Now, quota for upper castes

​New Delhi: In a landmark move just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government has decided to give 10 per cent reservation in jobs and admissions into higher education institutions for economically backward persons among the upper castes. This was approved by the Union Cabinet on Monday. The reservation will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation and the government will amend Articles 15 and 16 - which are on discrimination and equal opportunity - of the Constitution to implement it, reports said.

"The reservation will be given to those economically backward poor people who are not availing the benefit of reservation as of now," sources said. “In fact, the government is aiming to introduce the legislation on Tuesday on the last day of the current leg of the winter session of Parliament,” the sources added.

Though similar suggestions have been made by political leaders like Mayawati and Ramdas Athavale in the past, this is the first substantial move to take legislative route to provide for this change. An attempt to provide for 10 per cent reservation to poor or economically backward among other sections during the Narasimha Rao government’s tenure to offset political backlash against the implementation of Mandal Commission recommendations was nullified by the Supreme Court in the early 90s.

“Narasimha Rao government’s attempt was thrown out as it violated the basic structure of 50 per cent ceiling,” confided a highly-placed source revealing that “this time this basic structure is changed to provide for reservation up to 60 per cent”. “Additionally, a new criterion of economically weaker section as eligible for reservation will be provided for through the Constitution Amendment,” confided the source to stress how the government move is conscious of keeping its legislative move immune from legal challenges. The move will require amending Article 16 of the Constitution to provide for reservation for economically weaker sections.

Unlike the reservation for SC/ST/OBCs, caste is not going to be a criterion for eligibility to the reservation under this new provision. In fact, the sources revealed that the government has a plan to delineate the economically weaker section (EWS) for avoiding confusion. The sources said the EWS category will be defined as families with income (includes agricultural income as well as from profession) below Rs 8 lakh per annum, possessing agricultural land below five acres and residential house below 1,000 square feet.

As for urban areas, those with residential plot below 100 yards in notified municipality or residential plot below 200 yards in the non-notified municipal area. The decision comes at a time when there were substantives reports from the ground from across the country, particularly from northern Indian states that upper castes were unhappy over the way the government had overruled the Supreme Court verdict on the SC/ST Act.

The BJP faced an upper caste backlash in the recent Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. In several constituencies, NOTA numbers were higher than margin of defeat of BJP candidates. The Modi government's decision to provide reservation to economically weaker classes (and castes) will change that situation and once again make, perhaps with greater vigour, upper castes gravitate towards the BJP.

The OBC, SC and ST communities will not be hurt because their share in reservation in government jobs of 27 percent, 15 percent and 7.5 percent respectively (total of 49.5 percent) will not be touched as the government is proposing to amend the Constitution and make relevant rules to give additional reservation of 10 percent to economically weaker sections in upper castes.