|
Introduction
Reservation as subject in the Indian society is not a new one. It
was running even from the pre-independence times. The Britishers
for their colonies initially used this concept in the name of
welfare purposes but the main aim behind this was to control the
power by dividing the individuals for the personal interest i.e.
the policy of DIVIDE & RULE. By the
Government of
India Act 1909 and 1919,
the British Empire allotted some reservation or quota for Muslims
and other minority classes in the administration according to the
proportion of their population.
From this
historical backgrounds, this doesn’t means that reservation or
quota system is a vice for the Indian society but the importance
of reservation was considered in welfare prospective by the
framers of Indian Constitution. This was felt that it is important
to make certain provisions which deals in the upliftment of poor
and depressed classes. So in the part IV of the Indian
Constitution i.e.
Directive
Principles of State
some provisions were made which works as guidelines for good
governance.
Legislature
And Judiciary On Quota System
The implementation of reservation or quota system for backward
classes for their upliftment was not carried out smoothly. The
Congress government headed by the then Prime Minister Pt. J.L.
Nehru felt unable to implement the policies of Planning Commission
whose one of the objectives at that time (1951-56) was to raising
the standard of living of people especially the people belongs to
backward classes because these policies to some extent infringes
the fundamental rights provided under Article 14, 15, 16, 21 etc.
In
State of
Madras v. Champakam Dorairajan , a seven Judge Bench of the
Supreme Court struck down the classification for allotting seats
in the State medical colleges as being based on caste, race and
religion for the purpose of admission to educational institutions
in the ground that Art. 15 did not contain a clause such as Art
16(4).
To overcome
this decision, by the 1st Amendment in 1951, the legislature added
Clause 4 in Art. 15. Clause 4 says that the state is not prevented
from making any special provisions for
the
advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of
citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
By this
provision the legislature overcome the judicial decision and makes
reservation or Quota for the backward classes. The reservation was
initially provided for the period of 10 years that has being
extended from time to time. Till 1980 the reservation was
generally provided for SCs and STs but after the
Mandal Commission
Report on Reservation the provision is also granted 27%
reservation for the other Backward Classes in jobs as well as in
the higher education . After this lots of litigations were filed
on the matter the reservation for other backward classes including
the order of the then P.V. Narasimha Rao’s government in 1991,
which provided the reservation of 10% for Other Economic Backward
Classes (OEBC). The Supreme Court to curb the overall percentage
of reservation in the educational as well as in public jobs fixed
the maximum limit upto 50%.
Conflict
Over Reservation
At the time of independence of India, the living conditions of
backward classes specially of SC’s and ST’s was so pathetic and in
order to uplift them and help them to establish in the new
environment, government provided them quota or reservation
facilities specially in educational institution and public jobs.
But now after 59 years of independence anti-reservation supporters
feel that now it is the right time to strike down the policy of
reservation or atleast lessens the percentage especially in
educational institution. Presently in almost all Universities and
Colleges, reservation is provided upto 50% and only 50% seats
where left to the general category. With backward classes, some
more reservation given to the minority groups, women, handicapped,
state quota etc. in the Universities.
This a very
debatable issue that whether reservation should be provided in
higher educational institutes which produces the leaders and
intellectuals who will governs the country. Due to the quota
system the reserved candidates preferred over the high merit
candidates.
In this
globalizing and technological period should
these reservations be maintained as it is in the past? On this
issue different people have different opinion according to their
individual interest. But this thing was clear that with the time
the reservation has been increasing. In the period of 60s and 70s
the reservations was only provided for SCs and STs but now after
Mandal Commission report the reservation percentage has
increased.. By the Supreme Court Judgment in
Indra Sawhney’s case,
the creamy layer is excluded from the reservation but it doesn’t
work on SCs and STs. To avoid the competition, the formula of
forged documents for proving backward class status is also
prevailing. The State by its executive order provides reservation
in the state institutions as they want and also sometimes
overturns the judicial decisions they repeatedly make laws or
amends the existing law as happened in the Tamil Nadu in 1994 by
providing total 69% reservation and recently by UPA government by
providing 27% reservation for OBC’s in Higher educations like IITs
and IIMs. So in one line, from time to time the political party
who are in the power use reservation policy for their political
interests.
Also it is
considered that the higher institutions like IIMs, IITs produces
the leaders who governs the country by their excellence and by
reservation for backward classes in these types of institutions
affects its standards.
Conclusion
The reservation policy that we have been applying from past five
decades needs some changes. It is taken as a fact that these
backward classes had exploited and undermined from many thousand
years and just 59 years of the independence is a very short period
to rehabilitate all the Backward classes but it doesn’t means that
those castes or communities which gets the sufficient upliftment
opportunities in various fields should be favored for the
reservation or quota especially in education prospective. From the
1st amendment to till date no class or caste is considered to
achieve the sufficient opportunities to survive but with the time
the list of Backward Classes is rising. Its sound so different
that in one hand we talk about the development of nation and on
the other hand the list under reservation is rising day by day.
There are many
classes that really need the reservations in public jobs and
educations but in reality those people who attain the standard to
live in a society mainly use reservation policy. So the
classification is based on the class legislation that primarily
defeated the object of reasonable classification. So the Concept
of Equality and the Reasonable Classification is not achieved
properly. The classification must always rest upon some real and
substantial distinction bearing a just and reasonable relation to
the object sought to be achieved by the legislation. Now the time
has arrived which calls to change the prospective of reservation
in the favour of really needed economic and poor backward classes
by implementing the core concept of social welfare and social
justice system.
************
End Notes
# Moments in a History of Reservations, Bhagwan Das, Economic
&Political Weekly, 28 Oct. 2000
# Art. 46, Promotion Of educational and economic interests of
Schedule Castes, Schedule Tribe and Other weaker sections.- The
State shall promote with special care the educational and economic
interests of the weaker sections of the people, and, in
particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and
shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of
exploitation.
# Also see, Part XVI, Special Provision Relating To Certain
Classes, Constitution Of India.
# Article 14: Equality before law (Right to equality)
# Article 15: Prohibition of Discrimination on grounds of
religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.
# Article 16: Equality of opportunity in matters of public
employment.
# Article 21: Protection of Life and Personal liberty.
# See also Prof. M.P. Jain, Indian Constitutional Law, 5th
Edition, Rep 2005, Wadhwa and Co. Nagpur
# AIR 1951 SC 226. Also, Jagwant Kaur v. State of Maharashtra, AIR
1952 Bom. 461
More Related Topics:
Reservation in Educational Institution:
Union HRD Ministry's proposal of 27 per cent reservation for OBC
students in Centrally - funded universities has re-ignited the
merit vs caste debate.....By
Vishal Vora
|
Reservation-Changing
Aspect In Modern Time
The
author can be reached at:
rajpunia@legalserviceindia.com /
