3/27/2015 ReservationsarenotjustaboutquotasTheHindu

OpinionLead

Reservationsarenotjustaboutquotas
SatishDeshpande
Weneedtoquestiontheequationofreservationwiththeredressalofcasteinequalitynotbecausereservationisnolongerneededbut
becauseitisnolongerenough

ThelearnedjudgesoftheSupremeCourtwhoquashedtheCentralgovernmentsnotificationgrantingOtherBackward
Classes(OBC)statustotheJatcommunityinnineStatesseemtohavehadaneasyjob.Thecourtreachedtheobvious
conclusiongiventhattheimpugnednotificationwaspassedthedaybeforetheannouncementofthe2014general
election,thatitwasopposedbytheNationalCommissionforBackwardClasses(NCBC),andthatthegovernments
legallydubiousoverrulingoftheNCBCwasnotbackedbycompellingevidence.Butwhiletheoperativepartofthe
judgmentisbeyondreproach,itscommentsoncasteandreservationsarecauseforconcern.
Prejudiceagainstreservation

Thoughtheyareneitherquiteobiterdictanorsimplywrong,thecourtsopinionsreinforce,ratherthanquestion,the
misleadinghalftruthsofcommonsense.Towardstheendoftheirjudgment,JusticesRanjanGogoiandRohintonF.
Narimanexpandontheirratiotomaketwoassertions.Inparagraph53,theyarguethatwhilecastemaybea
prominentanddistinguishingfactorforeasydeterminationofbackwardnessofasocialgroup,suchdetermination
mustnotbemadesolelyonthebasisofcaste,andthatidentifyingthemostdeservinggroupsmustnecessarilybea
matterofcontinuousevolution,requiringthestatetolookbeyondcaste.Thisisfollowedinparagraph54withthe
declarationthatbackwardnesscannotbeamatterofperception,andthenthebafflingassertionthatitcannotbe
determinedbysocial,economicandeducationalindicatorseither.Takeninconjunctionwiththestrikingexampleof
transgendersasagroupdeservingspecialconsideration(paragraph53),theseassertionsarelikelytofuelthedominant
prejudiceagainstreservation.
Thepowerfuluppercasteprejudiceagainstreservationsthatpervadesthepublicsphereisbasedonthreeequationsor
conflations,allofwhichareencouragedbythiscourtjudgment.
ThefirstistheequationofaspecificcasesuchasthatofreservationforJatswhichthecourthasrightlyrejected
withthecaseforreservationassuch.Thesecondistheequationofthelargerissueofredressalofcasteinequalities
withasinglepolicythatofreservation.Thethirdistheequationofreservationwithawelfareprogramme,anditis
themostperniciousandcomplicatedofthethree.
Perceptionandsocialcontract

Intheuppercasteimagination,reservationisindeliblybrandedasawelfareprogrammegivinghandoutstoasetof
castemarkedbeneficiaries.Fromthisperspective,thosewhoreceivethisbenefitthereservedcategoryare
deviantexceptionswhofalloutsidethenormalorgeneralcategoryofcastelesscitizenswhichconstitutesthenation.
Itisthiscastelessnationthatgivesreservationtocertaincastestocompensateforthehistoricalwrongsdoneto
theminthedistantpast,andtohelpthemovercometheirbackwardness.Onlywhenreservationisunderstoodinthis
waycanwemakesenseofobjectionssuchas:Howlongwillreservationscontinue?Whyiscasteandnoteconomic
needthecriterion?Andofformsofprotest,suchasasymbolicpolishingofshoesandsweepingofstreetsbyyouth
wearingstethoscopesorlabcoatsthatreservationprovokesfromtheuppercastes.
Fromsuchavantagepoint,itisimpossibletoseethatthetrueoriginsofreservationlieinapromiseofgoodfaiththat
formsthecoreofthesocialcontractonwhichournationisfounded.ReservationisapreIndependencepolicy
inauguratedbytheGovernmentofIndiaActof1935,whichcreatedthescheduleslistingsocalledScheduledCastes
(SC)andScheduledTribes(ST).ThepolicyitselfistheoutcomeofthePoonaPactbetweenGandhiandAmbedkar,in
whichthelatterwasforcedtowithdrawtheclaimbyuntouchablecastestoaseparateelectorateinreturnfor
guaranteedrepresentationinthelegislatureandthebroadassurancethatthenation,representedbyGandhiandthe
Congress,woulddoeverythinginitspowertoenduntouchabilityandcastediscrimination.Thus,reservationisa
fundamentallypoliticalpromisemadeinacknowledgementofthefactthatcasteliterallyexcludessizeable
communitiesfromIndiansociety.SinceindependenceisdemandedinthenameoftheIndiannation,andsincethe
modernnationissupposedtobeanegalitarianformofcommunity,thePoonaPactisacompromisewherebythe
untouchablesagreetoforegotheirdemandforanation(electorate)oftheirownandbepartofthelargernationin
spiteoftheircasteexclusion.Inshort,reservationisintendedtobetheresponse,fromanationalistmovementledby
theuppercastes,tothebittertruthinAmbedkarspoignantstatement:Gandhiji,Ihavenohomeland.
Beyondwelfare

