UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM & ENERGY STUDIES

SCHOOL OF LAW
BA.LLB (HONS.) ENERGY LAWS
BATCH-1
SEMESTER-1
ACEDMIC YEAR:2017-18 SESSION: JULY-DEC
PROJECT
TOPIC: - POLITICS OF RESERVATION
FOR
POLITICAL SCIENCE-1

Under the supervision of Prof. Sam Babu. K.C

NAME: - ABHISHEK KUMAR SRIVASTAVA

SAP NO: - 500060376
ROLL: - R450217009

SIGNATURE
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to sincerely thank my political science teacher

Prof. Sam Babu.K.C for giving me this topic and guiding me
throughout the project. Through this research project I have
learned about the aforesaid topic and this in turn has helped
me grow as a student.

I also thank my parents and friend for their precious inputs

which have been very helpful in the completion of this project
INTRODUCTION:
India is considered as the second largest populous state with a population exceeding of 1.2
billion and increasing. India is comprised of various states and therefore, various groups of
ethnicity and religion resides in our country. Since, India follows a parliamentary form of
government therefore democracy plays a vital role in choosing the elected people. Our
constitution has not only given us the freedom to exercise our rights but also the freedom to
exercise them in a just and equitable manner. It is the duty of the state to protect the rights of
the citizens and see that their rights are not taken away or violated by any act of the
government.

The problem in a democratic state specially like that of India is, ‘the reservation system’
prevails at a very large extent. India is today one of the growing economies in the world but
is affected by the reservation policy wherein the so called elected representatives don’t
perform their duties because they are not chosen on merit but on caste and religion. The
question whether the Reservation Policy has helped the development of our country is not the
main concern because the elected people we choose to represent our country at the state and
global level are chosen on their caste and religion which in a way or other is affecting not
only the growth and development but also the integrity of the nation. In the light of
development and upliftment of the lower sections of the society, we attempt to elect and
promote the underprivileged person but at a larger picture, it comes to be seen as a person on
the basis of his caste and religion has been uplifted. If, India as a country focuses on
development, then it is very important for every citizen of the country to choose the educated
and just representative who with their capabilities shall improve the conditions of the citizens
in domestic and international level. It becomes mandate on every citizen of the state to elect a
person to run the government on the basis of his merit but what actually happens is just the
opposite i.e. a person is elected on the basis of his caste and religion. The irony lies in the fact
that we aim towards development but on a smaller picture, if we are not developed from
within, how can we imagine for India as a country to prosper and develop.
The ‘Reservation in Politics’ is one of the most concerned topic post-independence because
unless individuals shall be united, it is practically impossible for the country as a whole to be
united and develop as a whole People in India regard Reservation as a normal or inherited
practice and regard the same as a matter of their pride but the actual fact is that the country
won’t be able to develop unless we people develop from within. Therefore, we regard such a
crucial topic of less importance but we do not look at the fact that Reservation instead of
uniting divides us as a nation. The main objective of ‘Reservation System’ is to promote and
develop the underprivileged sections of the society by bringing them to the mainstream
politics and giving them the responsibility to run the government but what actually happens is
that instead of their exposure and development, a dirty game of division of people on the
basis of their caste and religion is done. Hence, it could be said that Reservation in Politics is
a very bad idea if we aim towards the growth and development of the country. The objective
of upliftment and development of various less known or under privileged sections of the
society is not met and what eventually comes out in the picture is the scene of an unleashed
dirty politics where a normal deserving candidate cannot stand without being the part of the
aforesaid political system. The reservation is not only done on the basis of caste or religion
but also on the basis of community and different sections present in the society. This not only
causes a sense of unwanting but also unwillingness of any person to join politics and serve
for the nation and it’s people. Only in India, reservation is done on the basis of:

