NEW DELHI, Aug 3: One of the NDA partners and strong BJP allies the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has opposed the Supreme Court verdict permitting sub-classification within the reservation for the Scheduled castes and tribes posted as favoured by the Narendra Modi government.
The party had on Friday posted on the social media that it was not in favour of the Supreme Court verdict allowing sub-classification within the reservation for SCs and STs. The LJP chief and a member of the Modi cabinet Chirag Paswan has said his party would appeal against the order.
Addressing a press conference in Patna on Saturday, Mr Paswan contended that the main basis for the classification of Scheduled Castes was untouchability, which has not been mentioned anywhere in the Supreme Court order and said his party will seek a review.
To a question on the caste census, a demand for which has been raised repeatedly by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the key BJP ally said he was in favour of the enumeration but does not want the findings to be made public.
“The Supreme Court has given a judgment on sub-classification and I don’t want to say anything that can be seen as contempt of court, but we certainly have an objection. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) will file a review petition in the Supreme Court. Let me make it clear that when it comes to SCs, the castes were added to the scheduled category with untouchability as the basis. The basis was never financial or educational. All of these castes endured untouchability in some shape or form,” Mr Paswan said.
“So the concept of reservation within reservation cannot apply to scheduled castes… creamy layer can never apply to scheduled castes because the basis is untouchability. But untouchability is not even mentioned in the Supreme Court observations. Even today, we get to see Dalit grooms being stopped from getting on a horse. Even educated Scheduled Caste people coming from well-to-do families face untouchability,” he argued.
In a post on X on Friday, the handle of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) had pointed to the legacy of Mr Paswan’s father, Ram Vilas Paswan, who was a notable Dalit leader, and requested the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision.
“Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is not in favour of the Supreme Court’s decision on reservation in sub-categories for SC-ST categories. The party’s founder Padma Bhushan Ram Vilas Paswan ji has also been demanding that as long as there is a practice of untouchability against the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the society, there should not be any provision for reservation in sub-categories and creamy layer for SC-ST categories,” the party said. “Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) urges the Supreme Court to reconsider the decision so that discrimination does not arise in the SC-ST society and society cannot be weakened,” it added.
Delivering its verdict on Thursday, a seven-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, had said in its majority judgment that sub-classification was permitted. “The members of SC/ST categories are often unable to climb up the ladder due to the systemic discrimination they face. Article 14 permits sub-classification of caste… Historical and empirical evidence demonstrates that the Scheduled Castes are a socially heterogeneous class,” Chief Justice Chandrachud had said. The Centre had also told the court that it was in favour of sub-classification of SCs and STs as not doing so perpetuates inequality within the reserved categories.
On a question on caste census which has been favoured by the opposition INDIA bloc but disfavoured by the ruling BJP and has also become a topic of heated discussion in the ongoing Parliament session, Mr Paswan said he was in favour of it for framing policies. “I think we should have a caste census. But its findings must not be made public. The data should be used by the government for framing policies,” he said.
(Manas Dasgupta)
