A seven judge bench of the Andhra high court gave a judgment on Muslim’s reservation recently. This is third time in Andhra where high court has struck down the religion based reservation which tantamount to violation of constitutional prohibition of discrimination based on religion.
But ,it does not mean that groups within Muslims can’t be designated as backward class and can’t get benefits from reservations. But investigation of backwardness should be empirical & logistic and all of society should reveal that certain groups among Muslims are backward indeed. But it should not be confined to one religion also. If, backward class commission investigate empirically the backwardness in certain groups of minorities like Muslims, Sikhs, Christian, it is not against the constitution to treat them as backward class and to provide them facilities of positive discrimination.
Conditions of Muslims are highly pathetic in India which constitute considerable proportion in the demography of India. For development of India, Muslims should be developed. Politicians should think out of box. Don’t treat them as vote bank. Reports of Sachchar commission and subsequently recommendations of Rangnath Mishra commission show that we have to do something about them other then vote bank politics. Such reservations are one of the tool of vote bank politics rater than real spirit of development. It is not an end but a means for development. Recent announcement of 10% quota for backward Muslims in West Bengal is also a political sop to woo the Muslims which are major chunk of electorate in 105 out of 294 assembly constituencies.
But no one can deny the concept of positive discrimination. Equal should be treated equally and unequal should be treated unequally. We should take extra care for millions of those people who need the positive discrimination indeed. Our political system should be people friendly. Apart from reservations, they need some thing more.
Issuing an ordinance Govt. of Andhra provided the 4% reservation to certain groups within the Muslims designated as other Muslim groups .It has two main clues within itself. First to cope with 50% cap imposed by the supreme court in Indra Sawhney Vs Union of India case (1992). Second, to find the backward classes among the Muslims. But the supreme court has struck down on the basis of constitutional vice of the religion based reservation. It provided the incentive to conversion since any person who subscribe to the faith of Islam would be Muslim. It is the subversive of the spirit of secularism.
But ,it does not mean that groups within Muslims can’t be designated as backward class and can’t get benefits from reservations. But investigation of backwardness should be empirical & logistic and all of society should reveal that certain groups among Muslims are backward indeed. But it should not be confined to one religion also. If, backward class commission investigate empirically the backwardness in certain groups of minorities like Muslims, Sikhs, Christian, it is not against the constitution to treat them as backward class and to provide them facilities of positive discrimination.
Conditions of Muslims are highly pathetic in India which constitute considerable proportion in the demography of India. For development of India, Muslims should be developed. Politicians should think out of box. Don’t treat them as vote bank. Reports of Sachchar commission and subsequently recommendations of Rangnath Mishra commission show that we have to do something about them other then vote bank politics. Such reservations are one of the tool of vote bank politics rater than real spirit of development. It is not an end but a means for development. Recent announcement of 10% quota for backward Muslims in West Bengal is also a political sop to woo the Muslims which are major chunk of electorate in 105 out of 294 assembly constituencies.
But no one can deny the concept of positive discrimination. Equal should be treated equally and unequal should be treated unequally. We should take extra care for millions of those people who need the positive discrimination indeed. Our political system should be people friendly. Apart from reservations, they need some thing more.
2Awesome Comments!
vah vah........
very nice........
Say no to reservation........ its new way of Racism where few elite on behalf of some identity based Group call themselves backward, present themselves victim and demand unjustifiable special right which is against merit... give equal opportunity.......... don give equal output......