 Scheduled Caste
 Scheduled Tribes
 Anglo- Indians
 Women

As far as the Anglo- Indian community is concerned, a total number of two seats is reserved
in the lower house of the Parliament i.e. the Lok Sabha. For the Upper House of the
Parliament also, some of the States reserve one seat for the person from the Anglo- Indian
community. As far as SC and ST are concerned, for them a total number of 84 and 47 out of
543 seats are reserved in the lower house of the Parliament. The allocation of the total
number of seats reserved for the SC and ST reserved in the Lok Sabha is based upon their
total population in respective states. Such an Act of reservation of the seats of SC and ST is
backed by Article 330 of the Constitution of India read with Section 3 of the R.P. Act of
1950. For women, one-third of the seats are reserved in the Gram Panchayats and the
Municipalities, however a long-term plan had been prepared by the government to give
reservation to women in the State Legislature of each State. Rajya Sabha passed the
‘Women’s Reservation Bill’ in the year 2010 with a majority of 186 members in favour to 1
member in against.

Definition of Reservation: In simple terms, Reservation could be defined as an act of

reserving something for someone by the way of granting them a surety of reserved place in
that particular area or field.

‘Reservation in Politics’ could be defined as an act or system of reservation of seats of

constituencies by certain sections of the society who thereby enjoy their permanent status in
the society. Reservation could be in any form i.e. religion, caste or even sex. Such fixation of
seats in constituencies by these reserved people could be termed as ‘Reservation in Politics’
in India.

Principle of Equality: Article 14 of the Indian Constitution clearly states that the State or the
government in this case shall not deny to any person equality before law or equal protection
of laws on the ground of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth within the territory of
India. Therefore, it ought to be interpreted from the above provision of the Indian
Constitution that there shall be no discrimination amongst the citizens of India on the basis of
above mentioned things. But what actually happens is the reservation of people in the field of
politics on the basis of religion, cate and even sex. This in a way to my understanding
violates this basic Fundamental Right available to every citizen of India. Hence we can say
that Reservation in Politics violates this particular provision of the Indian Constitution by
providing reservation to such people for contesting in the election for the post of those people
who are responsible with the work of developing the country as a whole.

Clause (2) of Article 15 of the Constitution of India states that no citizen on the basis of caste,
sex, religion or race or place of birth would be deprived with the right to use various things
such as shops, ghats, public services etc. whereas clause (4) of the same Article empowers the
State government to make any laws as such to promote or develop the advancement of any
socially and educationally backward class of the SC and the ST.
National Customs: The entire concept of reservation in politics could be traced back in the
year 1979 of the Mandal Commission or the Second Backward Class Commission where the
Commission's report upheld the positive action of practice under the Indian law by suggesting
the number of members of Other Backward Classes (OBC) be granted reservations to 27 per
cent of jobs under the Central government and public sector undertakings. This finding of the
Mandal Commission was a great step towards granting reservation to the backward classes of
the society for posts in the Central Government jobs.

Beneficiary groups of reservation: -

Enrolment in educational institution and job placements are reserved based on a variety of
criteria. The quota system sets aside a proportion of all possible positions for members for a
specific group. Those not belonging to the designate communities can compete only for the
remaining position, while members of the designate communities for all positions (both
reserved and open).

Seats are reserved for the people under the following criteria: -

 CASTE
 GENDER
 RELIGION
 STATE OF DOMECILE
 MANAGEMENT QUOTA

Post- Independence and Constitutional Framework:

In independent India, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) were accepted as
new official social categories under the provision of article 341 of the Indian Constitution.
According to this article, the President of India, after consultation with the Governor of a
State/Union Territory (UT), may declare castes, races or tribes or parts of or groups within
castes, races of tribes as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes belonging to that State or
UT. The official listing of castes and tribes was justified on the grounds that these social
groups have remained underprivileged and discriminated by the higher castes. It was
therefore essential for the state to protect their interest. Accordingly, the Govt. of India as
well State Governments granted them reservation of jobs and other benefits and privileges. It
is believed that the state granting privileges to the SCs and STs has strengthened caste
identities. On the other hand, democratic politics based on number gave them a new lease on
life, as they constitute nearly one-fourth of India's population. In order to assess the progress
and achievement of Government policies in raising the socio-economic status of SCs and
STs, it was essential for the census to collect data on their demographic and socio-economic
conditions. But the Govt. did not allow the census to enumerate all castes and sub-castes as
practiced in British India.1

