The genuine intention of our Constitution makers was to create an institutional mechanism and Principles that would allow diverse people of the world’s most complex economic justice. However, they clearly stated that such positive discrimination through reservation policies should be continued only for a limited period after which it should be stopped. Unfortunately, what our founding fathers desired with a sensible approach towards reservation has not happened because of vote bank politics.

     What was perceived as a limited measure for a limited period has become an inalienable feature of the socio-political system. The sphere of operation of this so-called positive discrimination mechanism was further extended by Mandal commission.

      Reservation, in spite of all the claims of social justice and equity, seems to be a face-saving posture and a curtain to cover the failure of our political machinery to create a conducive atmosphere for an equitable socioeconomic development. Incessant caste-based reservation indicates nausea of a vibrant democracy like India and its inability to include a large section of society into the mainstream through natural democratic process even after 75 years of independence.

Divisive nature

      Reservation at the time of independence was only meant to be a measure for the ultimate goal of “healthy societal development”. However, the experience of last sixty years has shown that the measure and the means have become an end in itself resulting in further atomization of the society on caste lines which was never the objective with which special provisions for elevation of the under--privileged had been incorporated.

    The classification of people based on castes is being made to extend certain benefits-in educational Institutions, in public services and also to become members and the representatives of the people. By treating caste as the only medium of oppression and hence by focusing all remedial measures on caste alone, we have only added to the longevity of caste as the determining factor of social identity. Caste in reality is only one of the features of identity at the individual level. However, it has been turned into the indispensable identity of individual citizens. It is harmful for the cause of the modern social democracy as well as to the cause of individuals who are in dire straits and seek socio-economic justice through affirmative action. The present policy of “positive discrimination” divides the whole society into two broad categories. Oppressed and Oppressors, which creates an environment of victimhood and mistrust. Understandably, this policy is a major hindrance for national integration.

       The real essence of democracy lies in promoting a society where a division on the basis of caste has no place, where “birthmark” is not given any weightage. Caste – hatred in the country has in fact increased over the years as the government itself does the job of identifying and certifying who is a lower caste and who is not. Caste – based reservation instead of eliminating caste perpetuates it. This defeats the very basic objective enshrined in the Preamble of our Constitution which declares India to be of a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic and republican polity.

Anti-progressive nature

      Caste system is the greatest hindrance in the way of our progress to egalitarian society. In a mad pursuit towards the privileges offered by the caste-based reservations almost every caste in India wants themselves to be called as backward caste. How can a democracy with so much backward people survive? As rightly pleaded by the chairman of First Backward Class Commission, Kaka Kalelkar, the reservations and other remedies recommended on the basis of caste would not be in the interest of society and country.

       Besides castes, there are a large number of groups whose members may be classified as backward educationally and economically, but still there may be others among them who cannot be so classified. Similarly, among the so called upper and advanced classes there are in fact a large number of those who are more backward educationally and economically and even among the backward classes some groups are more forward than the so called upper and forward castes. India as a progressive, modern welfare State, cannot afford to tolerate  backwardness anywhere irrespective of caste, creed or religion and should aid all the poor and deserving in the country irrespective of caste, sex or denomination.

      The assumption of the backwardness limited to certain castes is wholly deceitful and should not be allowed to continue. If caste is used as a test for backwardness, it would result in the needy swamped by the multitude and would hardly receive any special attention or adequate assistance which is the very basis of providing affirmative action. This poses a serious disaster to enliven democratic way of life.

No checks and balances

    The quota system, created to facilitate the poor, is wrongly being utilized by those who are better off and they corner the benefits of reservation policy. Why is it that the ‘forward’ among the Scheduled Castes or persons above a particular ‘family income’ do not want to voluntarily opt out make place for more deprived members of their own caste group? The main reason behind this is, once used to these Privileges they are not ready to give them up. Even the concept of creamy layer created to overcome such limitations is not crystal clear in tune with the societal requirements. Thus, caste-based reservation policy has failed in bringing an egalitarian social transformation.

EWS - Sensible?

