Research Paper - Mandal Commission and its Implication: Representation and Equality

The Janata Party, in its election manifesto in 1977, called for an end to caste inequalities. It promised a “policy of special treatment” in favour of the weaker sections of Indian society. The party promised to reserve between 25 and 33 per cent of all appointments to government services and educational opportunities for the backward classes.

On January 1, 1979, the Morarji Desai government chose Bindeshwari Prasad Mandal, a former chief minister of Bihar, to head the Second Backward Class Commission. Mandal submitted his report two years later, on December 31, 1980. In 1980, it published its findings, placing a total of 3428 ‘communities’ in the OBC category, comprising 54.4 percent of the country’s population (Bayly 1999). By then, the Morarji Desai government had fallen, and Indira Gandhi came to power. It remained in deep freeze during her term and that of Rajiv Gandhi.

The Mandal Commission recommended that there should be employment quotas in public sector organizations (including nationalized banks and private 5 sector undertakings which received financial assistance from the government in one form or the other) and reserved places in higher educational institutions of 27 percent for OBC in addition to the 22.5 percent job quotas and seats in higher educational institutions that were already in place for SC and ST (Ramaiah 1992). The figure of 27 percent was arrived at as the Supreme Court limited total reservations to fewer than 50 percent.

The Government of India, headed by the Janata Party, appointed a Backward Classes Commission under the chair­manship of B.P. Mandal, Member of Parliament, with a view to get definite recommendations by which it could implement its election promises. On August 7, 1990, then PM V P Singh announced in Parliament that his government had accepted the Mandal Commission report, which recommended 27% reservation for OBC candidates at all levels of its services. With the implementation of the report, OBC or Other Backward Classes made its way into the lexicon of India’s social justice movement.

Soon after, scattered protests against the OBC quota began in Delhi. In September, Rajeev Goswami, a Delhi University student, set himself on fire, sustaining 50 per cent burns. He survived the immolation bid, but the spark had been ignited. In cities and towns near Delhi, a number of youths set themselves on fire. The south, which had had a long history of political movements for the rights of backward communities, was untouched by the agitation. The BJP, which supported the government from outside, attempted to shift the political debate from Mandal to the Ram temple and L K Advani set off on his rath yatra. The BJP withdrew support soon after and the V P Singh government fell.

In recent years, with the coming to power of the Congress-led Government of Manmohan Singh in 2004, there have also been proposals to extend the job quotas to private sector jobs and to certain privileged institutions of higher education which had been omitted earlier from the reservations policies for OBC earlier.

The Mandal Commission adopted various methods and techniques to collect the necessary data and evidence. The commission adopted 11 criteria which could be grouped under three major headings: social, educational and economic in order to identify OBCs.

Socially

Castes/classes considered as socially backward by others.

Castes/classes which mainly depend on manual labour for their livelihood.

Castes/classes where at least 25 per cent females and 10 per cent males above the state average get married at an age below 17 years in rural areas and at least 10 per cent females and 5 per cent males do so in urban areas.

Castes/classes where participation of females in work is at least 25 per cent above the state average.

Educational

 Castes/classes where the number of children in the age group of 5–15 years who never attended school is at least 25 per cent above the state average.

 Castes/classes where the rate of student drop-out in the age group of 5–15 years is at least 25 percent above the state average.

 Castes/classes amongst which the proportion of matriculates is at least 25 per cent below the state average.

Economic

 Castes/classes where the average value of family assets is at least 25 per cent below the state average.

Castes/classes where the number of families living in kuccha houses is at least 25 per cent above the state average.

Castes/classes where the source of drinking water is beyond half a kilometre for more than 50 percent of the households.

Castes/classes where the number of households having taken consumption loans is at least 25 percent above the state average. Also known as "Creamy layer," this criteria of separation is ignored by the government which is known as the most controversial issue of reservation.

Arguments against reservations the opponents of the issue argue: Allocating quotas on the basis of caste is a form of racial discrimination, and contrary to the right to equality. As a consequence of legislating to provide reservations for Christians and Muslim, religious minorities in all government education institutions will be introduced which is contrary to the ideas of secularism, and is a form of anti-discrimination on the basis of religion.

The quality of these elite institutes may go down, because merit is severely being compromised by reserving seats for certain caste-based communities. There are no efforts made to give proper primary education to truly deprived classes so there is no need to reserve seats for higher studies. The government is dividing people on the basis of castes for political advantages. The caste system is kept alive through these measures. Instead of coming up with alternative innovative ideas which make sure equal representation at the same time making the caste system irrelevant, the decision is only fortifying the caste system.

Conclusion

The reservation never fulfilled by the any central government since its implication. In education institute there are few obcs teachers recruited by the higher institutions. The government of India will have to implement all reservation for upliftment of the society. In central institutions and universities have only around 5 percent reservations in faculties and staffs. According to various RTI’s many institution vacate the obc’s seats as name of not found suitable that’s why there are thousands of backlog seats in universities and institutions. In Parliament questioned rose by the many MP’s to HRD minister but there is no such affirmative actions taken by the Central government.

-Mukesh Shankar Bharti

Research Scholar JNU 

and Erasmus Mundus Fellow, 

Sofia University, Bulgaria

 

 

Newer Post Older Post