), Education Department, Government of Maharashtra, Vol.5; p.226-7,