    The 103rd Constitution Amendment Act 2019 was the culmination of a series of reservation agitations by socially dominant groups across India. An economic criterion for quotas had been the running thread ever since the VP Singh government’s decision to implement the Mandal Commission report on OBC reservations. Articles 15 and 16 had ratified quotas and other schemes for SCs, STs and OBCs. Now, the 103rd amendment carved out an “economically weaker section” that wouldn’t include these three groups already having reservation. This EWS category would get “special provisions” for their advancement, including reservation up to a maximum of 10%. Constitutional challenges to the amendment reached the Supreme Court.

    Treating EWS as a separate category is reasonable classification and the 50 per cent ceiling on the total reservation under the Mandal judgment is ”not inflexible”, the judges said while dismissing petitions challenging the 103rd Constitution Amendment of 2019. Reservation is an instrument of affirmative action so as to ensure an all-inclusive march towards the goals of an egalitarian society and it is a means of inclusion of any class or section so disadvantaged. Just as equals cannot be treated unequally, unequals cannot be treated equally. Treating unequals equally violates equality under the Constitution.

    The Supreme Court has turned down a plea to review its November 2022 verdict by which it had upheld validity of the 103rd constitutional amendment to carve out 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections from unreserved class for admission in educational institutions and government jobs by holding that 50% cap on quota is not inviolable and affirmative action on economic basis may go a long way in eradicating caste-based reservation.

Justice as fairness

      As stated by Jhon Rawls, ‘’Justice is not an ethic of rewards but an ethic of redress.’’ Hence, justice in a democracy lies in fair treatment of the populace. Democracy is not intended to serve a particular Class but to serve the larger interest of all. The immediate need of the hour is to depart from the present ‘’Group Centric’’ affirmative action to ‘’Individual Centric’’ benefits. Caste based reservation has resulted in the formation of diabolic ‘’caste based’’ vestibules which are against the integrity of our democracy. Emphasis on extension of benefits has to shift from ‘’the conditions that a group satisfies’’ to the conditions that ‘’an individual satisfies’’. The state has to lay down conditions which apply to all individuals irrespective of their caste, religion, sex, place of birth etc. This is the real spirit of Articles 15(4) and 16(4) which provides for positive discrimination. As rightly remarked by India’s first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru: ‘’….. It is the backward individual citizen that we should help. Why should we brand groups and classes as backward and forward……’’

   Caste is not the only obstacle in the way of development of an individual. Economic conditions, educational opportunities and gender discrimination also contribute to the denial of opportunity to Express one’s true merit and worth. As observable in Southern India, the members of royal families, ruling classes, landlords, and rich businessmen are considered to be backward by the government because of their castes. They were kings and rulers for generations. Can we say with absolute certainty that poverty amongst the so-called upper castes has been eradicated? What an irony?.

     Unscrupulous politicians mislead public opinion by projecting caste-based reservation as the only form of affirmative action. Affirmative action has to ‘’avow’’ the social will to rectify inequitable structures and patterns in existence. Pluralist society like India has a multiplicity of such structures and practices. Any programme of affirmative action has to harness all these factors and not elevate any one factor to the level of a political ‘’fetish’’. To ensure socio economic justice to the really deserving people, reservation policies should be in the holistic context of much needed social engineering and reconstruction and not to convert it into a hoodoo of ‘political correctness’. Whom to blame-politicians or people?

    Caste-based fragmented politics is a double-edged weapon. It is not that ‘’Politics uses Caste’’ , at the same time ‘’Caste also uses Politics’’. The voters expect the ministers to help their caste folk. They seem to be saying ‘’We want benefits in return for what we have done’’. Voting provides a platform to castes to assert their influence. This really makes democracy a mockery. It is we the public who is to be blamed for this sorry state of our democracy.

          As revealed in the Preamble of our constitution, the Constitution derives its authority from the people of India. In a democracy the real power lies in the hands of public. Let us yield to intellect and liberality. We and we alone can change things through collective action.

      We have to develop good governance in our system which is the real panacea for all the ills that deride us. The time is ripe to put an end to castiest politics and strive towards establishing a truly egalitarian society wherein all the poor and deserving should,  and could, be helped. This alone would enrich the democratic essence and make the democratic way of life meaningful.