Why in News ?
States do not have the power to further sub-classify the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, for grant of quotas in jobs and admissions to educational institutions, needs to be revisited. State of Punjab v. Davinder Singh for Sub Categories in SC-ST.
Background
Punjab’s law applies a creamy layer for SCs, STs in reverse by giving preference to Balmikis and Mazhabi Sikhs. This case has now led to reopening the debate on sub-categorisation of scheduled castes.
Court Rulings
- The states obligation is eradicate inequalities of the deprived sections.
- Reservation creates inequalities within the reserved castes itself State make sub-classification and adopting a distributive justice method so that State resource does not concentrate in few hands and equal justice to all is provided.
- Redistribution and reallocation of the resources and opportunities is the purpose of the states.
- Court disagree with the 2004 judgement of the Supreme Court in EV Chinnaiah v. State of Andhra Pradesh.
- There are unequal within the list of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and socially and educationally backward classes.
- Various reports indicate that Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes do not constitute a homogeneous group.
- The aspiration of equal treatment of the lowest strata, to whom the fruits of the reservation have not effectively reached, remains a dream.
- State can also make sub classification when providing reservation to all Scheduled Castes that would conform with the spirit of Articles 14, 15, and 16 of the Constitution providing reservation.
2004 verdict of a constitution bench in the E V Chinnaiah case needs to be reconsidered and, therefore, the matter be placed before the Chief Justice of India for appropriate direction.
EV Chinnaiah v. State of Andhra Pradesh
- Supreme Court held that the Scheduled Castes form one homogeneous group
- Therefore any inter-se classification within the Scheduled Castes would be a violation of Article 14.
- Court was dealing with a law passed by the Andhra Pradesh government based on the report of the Justice Ramachandra Raju Commission
- Commission recommended sub-dividing the Scheduled Castes into four groups and apportioning reservations separately for each.
| Indra Sawhney v. Union of India |
| It held that it would be perfectly legal for the state to categorise backward classes as backward and more backward. |
- Supreme Court in Chinnaiah ruled that the Indra Sawhney judgement applied only to OBCs and not to the Scheduled Castes.
- Court strike down the law on the premise that the declaration of a caste as a Scheduled Caste in the presidential list issued under Article 341.
- The Constitution treats all Schedule Castes as a single homogeneous group.
| Jarnail Singh v Lachhmi Narain Gupta. |
| The concept of a “creamy layer” within SCs was upheld by the court in a 2018 judgement |
Presidential List under Article 341 and SC
Details of Article 341
- those castes notified by the President are called SCs and STs.
- A caste notified as SC in one state may not be a SC in another state.
- These vary from state to state to prevent disputes as to whether a particular caste is accorded reservation or not.
There were 1,263 SCs in the country in 2018-19 based on the report of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
- E V Chinnaiah v State of Andhra Pradesh and Others, the Supreme Court ruled that only the President has the power to notify the inclusion or exclusion of a caste as a Scheduled Caste.
Sub Categories in SC-ST. How it possible ?
Based on various studies and report there are certain groups still not properly benefited with reservation. Various sates thus identified the most deprived under those who get the reservation.
- Bihar set up the Mahadalit Commission for identifying the castes within SCs that were left behind.
- Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Bihar, special quotas were introduced for the most vulnerable Dalits.
- Justice M S Janarthanam report stated that Arundhatiyar caste in Tamil Nadu despite being 16% of the SC population in the state they held only 0-5% of the jobs.
- Balmikis and Mazhabi Sikhs within the SC quota in Punjab are not served properly
- Based on Justice Ramachandra Raju Report Andhra Pradesh legislature in 2000 passed a law reorganising 57 SCs into sub-groups and split the 15% SC quota in educational and government jobs in proportion to their population.
| State of Kerala v N M Thomas 1976 |
| Supreme Court laid down that “Scheduled Castes are not castes, they are class. |
Source : Indian Express
Topic
GS III : Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections
Current Affairs Compilation : 28 August 2020