The constitutionally governed modern democratic countries are built over the idea that all men are equal and deserve all kinds of human rights. The elected Governments have to ensure realisation of rights by creating equality in matter of public opportunity for all. Globally, many democratic countries have been endeavouring to ensure equality in matter of representation of all through legislation; especially for the historically left-out groups. Representation is a human right and also the first step towards achieving equality.
The programme to ensure representation has been called in different terms in different countries such as India, USA, and South Africa as reservation, affirmative action, alternative access and positive discrimination. The scope of its applicability extends to representation in governance, legislative bodies, executive, judiciary, education, employment, business, trade and many more other sectors of national life. But it is not a permanent arrangement; it rather aims to achieve the purpose in a short span of time.
Way back the apartheid Government of South Africa had policy of reservation for the white and had denied equal access to black, Indians and others in public employment. Currently worldwide there is reservation for women, ethnic minorities and people suffering racial discriminations. It is understood that reservation has immensely contributed to share the available public space and opportunities of a nation with the ignored and underrepresented masses.
Experience shows that the policy of reservation has brought change in life of marginalised sections and boosted economic development. The southern States of India are the best example in this regard.
For centuries together a vast majority of population in India is affected by discrimination based on untouchability, ethnicity and caste (Verna system). But there has been an attempt by many like Jyotiba Phule and Shahuji Bhonsle during pre-British era through social reform as well as legislation to ensure their representation. In the year 1902, the then Maharaja of Kolhapur had introduced 50 per cent reservation for the Backward classes through an administrative order published in Kolhapur State Gazette.
The issue of proportional representation of diverse social groups was prominently discussed in Simon Commission reports and Round Table conference but surprisingly the representation of backward classes, who are almost half of the population of the country, has not been discussed much after independence. Barring a few southern States, the constitutional provisions for them have not been implemented by subsequent elected Governments.
Many credible commissions such as Kaka Kalelkar (1953), BP Mandal (1979), Justice Rajindar Sachar reports (2005) and independent surveys have established the fact that thousands of the castes and communities in different religions identified under OBC category are very insignificantly represented in socio-economic and socio-political life of the nation, especially in the areas of education, academics, employment in Government and public sector jobs, judiciary, media and many other important segments of public domain.
The recent World Inequality Report says India is among the most unequal countries in the world. Social inequality is one of the major reasons of growing economic disparity among various social groups specially castes and communities in the lower ladder of society. The poor continue to be poor and have relatively lower income and ownership over assets.
For a long time there is non-availability of correct data about various castes and their representation in different sectors. The lack of information is being used as a plea to delay the implementation of reservation policy by the Government and it also helps the judiciary to make stay and dilute the implementation of reservation laws. Thus it will be ideal for the Government to go for a socio-economic and caste census to know the exact status.
The other important step is the Government must ensure that like land reform laws and Tamil Nadu’s reservation law, all the reservation related Central and State laws must be placed in the 9th scheduled of the Constitution to avoid undesirable judicial scrutiny.
However, the judicial interpretations till date have helped more in denying justice to OBCs and others. Unfortunately, the academics and media in the country have not yet presented a clear picture before the public about the issues of reservation; rather they successfully spread misinformation about the truth relating to OBCs and others.
In order to end the dynasty rule, monopoly of a few, traditional caste hegemony and caste-based mindset, the social diversity must be encouraged through social reform and legislation. Till 1950, for centuries together few castes monopolized the ownership over the wealth, education and power to rule and denied basic human rights to a majority of the masses of India. But during last 70 years of constitutional governance, the elected Governments have also very selectively implemented the constitutional mandate and very systematically ignored the human rights of a vast majority of castes and communities by depriving them of their participation in nation building as equal citizens.
It has also been suggested that the available reservation for different castes and communities must be sub-categorized to reach to the most deserving and to make it more ideally inclusive. The other emerging claim in the era of privatization is to expand the scope of reservation to all private sector jobs and other areas such as judiciary, media and business. The recruitment for private jobs must be done by independent agencies such as UPSC.
The issue of political representation from Parliament to local self-governance is very vital. The Indian society can be unified with equal representation of all castes in all sectors. What it means is, all citizens must believe in fraternity and have a sense of ownership over national resources without feeling a sense of inferiority or superiority. The continued unhealthy competition among unequal and disproportionately over possession by a few must stop.