While the British legacy of caste enumeration was discontinued in the census, religious
classification and their enumeration continued to be the major preoccupation of Indian
censuses even after the disappearance of colonialism. In the neighbouring countries of
Pakistan and Bangladesh also, census continued to classify the population according to
religion. In the Bangladesh census, religious categories include Islam, Hindu, Buddhist,
Christian and Others, and no caste categories were identified among Hindu Populations
(Bangladesh Census Bureau, 1993). In the Pakistani census, religious categories like
Muslims, Christians, Hindus (Jati), Scheduled Caste, Qadiani and Others are provided.
Hindus (non-SCs) and SCs are enumerated separately, and a religious sect named Qadiani (a
Muslim sect) is also enumerated (Pakistan Census Organization, 1998). It is thus startling to
find that the religious classification of the population in South Asian countries is in marked
contrast to the census practices in Southeast Asian countries, where religious identity
gradually disappeared as a primary census classification in the post-colonial period. On the
other hand, the racial and ethnic categories like Malaysian, Chinese, Javanese, Indian and
'Other' acquired a more prominent place in the census classification (Anderson, 1991: 164-
165). In the censuses of independent India, religion is justified for inclusion on the grounds
that the official categorization of SCs is crucially linked with the religious status of a person
(see Table 2). At present as per Presidential order only Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhist can be
enumerated as a SC. It is worthwhile to mention that notwithstanding the government's
constitutional commitment to secular principles, religion is not only enumerated, but
paradoxically only selective demographic data on the size and growth of religious
populations7 were published until the 2001 census. This created enough misconception about
1
Ram Bhagat, British Legacy and contemporary practice in India, Genus, Vol No 62, 126-127, (2012)
the role of religion in population growth and consequently fed into the charged communal
situation in the country (Bhagat, 2001). Furthermore, the freedom to profess religion is also
restricted in the case of SCs. This is evident when during census enumeration only those SCs
belonging to the religion of Hinduism, Sikh and Buddhism are recognised the recognition of
SCs based on religious identity is premised on the belief that caste subjugation is ingrained in
the practice of some religions, while not in others. This has led to the denial of SC status 2 to
the low caste converts who embraced Christianity, Islam, and other religions in the past. It is
possible that, if SCs are recognized across all religious groups, this is likely to weaken
religious identity in the country. It seems that the Indian state is inherently disposed to the
religious construction through census and wherever this is being disrupted by the resurgence
of caste identities, the state can choose to thwart and mould its citizen along religious lines.
This was evident on the eve of the 2001 census.3

Under Article 16 (4), the state may make reservation of appointments or posts in favour of
any ‘backward class’ of citizens which, in opinion of the state, is not adequately represented
in the public services under the state. Explaining the nature of this article, the Apex Court has
stated in Mohan Kumar Singhania v. Union of India that it is “an enabling provision”
conferring a discretionary power on the state for making any provision or reservation of
appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens which, in the opinion of the
state, is not adequately represented in the service of the state.

An additional argument in respect of Article 16(4) stems from Article 335. Article 335 which
finds place in Part XVI - Special Provisions Relating to Certain Classes - reads: "335. Claims
of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to services and posts. - The claims of the members
of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes shall be taken into consideration,
consistently with the maintenance of efficiency of administration, in the making of
appointments to services and posts in connection with the affairs of the Union or of a State."
In no uncertain and mandatory terms this article imposes a positive obligation on the Union
and the States to take into consideration the claims of SCs and STs in the making of

