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Union government has appointed a five-member committee of Secretaries to evaluate and work out a way for the equitable distribution of benefits and schemes among over 1,200 scheduled castes across the country.
The Madiga community in Telangana state is struggling since 1994for sub-categorisation among SCs.
It is a larger story
In 2004, the 5-Judge Bench held that once a community is included in the List for Scheduled Castes under Article 341 of the Constitution, they become part of a single larger class of people, and the State did not have the legislative power to create sub-classifications within this single class. However, the Court allowed the practice of sub-classification while referring the question of whether sub-classification was constitutional to a 7-Judge Bench.
When the Punjab Lagislature enacted the Punjab Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes (Reservation in Services) Act, 2006, where Section 4(5) of the Act provided ‘first preference’ to Balmiki and Mazbhi Sikhs for SC reservations. The Punjab & Haryana High Court struck down this provision in 2010, citing the Supreme Court’s decision in E.V. Chinnaiah. When the State went for appeal in 2011 it was referred to a 5-Judge Constitution Bench in 2014.
The 5-Judge Bench Judgment inspired hope in the Madiga community at the time, as they too sought better representation within SC reservations.
The intelligentsia and common man opine that the people of higher end of that group/class are cornering the benefit.
However, there have been no substantive hearings since the case was referred to the 7-Judge Bench.
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Art. 341: Scheduled Castes
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Karnataka is moving towards internal reservation in quota matrix, i.e., reservation among the Scheduled Castes. The State’s Cabinet has decided to recommend to the Centre to insert a new Clause (3) to the Article 341 to the Constitution.
At present, Article 341 (1) & (2) give authority to the government to include or exclude any caste to the existing SC list.
In fact, the previous BJP government in the state, during the last days of its governance, closed the AJ Sadashiva Commission report on internal reservation, which was submitted in 2012. Congress promised during the Assembly elections that it will place this report in the Assembly.
However, now the Congress government plans to more Centre with a demand to amend the Constitution Article 341 by including fresh clause (3) to that effect.
According to the government, the State cannot alter the reservation matrix unless the Constitution amended by including a fresh clause to that effect. Hence, the government is proposing to the Centre to include a fresh clause (3) to the Article 341.
As per the AJ Sadashiva Commission recommendation, the internal reservation divided into four categories – 6% to SC (left), 5.5% to SC (right). 4.5% to touchables (Banjara, Bhovi, Korcha Korma and other) and 1% for other out of total reservation of 17% to SCs.
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