Caste is most often seen through the prism of conflict—the heated national debates about reservations, the political polarization on the census and the attacks on young couples that have been blessed by caste panchayats.
But far away from the spotlight, there is the more benign world of organizations and activists who continue to nurture informal networks based on caste, to help fledgeling businesses, build educational institutions and promote philanthropy.
Caste continues to puzzle and infuriate many modernizers, but the institution has survived and changed in the six decades after independence even as it continues to whip up passions that can split most political parties down the middle.
At the same time, analysts feel that the caste organizations’ co-option into politics and vice-versa has led to trivialization of the groups’ roles such as their activities remaining limited to distributing medals and organizing dinners to community members
1. That this is a petition lodged under Article 32 of the Constitution of India for enforcement of the fundamental rights of the petitioners community enshrined under Article 14,15,16,21,26 and their constitutional rights enshrined under Article 341 of the Constitution of India by challenging the vires and constitutionalism of the para 3 of the Constitution (Scheduled caste ) Order, 1950. This order, issued under Article 341 of the Constitution is discriminatory on the ground of religion in that certain Hindu castes have been declared as the Scheduled Castes whereas their Muslim counterparts have been discriminated and denied the status of Scheduled Casts.
The issue of reservation in jobs and educational institutions on the basis of religion is again under scanner after the publication of the Ranganath Mishra Commission report and the interim order of the Supreme Court in the Andhra Pradesh case, providing for reservation for the backward Muslims.
The constitutional mandate is clear. It enjoins equality before the law and leaves no scope for discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. Further, it provides for affirmative action for the advancement of socially and educationally backward classes, including a provision for reservation of jobs in the favour of backward classes which, in the opinion of the state, is not adequately represented in the services under the state.
The tabling of the Report of the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities (NCRLM), popularly called the Ranganath Mishra Commission report, in the Parliament recently has led to animated debates and mobilisations around the issue of reservations for the Muslim community. Within the Muslim community, there are two contending strands of opinions around this issue of reservations for the Muslim community. Within the Muslim community, there are two contending strands of opinions around this issue. The first group employs the discourse of ‘minority rights' and inter-group inequality to argue its position for reservation for the entire ‘community' (though complicated by the creamy layer provision).
Times of India, 23rd August 2009
NEW DELHI: A day after it won three of the four assembly by-elections, the BSP raised its ante in the Supreme Court on the controversy over exchequer-funded installation of statues of UP chief minister Mayawati.
Contending that BSP's performance has proved wrong the charge of anti-downtrodden and anti-poor levelled against the party by the PIL petitioners in the statue case, the party put a question to the apex court: would it entertain a similar petition questioning hundreds of crores of rupees central ministries spent on advertisements commemorating the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on August 20?
The BSP affidavit has a poser also for the PIL petitioners: why have they been quiet on the money spent on advertiesments on the birth and death anniversaries of Congress leaders?
If the policies of the Mayawati government were so anti-downtrodden and anti-development, how come the BSP could wrest three out of four legislature assembly seats from other parties in the recently held byelections? the party asked.
The double standard alleged by the party fits in well with its charge that it is being discriminated against and that the unfair treatment is a fallout of the prejudice against dalits.
It said: "All political parties have always propagated to capture public space and the monuments being built and statues erected by BSP followed the same principle so as to make the dalits link themselves to something in history."
Countering the suggestion in the PIL that the money spent on these monuments and statues could have been utilised for health care, education and other developmental work, the party said there are budgetary allocations specially earmarked for the purpose and did not eat into other allocations.
Source:
NEW DELHI: A day after it won three of the four assembly by-elections, the BSP raised its ante in the Supreme Court on the controversy over exchequer-funded installation of statues of UP chief minister Mayawati.
Contending that BSP's performance has proved wrong the charge of anti-downtrodden and anti-poor levelled against the party by the PIL petitioners in the statue case, the party put a question to the apex court: would it entertain a similar petition questioning hundreds of crores of rupees central ministries spent on advertisements commemorating the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on August 20?
The BSP affidavit has a poser also for the PIL petitioners: why have they been quiet on the money spent on advertiesments on the birth and death anniversaries of Congress leaders?
If the policies of the Mayawati government were so anti-downtrodden and anti-development, how come the BSP could wrest three out of four legislature assembly seats from other parties in the recently held byelections? the party asked.
The double standard alleged by the party fits in well with its charge that it is being discriminated against and that the unfair treatment is a fallout of the prejudice against dalits.
It said: "All political parties have always propagated to capture public space and the monuments being built and statues erected by BSP followed the same principle so as to make the dalits link themselves to something in history."
Countering the suggestion in the PIL that the money spent on these monuments and statues could have been utilised for health care, education and other developmental work, the party said there are budgetary allocations specially earmarked for the purpose and did not eat into other allocations.
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