2
Recently the Social Justice Minister, Government of India, has clarified in the Lok Sabha, quoting the
Registrar General of India, that any move to include Christians among the SCs would infer that India will be
imposing the caste system among Christians (Times of India, National Daily, December 20, 2003).
3
Ibid;
appointments to services and posts. It recognises that SCs and STs have the claims to such
services and posts. If the State fails to take these claims into consideration, action can be
taken to compel the State to discharge its obligation under this article. Of course, the State
cannot be compelled to make appointments under this provision but it can definitely be
compelled to take into consideration the claims of the SCs and STs. Taking into consideration
the claims of the SCs and STs is an objective function which would require taking into
account of all relevant factors and exclusion of irrelevant factors about which the State will
have to satisfy the court. For the claims of the SCs and STs apart from historical, sociological
and similar other factors the State will have to look into other provisions of the Constitution,
particularly Articles 16(4) and 46. In that light the State cannot escape the decision to reserve
appointments and posts as required by Article 16(4). Of course, the quantum of reservation
will be within the discretion of the State but it will have to make such reservation. Leaving
aside the controversial question of quantum of reservation there are doubts about the reading
of the words 'consistently with the maintenance of efficiency of administration' in Article 335
as the words of limitation on the claims of the SCs and STs as they have been read so far. It is
felt that these words are an expression of a principle that underlies the consideration of the
claims of the SCs and STs under Article 335. That principle should serve as a guideline to the
State in performing its duties under Article 335 without restricting the claims of the SCs and
STs. There is nothing in the Constitution or otherwise to suggest that the reservation for the
SCs and STs is necessarily and always inconsistent with the maintenance of efficiency of
administration.4

Before the 2001 Census began, there was an argument to include enumeration of all castes in
the census. This was deemed necessary in order to reserve jobs granted to the Other
Backward Classes (OBCs) also in the early 1990s on the recommendation of the Mandal
Commission, which further suggested monitoring the progress of OBCs after 20 years
(Ramaiah 1992). As a result, census information on OBCs similar to that of the SCs and STs
was also required. But, this argument was not favoured by the Central Government and the
proposal to enumerate all castes was turned down by the Ministry of Home Affairs, which
controls the census organisation (Krishna Kumar, 2000). While it is true that enumeration of
all castes would be difficult due to the complexities in classifying them and due to the fact

4
Mahendra Singh, Are Article 14 & 16 Fundamental Rights, The Practical Lawyer, available at
http://www.supremecourtcases.com/index2.php?option=com_content&itemid=1&do_pdf=1&id=271
that castes themselves have changed in several traditional attributes over time, however, in
the absence of recent data, the 1931 census information on castes continues to be the only
source on the size and proportion of OBCs in the country. Also, the state has established the
National Commission for Backward Classes, under the National Commission for Backward
Classes Act 1993, which is entrusted with the task of revising the Backward Classes list
periodically for the deletion of castes that have ceased to be backward classes or for inclusion
of new castes in the list of backward classes. For this purpose, the Commission requires the
population size of such castes, their proportion in the district and state populations. This
creates an extreme necessity for caste census in the country. But, whether caste will be
included or not is a contentious issue among academia and administrators. However, the fate
of caste in census will be decided by those who hold power in the future (Vijayanunni, 1999).
Thus, we find that in independent India religion combined with official categories of SCs and
STs gives eight broad categories of ethnic classification, namely: Hindus, Muslims,
Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, SCs and STs. According to the census, an individual who
does not fall in any of the eight categories has an opportunity to be enumerated in the
category called 'Other'. It seems that modern India has embarked upon the project of creating
broader, more homogeneous communities in contrast to the British practice of revealing
enormous differentiations and differences.5

Politics of Reservation:

THE third backward classes commission of Karnataka constituted on March 9, 1988 headed
by Justice 0 Chinnappa Reddy sub- mitted its report on April 7, 1990. The two politically
powerful communities of vokkaligas and lingayats were kept out of reservation by the
commission. It is not for the first time that these two communities have been kept out of the
reservation purview. Karnataka has a long history of reservation. The concept of 'other
backward classes' is not new in the state. The Millers committee perhaps the first backward
classes committee appointed in the country by the Maharaja of Mysore in 1918 was to check
the preponderance of the brahmin community in public services. The Maharaja being a great
visionary wanted them. other communities in the state to be adequately represented. The
Millers committee while submit- ting its report considered all non-brahmins as backward.

