By Dr C Sadasiva
Reservations
for SC and ST have been there since the Constitution of India came into force.
Mandal Commission was constituted by Mrs Gandhi and V P Singh initiated its
implementation. In 1990s, the question of back log came before the apex court
and suggestions for rosters were given to be implemented by governmental and
autonomous institutions. First the 13-point department basis rosters, then 100
point institution based rosters and later 200 point institution base drosters
came to be enforced.
When
someone felt this 200 point roster led to a situation of a particular
departmentin BHU may not get an upper caste teacher because of reservation, he
approached the high court of Uttar Pradesh and the court responded by ordering
that 13 point roster is better. When MHRD and UGC felt compelled to follow the
order, teachers ofUniversity of Delhi were up in arms. The central government
went for appeal before the Supreme Court and the apex court ratified the order
of high court.
What
the dispute is all about! The 13 point roaster reduces the available reserved
posts drastically and 200 point makes it possible to raise the number of
available posts to a reasonable figure and if implemented honestly the backlog
of 70 years in case of SC and ST and 30 years in case of OBC may get filled up
a little sooner.
The
Modi government came out with 10 per cent EWS quota saying that the so called
injustice will be undone. How can an eight lakh incomewala be poor when even in
Dayal Singh college a student is ineligible if the parental income is more than
Rs two lakh for fee concession. So many contradictions! How is it that Congress
party, RJD, BSP, SP and others did not oppose the amendment in Parliament. Are
they so confident about votes of savarnas? Only the Left including the CPI took
a principled stand.
CPI
took a clear stand opposing the so-called 10 per cent reservation for
economically weaker sections saying Constitution talks about social and
cultural backwardness brought into existence because of historical reasons. The
aim is to undo a historical wrong and to create an inclusive India. It is to
demolish a caste – based discrimination, a feudal legacy. The moving upwards of
the socially backward can create a congenial atmosphere for inter-caste
matrimonial relations more and more leading to annihilation of caste as envisioned
by Ambedkar. Well one may think of reservations within reservations so that the
benefits can reach the most backward among the SCs, STs, OBCs. But the ten per
cent reservation which is a fraud is basically an attempt to fool the people.
When there is 50 per cent in the general category where everyone can compete,
what is the need for EWS?
In
1950 itself, it was said that there will be free and compulsory education up to
the age of 14. What happened to that? AISF, the pioneer student body is
demanding free education till as long as a student wants to pursue. When a
small country like Cuba can accomplish this task, why can’t India?
To
put bluntly, the only way to remove economic backwardness is by moving on to a
socialist path and by discarding the present policies of commercialisation and
privatisation. Otherwise this talk of helping the economically backwards is an
eye wash.
The
bluff of Modi should be exposed. And the cowardice of the so called social
justice political parties that attempt to survive on the basis of the strength
of one caste or the other too needs to be exposed. Their opportunistic silence
should be exposed before the masses. (IPA
Service)
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