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/reservationsarenotjustaboutquotas/article7036459.ece?homepage=true 1/2
3/27/2015 ReservationsarenotjustaboutquotasTheHindu

Fromthisperspective,reservationcannotbeequatedtothisorthatwelfarebenefit,sinceitisintendedtobesomething
incomparablylargerthepromiseoffullcitizenship.Thedegreetowhichthispromiseisfulfilledautomatically
decidesthedurationofthepolicy.Reservationshouldceasetoexistfromthedaythatdiscrimination,oppressionand
grossinequalitiesbasedoncasteceasetoexist,becauseallcasteswouldthenhavefullcitizenship.Notethatsucha
policyisnotabouthistoricalwrongsinthedimpast,butaboutcontemporaryformsofcasteinequality,andthat
replacingcastewitheconomiccriteriamissesthewholepointofcastediscriminationthatexistsinvariedformsacross
allclasses.Wideracceptanceofthisinterpretationofreservationisblockednotonlybythenaturalantipathyofthe
uppercastes,butalsobytwootherdifficulties.
Thefirststemsfromtheneedtoconverttheabstractpromiseoffullcitizenshipintoconcretereality,aconversionthat
inevitablyrequiresspecificentitlementstobecreatedforspecificcastes.Thisinturnencouragesalreadyprejudiced
observerstoequatethepolicywithmaterialbenefitsunjustlyawardedtoanundeservinginterestgroupfreeridingon
thepopulistcompulsionsofelectoralpolitics.Theseconddifficultyhastodowiththedeepintermeshingofthesocial
andeconomicdimensionsofcastediscriminationandtherelatedconundrumofevaluatingtheempiricalandlegal
similaritiesanddifferencesamongtheSCs,theSTsandtheOBCs.
Forarethink
Tocutalongandcomplexstoryshort,thekeyissuehereisthatofframingandcontextualisation.Itiscertainlytrue
thatthereservationpolicyasitexiststodayisdeeplyflawedandinneedofradicalrethinking.Butthisrethinkingneeds
tobeframedagainstthevitalneedmoreurgenttodaythaneverbeforetoconfronttheuglyrealityofcontinuing
castediscrimination,oppressionandexclusionallalongthehierarchy.Weneedtoquestiontheequationofreservation
withtheredressalofcasteinequalitynotbecausereservationisnolongerneededbutbecauseitisnolongerenough
weneedtodomuchmoretotackletheresilientmutationsofcasteprejudice.Andwemustreacttothemisuseof
reservation(asintheJatcase)aswewouldtomalpracticeinanyothervitalareaofpublicpolicy.Forexample,the
properresponsetocorruptionindefenceprocurementcannotbetodismantlethedefencesectoritself.
TwodaysafteritreportedtheJatjudgment,thisdailyhadareport(March19,2015)withtheheading,Caste
determinesspendingonfood,choiceofwork:NSSO,butfewreaderswouldhavemadetheconnection.Theproblem
withcastetodayisthatmostofthepeoplewhomatterdontgetitbecausetheythinktheydonthaveit.
(SatishDeshpandeteachessociologyatDelhiUniversity.)
Keywords:Reservations,quota,Jatcommunity,NationalCommissionforBackwardClasses,casteinequality
Viewcomments(38)

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/reservationsarenotjustaboutquotas/article7036459.ece?homepage=true 2/2