Creation of a separate ministry for the Backward Classes who constitute about 55% to 60% of the total Indian population comprising of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians is the most urgent and justified one.
Hence, on behalf of the All India Federation of Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Religious Minorities, we have appealed through a letter sent to all the leaders of national political parties and the Tamil Nadu political parties on 21st March 2009 urging all of them to include in their respective election manifestos giving an assurance to create a separate ministry for the welfare of OBCs at the centre and to take initiative to amend the Constitution guaranteeing proportional reservation to all the communities in education and employment. Unless a separate ministry is created sooner and proportional reservation is implemented by amending the Constitution, the progress of the Backward Classes in social, political and economic spheres would continue to be tardy for a long time to come. These contentions can be vouchsafed by us on the strength of the following points.
The first and foremost requirement for implementation of reservation to Backward Classes was the preparation of the list of BCs. But though there were provisions in the Constitution for reservation to the BCs in employment and education, the Central government presided over by Nehru rejected the first Backward Classes list prepared by Kaka Kalelkar in 1955. That list was rejected by Nehru for the simple reason that Kaka Kalelkar had not included any of the poor brahmin sect in that list as desired by him. Hence Nehru took a decision through a cabinet resolution to reject the list of BCs in May 1961.
The second most important anti - Backward Class move was that a demi - official letter was sent to all the Chief Ministers of states by Nehru in August 1961 advising them not to grant reservation to BCs on caste basis.
The third most heinous step of the Government of India was giving up the policy of allocating separate funds for the development of BCs from the third Five-Year plan period. Though the Constitution provided reservation to BCs in Article 16(4), reservation to BCs was not granted in any of the North Indian states, because of the blockade put up by Nehru in August 1961. While that was the position in North India i.e. one part of India, the Congress government of Madras Presidency in the Southern part of India granted 14% exclusive reservation to BCs in November 1947. Later the percentage of reservation to BCs was increased to 25% and again to 31% in 1972 on the authority of Article 15(4) and 16(4). While such was the case, it is a mockery that the State.
Governments in North India i.e. another part of India had failed to take up the problems of BCs till 1978, due to the absence of any movement to fight for the reservation to the BCs in North India and lack of proper leadership from any of the leading Backward Class communities like Yadav, Kurmi, Koiri, Naye, Halavayee and similar other BC communities.
Though Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia demanded 60% reservation to BCs between 1956 and 1967 there was a point of confusion on the inclusion of all women in India in the list of BCs. That concept was defective and meaningless. However during the period from 1944 to 1959 Shiv Dayal Singh Chaurasia and Advocate Cheddilal Sathi took initiative to create awakening among B.Cs in U.P. Between 1976 and 1980 Ram Awadesh Singh and Chandapuri and some others took similar initiatives in Bihar.
In the meantime Nehru engineered a plot to divide the All India Backward Classes Federation founded at Kanpur in December 1944 under the presidentship of Periyar E.V. Ramasamy. Nehru brought in another Backward Class leader Punjab Rao Deshmuk and made him the president of rival Backward Class Federation and included him as a minister in his cabinet. Likewise by throwing crumbs of political offices like District Board membership, M.L.C. and member of Rajya Sabha, to the leaders of BCs, Nehru destabilised the All India Backward Class Federation founded in 1944.
Dr. Ambedkar who got 8.33% reservation to Scheduled Castes in Central Service alone in 1943 got it increased to 12.5% in 1947 itself in proportion to the strength of SCs in population. On the strength of this convention, the SCs had been granted 15% reservation. Under the above circumstances there was no initiative on the part of Government of India to implement reservation to BCs as per the provisions available in Article 16(4) till steps were taken by All India federation of BCs, SCs, STs and RMs (founded in 1978) presided by V.Anaimuthu and Ram Awadesh Singh.
In Article 16(4) all the three segments of the Backward Class namely Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes are put under the phrase “Any Backward Class of citizens” which had been explained in Art 338(3) as to cover the SCs, STs and the OBCs. It is an unpardonable negligence on the part of the Government of India, the ruling class and the Backward Class leaders.The erstwhile Central Ministry had Mrs.Meira Kumar as minister for Social Justice and Empowerment. But it is an irony that she continued to be anti - BC in temperament and approach for the whole 5 year period and she saw that BCs were kept away from the memorandums and the orders issued for the implementation of reservation to BCs in private educational institutions and private sector employment. This writer of this article had personal experience while he presented memorandums twice in Delhi.
We take this opportunity to request the Honourable members of Parliament and the Government of India to think aloud putting aside party affiliations and caste identity as to whether creation of separate ministry for Backward Classes and granting of proportional reservation to BCs in education and employment is not judicious and justifiable demand at this juncture.
We earnestly appeal to all members of Parliament both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in general and to those belonging to BC, SC and ST in particular to take up this just task and come forward to do the needful in right earnest.
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