5
Recently the Social Justice Minister, Government of India, has clarified in the Lok Sabha, quoting the
Registrar General of India, that any move to include Christians among the SCs would infer that India will be
imposing the caste system among Christians (Times of India, National Daily, December 20, 2003).
When attempts were made to extend benefits to the OBCs (other backward classes) in the
post-independent era the high court in 1958 quashed reservation based on a single indicator
of caste. In striking down the order the court discovered that the beneficiaries of the scheme
in the pre-independent era were not the socially and educationally backward classes as
envisaged in Article 15(4). The court felt that there was no intelligible principle in
classification by. The Millers committee and communities with high percent- age of literacy
were included in the OBC list. The court struck down the states classification as arbitrary.
The Mysore government then appointed the Nagan Gowda Commit- tee on January 9, 1960
to suggest criteria for backwardness. The committee evolved three criteria to classify
backward classes. The social position which the Community or caste occupies in society. (ii)
The general educational backwardness of the community on the basis of the high school
standard of education. (iii) Representation the community has in government service." Based
on these criteria lingayats and bhunts section of the vokkaligas were excluded from
reservation benefits. The remaining vokkaligas were on the list. Yet at the stage of
implementation the state government was unwilling to allow lingayats along with bhunts to
be omitted from the OBC list. Then came the first backward classes commission in 1975
under the chairmanship of Havanur. The findings of this commission were not very different
from the Nagan Gowda committee report were concerned. 6 To quote from its report "The
committee is of the opinion that the entire Lingayat Community is socially forward. All
sections of Vokkaligas excluding Bhunts are socially backward. Bhunts are socially forward."
There was such an uproar by the lingayat community against the report that the government
found itself under political pressure not to implement it.7

Political gains through reservation: -

Who gains most from caste-based reservation? Certainly not the poor. The poor dominate the
OBC, SC and ST groups. The SC and ST are groups apart. Their special conditions inspired
special treatment from the founding fathers of the constitution. They were granted job
reservation to last for just the first ten years of independent India. After sixty years not only
has reservation for them continued, not only has the scope of reservation greatly widened to
include prosperous and domineering castes, but the benefits of reservation have reached only

6
Ambrose Pinto, Politics of Reservation, Economic and Politics Weekly, Vol 29, No35 (1994)
7
Ibid;
a small percentage of the castes and groups that qualify for reservation. This is the sad,
incontrovertible truth.

The Chamars have hogged most of the SC reservation because the politicians who acquired
power from among this group were predominantly Chamars. That is why the Balmikhis, the
Bhangis and various other Dalit castes remain resentful. Within the OBC quota in the north it
is the Yadav’s who have hogged maximum benefits, because, as the largest OBC caste in the
north, they acquired most political power. That is why OBC castes such as the Kurmis, Lodhs
and others have organized their own caste-based parties. Ironically, actual economic benefits
in any substantial manner have not reached either the Chamar or the Yadav community.
Reason? Jobs are too few and demand is too high. Even the limited number of reserved posts
often remains unfilled, because there are simply not enough qualified applicants. Reason?
Notional affirmative action has led governments to focus mainly on higher education.
Universal primary education -- affordable within the budgetary allocations for education --
has tended to be ignored by governments. The main fallout of caste-based reservation has
been, therefore, fragmentation of politics into caste-based parties fighting for crumbs of a
small cake. This has created many leaders who rely on their caste-based loyalists to wield
political clout. Most analysts would describe these leaders as the biggest beneficiaries of
caste-based reservation. The analysts may be wrong. Caste-based and community-based
leaders are in actual fact small fry, fairly easy to manipulate. Consider the overall political
context in which these leaders function.

