Jayalalitha wants to extend SC status to Christians. Urges Center to implement it


From NDTV:

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa wants Centre to include Christians in scheduled castes list
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CHENNAI:  Noting that social tensions of unbalanced growth between Hindu scheduled castes (SC) and Christian converts have only "aggravated" over time, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Friday said the Centre should treat scheduled caste Christians on par with Hindus, Sikhs or Buddhists and include them in the SC list.

 "The social tensions over the status of unbalanced growth between Hindu scheduled castes and Christian converts have aggravated over time and a sense of alienation among the minority communities has further deepened. I wish to emphasise that the matter cannot brook any further delay," Ms Jayalalithaa said in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Requesting Mr Singh that the SC Christians be included in the list of Scheduled Castes annexed to the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, she said to enable this, as recommended by the Ranganath Mishra Commission, para 3 of the Order must be deleted.

Prompt action should now be taken by the Government to initiate the necessary statutory steps to include all Scheduled Castes irrespective of religion within the ambit of the status of SCs listed in the Order, and bring in necessary legislation in the current session of Parliament, she noted.

Continuing to keep the benefits of reservation in public services "out of reach" of scheduled caste Christians because of the "restrictive definition" of scheduled caste found in the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, is an "ongoing injustice" and must be ended "forthwith", she urged.

She wanted the Centre to file counter affidavits supporting the request of SC Christians, for early disposal of pending pleas in Supreme Court challenging the validity of para 3.

Holding that the Order was not "carved on stone", Jayalalithaa said it must be amended in tune with the socio-economic realities of modern day India. 

Referring to the Order that SCs means such castes, races or tribes or parts of or groups within such castes, races or tribes as are deemed under article 341 to be "Scheduled Castes" for the purposes of the Constitution, she said it is apparent that the Constitution does not confine the category of SCs to any select religion.

From The Hindu:

Legislation to list them as SCs should be brought in current session of Parliament, she says in letter to PM

Strongly backing the demand of Dalit Christians for inclusion in the list of Scheduled Castes, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that “the matter cannot brook any further delay” and necessary legislation should be brought in the current session of Parliament.
Ms. Jayalalithaa said such persons, as a result of their exclusion, remained outside the purview of all Centrally-assisted welfare and ameliorative measures. Most importantly, they were excluded from the benefit of reservation in educational institutions and employment in public services for the Scheduled Castes, she said in the letter.
“The social tensions over the status of unbalanced growth between the Hindu Scheduled Castes and the Christian converts have only aggravated over time and the sense of alienation among the minority communities has further deepened,” she said, while underscoring the need for early inclusion.
She cited recommendations of the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities headed by Justice Ranganath Misra in support of the demand.
Recalling that she had written to the then Prime Minister P. Narasimha Rao, on the issue, in November 1995, Ms. Jayalalithaa said the substantive grounds she had listed in that letter were reiterated and endorsed by the Commission.
The restrictive nature of the definition of the term “Scheduled Castes” in para 3 of the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 was an issue. The various welfare measures and policies designed for the Scheduled Castes have largely benefited only those among the Scheduled Castes who profess Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism, she said.
“Since my government is committed to a policy of affirmative action in favour of the Scheduled Castes, irrespective of creed or religion, we have done our utmost to implement schemes that will benefit Scheduled Castes converted to Christianity on par with other Scheduled Castes,” she said.
The Chief Minister urged Dr. Singh that the Centre should initiate necessary statutory steps to include all Scheduled Castes irrespective of religion within the ambit of the status of Scheduled Castes listed in the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950.
She also wanted him to ensure that the Centre filed its counter-affidavit in pending writ petitions in the Supreme Court in this regard. The National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities found that the Constitution of India prohibits any discrimination between citizens on the basis of caste, and yet it sanctions special affirmative measures for Scheduled Castes.
At the same time, the Constitution prohibits any discrimination on the ground of religion. The Commission concluded that any religion-based discrimination in selecting particular castes for affirmative action will conflict with the letter and spirit of the Constitutional provisions, the Chief Minister said.

Reference:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/jayalalithaa-bats-for-dalit-christians/article5006494.ece

http://www.ndtv.com/south/tamil-nadu-chief-minister-jayalalithaa-wants-centre-to-include-christians-in-scheduled-castes-list-531065

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/article1374710.ece




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