Govt mulls panel to study status of Dalit converts to Christianity, Islam

The Centre is all set to constitute a national commission to study the social, economic and educational status of members of Scheduled Castes or Dalits who have converted to religions other than Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism, according to media reports. The proposal to set up such a commission is being actively discussed at the Centre, and a decision is likely to be taken soon.

The Indian Express quoted sources in the Ministry of Minority Affairs and the Department of Personnel and Training, who said they have given the green signal for such a move. The consultations are going on between the ministries of home, law, social justice and empowerment, and finance.

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The idea assumes significance as there are numerous petitions pending before the Supreme Court seeking SC reservation benefits for Dalits who have converted to Christianity as well as Islam. 

As per the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, under Article 341, anyone who practices any other religion than Hinduism, Sikhism or Buddhism could be considered part of the Scheduled Castes. The original order that stated only Hindus were considered to be SCs was modified by the government in 1956 to also include Sikhs and, in 1990, to include Buddhists.

Govt to clear stand

On August 30, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed a Supreme Court Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Vikram Nath, that he would place on record the government’s stand on the issue raised by the petitioners. The Bench granted the Solicitor General three weeks’ time and listed the matter on October 11.

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The Indian Express has learnt that the proposed commission may have three or four members with its chairman holding the rank of a Union cabinet minister, and a possible timeframe of well over a year to submit its report.

The proposed commission will also study the impact of adding more members to the current SC list.

The issue is limited to Dalits since there is no religion-specific mandate for STs and the OBCs. Besides, following the implementation of the Mandal Commission report, several Christian and Muslim communities have found place in the Central or state lists of OBCs.

Among the key benefits available to the SC community is 15 per cent reservation for direct recruitment in Central government jobs with 7.5 per cent for STs and 27 per cent quota for OBCs.

Earlier studies

The question of SC reservation benefits for Dalits who converted to mainly to Christianity or Islam has come up before earlier governments, too. In October 2004, the UPA government of Manmohan Singh constituted the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, headed by former Chief Justice of India Justice Ranganath Misra, to recommend measures for the welfare of socially and economically backward sections among religious and linguistic minorities.

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In May 2007, the Ranganath Misra Commission submitted its report, recommending that SC status be completely delinked from religion and be made religion-neutral like STs. The then UPA government did not accept the recommendation on the grounds that it was not substantiated by field studies.

Separately, a study commissioned by the National Commission for Minorities in 2007 concluded that Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims need to be accorded SC status. That finding, too, was not accepted on the grounds that it was based on minuscule sample sizes that could have led to unreliable estimates.