In Defence of OBC Reservations
by Praful Bidwai

THE controversy sparked off by Human Resources Development Minister, Mr Arjun Singh's April 5 remark that the Union cabinet will extend 27 per cent reservations for students from the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in all the Central universities and the Indian Institutes of Technology and Management and similar institutions has developed into a political storm. The storm hasn't subsided despite the government's decision to temporarily shelve the move following the Election Commission's demand for an explanation as to why this "announcement" shouldn't be treated as a violation of the Model Code of Conduct for elections. Another contentious angle has been added to the controversy because the National Knowledge Commission was not consulted before the decision was taken.

Yet, opponents of the reservations proposal have begun to mobilise themselves in a concerted way—especially through email list-serves and Internet blogs—to generate opinion against the move. Some of them reject the very idea of affirmative action, while some others question the relevance of quotas in educational institutions for the OBCs. Some of the attacks are not only intemperate, but downright hysterical—a sign of the strong sentiments and vehemence the issue has provoked.

It's vitally important that the issue be soberly debated in depth and in all its various dimensions. To do this, we must separate its central core from contingent considerations or passing circumstances. Take the debate over Mr Arjun Singh's remark, made almost casually at a public function, and whether it constitutes a breach of the election Model Code. This is a bit of a red herring. Ever since the government moved to have the Constitution amended to facilitate reservations in educational institutions after the Supreme Court judgment in three cases pertaining to private professional colleges, it has been clear that it would sooner or later introduce quotas. Mr Singh said as much last December. Similarly, the Knowledge Commission was bypassed. But then, nobody is clear about its role, remit and real functions, which overlap with those of many Ministries. Nor is it apparent that it has any particular expertise on the issue of affirmative action. Besides, there are sharp differences within the Commission on reservations.

So it's best to leave these contingent issues aside and go straight to the heart of the matter. Are the critics of OBC reservations right in saying that quotas in Central educational institutions are uncalled for and that most OBCs don't deserve them? Will the quotas detract from "merit" and thus eventually undermine the quality of institutions like the IITs which have built an enviable global reputation for themselves? Is it true that the global experience with affirmative action shows that it cannot redress entrenched disadvantages or inequalities and create better opportunities for the socially underprivileged?

The very first premise in any argument for affirmative action has to be the pervasiveness and deep roots of the Indian system of hierarchical social organisation, centred on caste. Inequality is built into the deepest structures of this society. Systemic discrimination has ensured that the vast majority of the people are excluded from public life for centuries. The Dalits are the worst victims of this. The caste system considers them "impure" or "polluted" and hence puts them outside the pale. The bulk of the low and lower middle castes, which comprise the OBCs, also face vicious forms of discrimination and exclusion, albeit somewhat less violent than do Dalits. This constitutes a systematic denial of social opportunity to a majority of our people, which destroys the possibility of their realising their human potential.

One of India's gravest tragedies is that such inhuman discrimination is sanctioned or legitimised by the Dharmashastras, in particular, the Manusmriti, which declares that Dalits and Shudras (including most OBC castes) must serve the twice-born upper castes or savarnas with the utmost obedience and loyalty. Failure to do will attract the most severe of penalties—including amputation of limbs, pouring of molten lead into the ears, and outright beheading. Many vile, inhuman and degrading casteist practices persist in India to this day.

Contemporary social science has established after extensive studies that systemic past discrimination can produce great inequality of opportunity, indeed widen it, even when there's no present discrimination. Differences in initial points based on social privilege or disadvantage will generate hugely different outcomes.

Those who oppose affirmative action radically, in principle, on the ground that it's anti-merit, are comprehensively wrong in assuming that our society and government run on the basis of merit, as distinct from social status, clan loyalties, wealth, sifarish, political influence, overt bribery, etc. Even the best of our competition examinations don't accurately assess merit. Take the case of the IITs, where admissions are dominated by candidates from privileged families who can afford to send them to the coaching centres of Kota in Rajasthan for long months at the expense of lakhs of rupees. The IIT entrance examination only partly tests the aptitude or intelligence of a candidate.

Opponents of OBC reservations in institutions of higher education are trying to drum up a campaign, at least a muscular show of opposition, in order to create a Mandal-II situation. In 1990, the anti-Mandal agitation took off at least partly because Mr V.P. Singh's move was seen as an attempt to puncture the BJP's mandir platform. The BJP backed the violent anti-Mandal protests, and the Congress too clandestinely supported them. The present reservations-for-OBCs proposal is not a defensive or reactive counter-move. Not a single party today opposes the Mandal Principle or affirmative action for OBCs. The political edge of 16 years ago is missing. Besides, there's a higher degree of acceptance among many savarnas of the inevitability (if not the desirability) of efforts to bring Dalits and OBCs into the mainstream and create social opportunity for them. The "Forward March of the Backwards" is a reality. Thus, the present anti-Mandal sentiment is unlikely to move in a massive way from cyberspace to the streets.

It'd be interesting to see how the Congress reacts to the anti-reservations protest. The OBCs are the one constituency whose support has eluded the party. If it hesitates and vacillates on the reservations issue, OBCs will continue to spurn the Congress as a political option. If, however, the Congress sticks firmly to its pro-quota stand, it can hope to win some OBC support and score against opponents like the regional parties, the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party. The issue isn't politics alone. At its core is social justice. All believers in social justice must take a stand on reservations.

«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥««¤»¥«¤»§«¤» This is ZESTCaste whose members watch India's painful journey to society's de-casteisation. Members are encouraged to post messages to ZESTCaste@yahoogroups.com If you got this mail as a forward, subscribe to ZESTCaste by sending a blank mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] OR, if you have a Yahoo! ID, by visiting http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join Get all ZESTCaste mails sent out in a span of 24 hours in a single mail. Subscribe to the daily digest version by sending a blank mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED], OR, if you have a Yahoo! Id, change your settings at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join ==theZESTcommunity====================================== [1] ZESTCurrent: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCurrent/ [2] ZESTEconomics: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTEconomics/ [3] ZESTGlobal: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTGlobal/ [4] ZESTMedia: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/ [5] ZESTPoets: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTPoets/ [6] ZESTCaste: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/ [7] ZESTAlternative: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTAlternative/ [8] TalkZEST: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TalkZEST/

YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS

Visit your group "ZESTCaste" on the web.
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

[ZESTCaste] In Defence of OBC Reservations (Opinion)

Reply via email to