Two glaring aspects of the current electoral scene are the proliferation of political outfits
based on caste or community, and the inordinately high cost of maintaining these outfits. Add
to these the high and rising costs of electioneering. In this scenario corruption grows, the
number of parties grows, and the absolute reliance on money to sustain political cadres
grows. So, who is the biggest beneficiary of these conditions?

On any sober reckoning the biggest beneficiaries would seem the big, corrupt eco-political
mafia and its global partners. The crucial role of money and the fragmentation of the polity
give this class virtual freedom to manipulate politics. The absence of ideology and policy
among parties, with their survival directly or indirectly based on corrupt deals and funding,
facilitates the making and breaking of political alliances. Recall how BSP and SP allied to
win power and how they split to become bitter foes. Recall the ease with which BJP’s Kalyan
Singh, the destroyer of Babri Masjid, defected to Mulayam Singh. And recall also the ease
with which the BJP welcomed him back with open arms. Recall how Karuna Nidhi allied
with the BJP, then with the Congress. Recall how Mamata Banerjee allied with BJP, then
broke away, and now quite possibly is inching towards the Congress. Recall how Jayalalithaa
was with Rajiv Gandhi, later with Vajpayee. Examples are endless. Power hungry politicians
bereft of principles and policies, operating in a badly fragmented polity, provide the easiest
pickings for this mafia. 

The eco-political mafia therefore is the biggest beneficiary of caste-based reservation. It is the
master that can install or destroy governments, can make or break political alliances. One
might ask: but can politicians be influenced by this corporate class? To determine this,
consider the Samajwadi Party (SP) which swears by Dr Lohia and is directed by Amar Singh.
Even Mulayam Singh would not dispute Amar Singh’s phenomenal access to big business,
with a reach that extends to the world’s richest as listed by Forbes. Or consider Laloo Yadav.
Ignore the cases of corruption and disproportionate assets against him. These days he talks
more about IPL cricket than about rural development. Or consider Mayawati, whose much-
talked about obsession with personal wealth and property reflects big business aspirations
rather than help and backing for poor Dalits. Or consider the BJP, in which many leaders,
after assuming power, have transformed their lifestyles beyond recognition from their Spartan
origins in the RSS. Congress leaders one need not consider. They have the longest record that
attests to their orientation.

On any sober reckoning, then, caste-based reservation has helped the eco-political mafia the
most to achieve a total stranglehold on India's politics. Let politicians make any claims.
Thanks to political fragmentation caused by reservation, dubious businessmen call the shots.8

8
https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/who-gains-from-reservation/237542
Although a lot of emotion is being spent on the issue of reservations, national-level
leaders and parties need to make a rational choice. The reservation juggernaut
continues. It has already received attention in the media from a wide variety of
angles.

We will work here with three possible rationales:

 Political parties are rational and want to maximise their vote share;
 Reservation will promote economic growth and spread the gains to the neglected
sections of society; and
 It will promote and uphold the moral basis of the Constitution of India.

Let us examine these rationales closely.

The rationality assumption: Will reservation ensure political success?

The logic behind using reservation for maximisation of vote share depends on two further
assumptions: (i) OBCs form a majority of the electorate; (ii) OBCs will support the relevant
political party. If the current NSS and NFHS survey-based figures about the percentage of
OBCs in the population are any indication, the first assumption seems flawed.

For the second assumption to hold true, national parties need the OBCs to identify with them.
This is difficult in an environment that promotes and solidifies caste and religious identities
of both groups and individuals.

A political party aligned to OBCs is more likely to receive allegiance than a leader of a
broad-based national party, even though the latter may have brought in reservation for them.
Any electoral gains may, thus, be cornered by regional parties and its leaders aligned along
caste, class, or religious lines.

Using reservation as a political strategy also sends out the signal that the relevant party does
not and, more importantly, cannot represent the entire nation. As the reaction to the recent
proposal shows, each attempt at reservation fractures the polity further by increasing caste
and religious awareness and alienating those groups that perceive themselves to be net losers.

