Social justice is a part of the soul and vision of the Indian Constitution. After attaining independence, particular efforts were made to transform India into a prosperous socialist, secular and democratic republic, to promote social, economic, and political justice and equality of position and opportunity for all its residents, and to enhance the individual’s dignity. Therefore, Article 15(4) and Article 16(4) of the Constitution formed the basis of a structure in favour of backward classes, whose representation in the state’s services was deemed insufficient. Despite this, most communities from the backward classes are not represented. In the spirit of social justice, we must finally reexamine the reservation for the most backward classes.
It is for this reason that earlier this month, there was a broad consensus among non-BJP parties on the demand for a caste census and ways to deepen the representative character of reservation at a meeting hosted by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin.
In a bid to enable the socioeconomic empowerment of Other Backward Classes (OBCs), the Justice Rohini Commission was established in 2017 to investigate the equitable distribution of reservation benefits. A former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, G Rohini, has been chosen to lead the commission. Despite numerous extensions, its report has not yet seen the light of day. The Commission was given an extension for the 13th time for six months recently. The Modi government cannot risk making such a report public before the Lok Sabha elections. Thus, social justice and equality issues are once again shaping the national discourse.
The late Karpoori Thakur and V P Singh’s governments caused quite a stir in 1978. In 1977, the Janata Party was elected to power at the national level, and Karpoori Thakur became Chief Minister of Bihar. Karpoori Thakur belonged to one of the most “backward” communities and was one of the most influential leaders in the socialist movement.
The Mungeri Lal Commission was intending to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of reservation. On November 11, 1978, when CM Karpoori Thakur brought the commission’s report to the assembly and there was a big fuss. The Mungerilal Commission report included 128 castes among “backward classes”. Out of these, 68 were kept in the category of the “most backward castes”. According to an estimate from the time, most backward castes made up around 38 per cent of the population. The breakdown of reserves was 12 per cent for the most disadvantaged, 8 per cent for the most disadvantaged within the backward classes, 3 per cent for the poorest members of upper castes, and 3 per cent for women. Karpoori Thakur was the first political leader to implement “quota within quota” reservation, and he was the first to introduce reservation for economically weaker sections, based on the findings of the Mungeri Lal Commission.
Inspired by Karpoori Thakur’s formula, in 2019, the Narendra Modi government implemented a 10 per cent reservation for EWS. Karpoori Thakur was the first person to begin working towards the goal of equality, abolition of the caste system, and the desire to live with self-respect a reality. He soon lost the post of CM but at least temporarily, the path to change and the coercion and “superiority” of certain castes that had characterised society for millennia were defeated. Thakur became known as the Periyar of North India and is a symbol of the backward class movement.
The Rohini Commission informed the Centre that its draft report is ready. However, it was asked in January 2020 to study the various entries in the Central List of OBCs and recommend rectification of any repetitions, ambiguities, discrepancies, and spelling or transcription errors, which delayed the report’s timeline.
In the current Central List of OBCs, there are 2,633 castes and subcastes. The Rohini Commission analysed data on 1.3 lakh central jobs awarded under the 27 per cent OBC quota in the last five years, as well as OBC admissions in central higher education institutions, including IITs, NITs, and AIIMS, over the past three years. The study’s results are surprising. As reported in The Indian Express, only 25 per cent of castes in the OBC category have gotten 97 per cent of all jobs and educational seats reserved at the central level. Ten OBCs castes have received 24.95 per cent of the jobs and seats. And 37 per cent of OBC communities have no representation in employment or educational institutions. Only 2.68 per cent of the 994 OBC castes are represented in recruitment and admissions.
There is no way to completely sidestep or ignore the inevitable rise in the need for “reservations within reservations”. Chief ministers from various parties have occasionally attempted to implement this in their respective states. The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar made the most significant effort. The Extreme Backward Classes Commission and the Bihar Rajya Mahadalit Aayog are working to improve communities’ social, educational, and economic status. BJP’s Rajnath Singh, when he was Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, tried to split reservation into three parts based on the work of the Social Justice Committee, which was led by Hukum Singh in 2001.
As the Rohini Commission report stands unreleased, the hope for the communities it was aimed at elevating is becoming bleak. Dozens of political parties, including DMK, Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Bahujan Samaj Party, NCP, Shiv Sena, BJD and TMC are also working together to have the report released as soon as possible. Because of this, it is likely that this Commission will also become a talking point before the 2024 general elections.
Article 46 of the Constitution provides that the government must promote the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections and protect them from social injustice. But a lot depends on the will and intent of the government. It’s possible that the BJP is worried that the backward castes, who have a lot of power, will be angry about this split in reservation. But the government must put justice ahead of political calculations and ask the Rohini Commission to finish its report as soon as possible.
Tyagi is a former Rajya Sabha MP and Chaurasia is Research Fellow at Department of Sociology, Jamia Millia Islamia University
