SC ST RESERVATIONS IN INDIA

I think the idea of reservations to select communities in India was initiated by Dr. B R Ambedkar through the constitution of India soon after independence to India from the British rulers. Those days, the people belonging to those communities, who are labeled as SC and ST classes of Indian society, were treated inhumanly by most of the communities labeled as Other Communities. I believe Ambedkar desired these reservations to be implemented for SC and ST Communities for a period of 10 years only believing that a considerable change can be brought in the lives of these people during that time. However, this system of reservations is still in effect in India. The following are the reasons for its extension year after year.

1. SC and ST communities got accustomed to the culture of reservations for some years. If they are dropped down from that cradle of comfort and happiness, by any political party, contesting elections, during any period of time, it partly contributes to their defeat ultimately. So, because political power and related privileges are more important for any political party in any country like India, Indian politicians never thought of banning reservation system in India during the last 50 years.

2. SC and ST communities developed a sense of unity and collective struggle for their comforts and happiness over a period of time largely because of their education and financial growth. They formed into associations and unions across places in India. Doing something against any policy meant for their comfort is like directly fighting with fire and mire. So, nobody is interested in indulging in their affairs.

These SC and ST reservations are causing a lot of unrest and disappointment in India. The following are some of these problems briefly.

1. Since there are reservations for the communities of SC and ST in India, many people belonging to these social categories almost stopped taking their lives or professions seriously. From birth to death, they are like adopted children of the Government of India. They can study freely, get any job easily, get promotions comfortably and do anything very easily in comparison to those of other communities. Resultantly they lacked competitive spirit. Hundreds of teachers are working in Indian schools, colleges and universities without much knowledge related to their chosen subjects. Dullards are there even from other communities but the percentage of dullards arising from these communities is always high. This phenomenon of low quality human resources is not prevalent just in teaching profession but any other imaginable profession in India. When inefficient and incompetent staff members abound a department or professional field, naturally the development of that region or the nation concerned gets deeply affected. This is what is happening in India now. I observed such retrograde occurrences in many fields.

2. Since SC and ST community members are being identified and promoted extensively due to the various policies and programs of governments at state and central level, intelligent, hard-working and visionary human resources from other communities are getting disappointed to that extent. An SC or ST candidate is able to reach a prestigious status of job or profession within five years whereas a member of other communities takes at least 20 years to reach the same position or status. This wide difference in the path of development of human resources in India is largely because of reservations to SC and ST. As such, SC and ST community members assumed the status of ‘authorized beggars’ in India when considered from the perspectives of disappointed members of other communities. If I struggle for one hour to have meal in a prestigious hotel, an SC or ST candidate can have it within a minute. T      he government authorized him to have anything before others because they are psychologically, financially and socially backward classes by virtue of their genes or Karma. In this hypothesis, the prestigious hotel is a rare opportunity provided by government. I get it late because the government expects me to await it for any length of time whereas it authorizes ‘the other weaker person’ to have it readily. There is no struggle in his life to get anything but I have to struggle like anything to achieve in this nation. I call him a beggar because he is depending on ‘national income’ for his comforts and happiness, to which I am also contributing largely every financial year, in different kinds of taxes and other ways. There are millions of donors in India contributing to ‘tax income’ directly or indirectly. Governments are spending most of that money to the development and happiness of SC and ST communities because their vote banks must not be disturbed.