A national party or a party aspiring to go national will have a difficult future ahead. It will be
immensely difficult, if not impossible, for them to (re-) capture the political space currently
being vacated by narrow identification. V P Singh's political marginalisation is a precedent
indicating the potential dangers of the inherently flawed logic behind using reservation for
electoral supremacy.

Participatory economic growth: Is reservation the answer?

Only around 7 per cent of the Indian population aged 17-23 years acquires a college degree.
And out of these, only a small miniscule goes to the educational institutes of excellence. In
fact, it can be safely assumed that those reaching the level of college education do belong to
the creamy layer of society.

The really disadvantaged are those who cannot even dream to acquire a college degree and
these are people from all castes, but too poor to afford education. Since a majority of the
Indian population would not benefit from reservation in education, it is a poor instrument to
ensure participatory growth.

The global investors as well as the domestic corporate sector have already begun complaining
about labour shortages. This is so when the country is still struggling to solve the
unemployment problem. One of the complaints of corporate sector is that a large proportion
of graduates in India are not employable because the quality of education they have received
is not good enough, or does not match the requirements of the industry.

There are some early indications that foreign investors are becoming wary due to shortage of
skilled manpower in India. In order to sustain the global interest in India, we will have to
invest in "Education for all" and not look to divide the existing cake between different
sections. This is the only means to ensure that the growth process is not hindered, is broadly
participatory and provides equal opportunity to all.
There is a window of opportunity for India. The population in developed countries is ageing
fast, even declining in some countries. China is going to age fast, too. India, in order to
benefit from the demographic dividend, will have to invest heavily in its human and physical
capital.9

One of the key issues is to replicate the success of the institutes of excellence. While it may
appear that the issue of merit is a fig leaf that the so-called higher caste is hanging on to in
order to protect its interests, it is an issue that we as a nation can ignore only at our own peril.
You can distribute the golden eggs only as long as the goose is alive.

Putting more pressure on the already burdened institutes of excellence is tantamount to

killing the goose. We missed the bus when other countries were benefiting from global
investments and cannot afford it again. In this context, an affirmative action is not
synonymous with reservations.10

The moral argument: Does it serve some higher purpose?

If reservation is not likely to pay rich dividends at the polls and does not ensure participatory
growth, then obviously the defence must rest on some higher purpose, a moral postulate that
cannot be questioned. This could come from the government's need to uphold the directives
of the Constitution.

To my mind, the biggest moral objective for the framers of the Constitution of India was to
ensure that caste, religious, linguistic and regional identities get merged within a larger
national identity. Reservation is not a means to achieve this objective because it propagates
these identities.

This is probably why the framers of the Constitution of India put a timeline of 10 years on
reservations in public jobs for SCs and STs.

The Directive Principles call for education of all children below the age of 14 years. Not only
has this objective not been met, but it has received little attention in public dialogue. This is
an objective that needs to be met before reservation in higher education can play out its stated
role. Literacy rates in India are unacceptably low and dropout rates before completion of
elementary education are alarmingly high.

9
Reservations: The real reasons, February (2014), available at
http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/jul/01quota.htm
10
http://www.tehelka.com/2017/08/women-need-more-space-in-indian-politics/
When caste-based minority reservation issue was raised, it was clear that it’s an effort to
block the Bill. These political parties did not intend to get the Bill passed in the Parliament by
any means. Women group across the board believe that a woman seat should be decided by
the party to suit the need and not as per the reservation. Those who want caste-based
reservation have benefitted the most as they are surviving on the caste based politics.

On one hand, women are talking and fighting for equal rights, on the other
hand, they are asking for a reservation. Is it not a double standard on their
part?

I think equal opportunity includes equal participation — be it in corporate house, educational

institutions, health sector or political power. For a long time, accesses and opportunities have
not been in equal ratio. In spite of efficiency and competence, women are not being able to
get proper and equal access in all sectors, including politics. Our simple demand is to at least
give them access. It’s possible only through the reservation. Later women will prove
themselves. There would be no need for reservation. In Panchayats, about 33 per cent
reservation was given to women candidates in the beginning. Over the years, women are now
fighting and having more than 50 percent seats in the local elections. It has been proved time
and again that women need only opportunity and accessibility. Once given, they can fight and
prove their skills.

Consequences of reservation: -

 In the higher education institute of government bodies reserved category people are
given the relaxations, which results in admission of people who have lower aggregate
percentage of marks both in academic & competitive exams.
 The financial and social status of the reserved category people is increasing, and well
supported by the government.
 People mainly the students of various educational institute were started protesting
against the Mandal commission in form of closed roads, highways, transportation,
services, government services, schools and business of India. About 150 students
were attempted self-immolation throughout India.
  The population of reserved category community has increased through the years since
1990, through the government still has not made any policy and official statics of
Indian population based on caste, which are still pending to be released to the public.
The combined population of Indians is increasing as always.
 Several unreserved or general category communities has started demanding
reservation for them, these communities which includes (Gujars, jats of state of
Haryana, seers, etc.) jats have got backward status now despite being economically
and politically dominant in Haryana.
 Some philosophers believe that Indian has lost its pace for the dev elopement the
reservation in India, since more capable persons were not offered the places which
they deserved on the bases of acts done in past.
 Some think that reservation in India is not good for society since the people were still
remain divided among themselves due to increase and decrease of financial and social
status in the society.
 Reservation policy which Was designed to be a temporary support has turned out to
be permanent crutches and is the biggest obstacle in achieving the cherished goal of
equality.
 There are people from other communities who are deprived of jobs despite of the
merit and qualifications they possess. They might be economically or socially well
off. In such a scenario, what is the fate of the constitutional guarantees.

Conclusion: -

Reservation is not a complete or even a real solution of the problems of scheduled castes or
the backward classes. What is more important is their economic and educational upliftment
which can be achieved only by increasing merit not merely by providing for reservation.
Without merit which comes in the form of education they are not in apposition to utilize the
opportunity being given to them under the scheme of affirmative action. Reservation should
be provided when even after equal merit they are unable to enter into service due to some
kind of discrimination or disability. Reservation as a means of affirmative action has outlived
its importance as the goals framed during the debates in constituent assembly have still not
been achieved even after 70 years of independence. There was a quota system in US as well,
but it was abolished long ago. But it does not mean that they are not working for the
underprivileged in their society. For admission and appointment purposes, now they have
point systems in

which people from backward regions are given some extra point but not a certain number of
seats. So, the government is helping the needy but it is not all discriminating or snatching
away the rights of eligible candidates. Also from time to time such reforms or laws must be
evaluated by experts and their impact on the development of underprivileged and overall
society must be accessed. Also calculate the way these are changing the per capita income,
number of people below poverty line etc. Politicians should stop using reservation system as
a gimmick to have a permanent vote bank. Education should not be a part of politics. Instead
nurture the saplings right from childhood for their bright future and then there won’t be any
need of so called reservation system in India.
Bibliography: -

 Ram Bhagat, British Legacy and contemporary practice in India, Genus, Vol No 62, 126-127, (2012)

 Recently the Social Justice Minister, Government of India, has clarified in the Lok Sabha, quoting the
Registrar General of India, that any move to include Christians among the SCs would infer that India
will be imposing the caste system among Christians (Times of India, National Daily, December 20,
2003).

 Mahendra Singh, Are Article 14 & 16 Fundamental Rights, The Practical Lawyer, available at
http://www.supremecourtcases.com/index2.php?option=com_content&itemid=1&do_pdf=1&id=271

 Recently the Social Justice Minister, Government of India, has clarified in the Lok Sabha, quoting the
Registrar General of India, that any move to include Christians among the SCs would infer that India
will be imposing the caste system among Christians (Times of India, National Daily, December 20,
2003).

 Ambrose Pinto, Politics of Reservation, Economic and Politics Weekly, Vol 29, No35 (1994)

 Reservations: The real reasons, February (2014), available at

http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/jul/01quota.htm