3. Once there was untouchability in India based on the theory of Chaathur Varna professed by Manu. Ambedkar thought of avoiding it altogether blessing those communities with the boon of reservations. Now there is no such kind of untouchability in many regions of India but a different one. Now Indians have this tendency towards folks of SC and ST, “It is better if I don’t talk with or touch them in any context because they apply atrocity case against me if I do so”. It does not mean that folks of other communities are not maintaining relations with those of SC and ST but they are always alert on the consequences of their association. SC and ST communities are the children of God (Hari Jan) once as believed and called by Mahatma Gandhi. They despised that title for various reasons. The title they use and prefer now is ‘Dalit’. They like to change their fates and images in contemporary Indian societies changing their ‘identity titles’ but not their attitudes and culture. If they have self-respect, they should not depend on alms thrown by others (the people of India) in the form of reservations. They should compete with others, applying their brains, which are uniformly energized by God. Leaving this universal truth, they are always focusing their energies and movements on the idea of further strengthening reservations exclusively for their communities. Since they penetrated government agencies and departments like cancer during the last 60 years, now they are fighting for reservations in private sector also. It means they chose to live as shameless beggars and insensitive parasites in India forever. They don’t like to improve themselves applying the powers and strengths of their physical and mental qualities. Such perpetual dependence on income and facilities earned by others brought them an ugly image in India during the last few years. Other community members are taking them as detestable and avoidable untouchables now for these valid reasons. If one is living due to my kindness and support, I naturally call him my servant.

4. I wonder to observe the scenario of ‘SC and ST atrocity cases’ in India. In Andhra Pradesh, the Maala and Maadhiga community members are the highest numbers of SC social class. They can have titles for their unions with these community names. They can stage protests anywhere using these public identities. But, I or anybody belonging to other community is not supposed to address them using this community name, publicly or privately. If I do so in any context, it results in “atrocity case against me” because I insulted them. If anybody addresses me as “Kshatriya” or “Raju” or “Raja” or “Varma”, I feel happy and proud about it because it is my community name known to all. This is the case with other communities also. They don’t mind being addressed using their community names. Only SC and ST community members do not like the folks of other communities addressing them using their community names. What does it mean? They think their community names symbolize poverty, backwardness, pain, loss, guilt and so on. So, they remember those notions only when folks of other communities address them so but not if folks of their community do so. What kind of attitude is this? What kind of courts, lawyers and judges do we have in India? All the judges and lawyers in this nation should hang themselves publicly for the kind of felony they introduced in India in the form of “SC and ST atrocity case”. They are there to punish voiceless and helpless Indians but not themselves or the influential ones. They are like dead bodies in Indian judicial system. So, let’s not discuss much about their existence in this corrupt and spoiled nation. I know about many false and fake cases of this order being shot at innocent folks of other communities and the kind of loss and suffering they underwent because of this heinous legal system in India.

5. I wonder to note the kind of reverence and devotion the folks of SC and ST communities have towards Ambedkar in India. You can see the statues of and community buildings named after Ambedkar almost in every SC community area in Andhra Pradesh. They worship him as God because he introduced the shelter of reservations to them in the constitution of India. They can live happily under that category and related privileges. Ambedkar stamped them as ‘permanently disabled social parasites’. Governments treat them as physically and mentally impaired ones by birth and so they look after them with more care and concern than others. Worshipping Ambedkar is like accepting their virtual death publicly as far as SC and ST communities are concerned in India. Ambedkar considered them helpless for some time only but they chose to be so forever accepting reservations for them continuously. Alluri Sita Rama Raju is a member of Kshatriya community but I am not worshipping him. I like to be identified and respected by others based on what I represent as an individual. My strengths and merits should attract others towards me but not my association to the community of that of Alluri Sita Rama Raju, who had been a ferocious and patriotic freedom fighter some years ago. I am not a parasite. I am not depending on government for everything in my life or profession. I am trying to improve myself. I am working to live with self-respect even when I am in a pit of problems and loss. It must be the spirit of every Indian. It must be the spirit of those of SC and ST communities also. When can I see such India where the worth of an individual is identified and appreciated but not their social, regional, linguistic, financial or religious status?

6. There are intellectuals and idealists in SC and ST communities also but they are not appreciated by folks of other communities in India as much as they deserve because the members of other communities stopped thinking about them beyond ‘reservations’. So, my idea would be ‘he achieved all that because of reservations and there is no any actual worth in him as an individual’. This is the curse against all those of SC and ST communities in India now. They have no identity of their own beyond ‘reservations’ tag!

7. I noticed the frustrated girls of other communities marrying SC and ST candidates mostly in Andhra Pradesh during the last few years. They are adopted children of India with strong government protection. Nobody can touch an SC or ST candidate considering their status accorded by Indian courts now. I don’t know whether I should take it as an achievement of these communities or otherwise.

8. The constitution of India is the guide of Indian democracy. Even the syllabus of schoolbooks and related guides published by private business agencies change frequently. There is a lot of change in India compared to the times of Ambedkar. He was right in thinking so about SC and ST communities based on the prevailing social conditions of those days. But, we are wrong in not rewriting many outdated and useless laws and doctrines stated in our constitution even after so many years after independence to India. Reservations are just one outdated concept in our constitution. There are hundreds of such avoidable acts and principles in our big book of democracy. Who changes it outright in tune to the influences of contemporary times, honestly and ideally? When every organ of the governments is corrupt and infested with ministers of dirty characters and stinking political background, when can we see India progressing towards a holy milestone where virtues are respected and vice is punished strictly within days? SC and ST reservations is undoubtedly one of the major factors causing a gamut of problems and unrest in India. It is like a fatal cancer, spreading across India, with dangerous consequences to be faced by all of us. 

As an Indian, dreaming of a stage of evolution of Indians, whereby equal opportunities are provided to all without the biases of caste, religion, region, language or nationality, I think the following ideas and measures help us march towards a brighter future. If we work ideally, we can realize our ideals one day.

1. Reservations of all kinds must be banned in India. Those with potential to learn and improve on their own to reach any position in their lives or professions must be encouraged substantially by governments at all levels honestly. Merit must be the ultimate criterion to respect and promote anybody. If one fails to achieve merit through continuous struggle and passion for it, one remains backwards. That’s it.

2. Reservations can be continued for those who are born with physical or psychological abnormalities or disabilities because we should protect and serve those more, who are not as comfortable as we are in all respects. Old people, widows, victims of natural calamities and wars, and all those suffering from an inevitable disorder or pain, caused by external forces or by an accident, should be cared and looked after by all societies and nations since it is an expression of our humanity towards those, who need it the most. Unfortunately real victims are not getting such solace and relief in India much but cheats and criminals.

3. SC and ST community members should think and work hard to grow psychologically. They should try to get recognition and appreciation based on the knowledge and skills they possess instead of a social image accorded to them by Ambedkar, constitution of India or governments at various levels. They can feel proud only when they achieve something investing their intelligence and hard work in a field.

4. There are many problems in India like poverty, corruption, terrorism and separatism. We should address these problems understanding their root causes as idealists and thinkers but not as businessmen. A businessman solves problems on a temporary basis. We never get rid of them. The present governments are responding and reacting to burning issues like opportunistic businesspersons.

5. All Indians are not alike as far as their financial status is concerned. So, subsidies and other privileges should not be provided to all alike. Most of the budgetary allocations in India are being directed towards institutional and individual thieves. Their objective is to grab huge public money somehow. It can be avoided only when the wrongdoers would be identified immediately and punished very strictly fast.

6. India should not remain as a land of lazy and crazy idiots who do something following the trends created by loafers and cheats. Their knowledge and questioning attitude must be activated to understand who they are and how they should change to improve their lives and this nation ultimately. Such facilities and opportunities must be provided by governments and philanthropists extensively across places.

7. Rulers are daily misguiding people in different ways. As long as politicians and policy makers remain indifferent towards the sustainable progress of their people, a nation does not develop. Corrupt politicians and businesspersons must be killed by radical thinkers and revolutionaries rapidly. Anybody should be scared to indulge in acts of corruption and immorality. We need such extremists in India now very badly.

8. The policies of the governments should not make people into drunkards, smokers, hypocrites, thieves, fraudsters and terrorists but thinkers and idealists. Those with intelligence and self-esteem seldom accept others to guide them out of sympathy. Proud Indians should not expect sympathy and alms from others but opportunities to prove their abilities. Every good Indian should look for such environment in India. As long as Indians think, respond and react like beggars or parasites to persons, challenges and circumstances around them; India does not become a happy and peaceful country.