Monday, July 12, 2010

[ZESTCaste] Re: 'Reserved category docs harassed at MU'

 

These things keep on occuring untill we all unite.

vinit

--- In ZESTCaste@yahoogroups.com, Siddhartha Kumar <mailsiddhartha.k@...> wrote:
>
> http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Lucknow/Reserved-category-docs-harassed-at-MU/articleshow/6152963.cms
>
> 'Reserved category docs harassed at MU'
> TNN, Jul 11, 2010, 01.37am IST
>
> LUCKNOW:

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[ZESTCaste] Villagers protest against a Dalit cook in school

 

http://news.oneindia.in/2010/07/12/villagers-protested-against-a-dalit-cook.html

Villagers protest against a Dalit cook in school

Monday, July 12, 2010, 15:43 [IST]

Lucknow, Jul 12: Angry parents rioted outside a school in Uttar
Pradesh when they came to know that the cook who prepared food for
school children was a dalit in Ramabai Nagar district.

A newly constructed government middle school in Ramabai Nagar district
of Uttar Pradesh, refused to eat the food cooked by Shanti, a Dalit
cook in the school.

This school has nearly 191 students, in which the majority is of upper
castes students. When the students came to known that Shanti is a
dalit, they complained to their parents.

Angry Villagers came out and attacked the administration with stones.
Mean while the school principal Maan Singh, fled from the spot.

"We don't want any mid day meal or any education, where the food is
prepared by a dalit. This is against our culture," said an angry
villager.

"These children will go out to study in other schools like even if
they get food there or not, but they will not study here," said Biru
Dubey, an angry villager.

A case has been registered. Shanti, a Dalit cook was hired by the
school only 4 ago.

According to the 2001 census Uttar Pradesh holds more number of SC and
dalit population. Even after have dalit lady, Mayawati as CM for the
fourth time in Up, such shameful incident has occurred.

OneIndia News

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[ZESTCaste] Maya begins overhaul of party set-up

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Maya-begins-overhaul-of-party-set-up/645207

Maya begins overhaul of party set-up
Sanjay Singh Posted online: Mon Jul 12 2010, 04:05 hrs
Lucknow : Upper castes, OBCs to be given key posts; MLAs, MLCs to be
included in local decisions

To ensure the presence of upper caste and OBC leaders in key posts at
the district-level the Bahujan Samaj Party has made several changes in
its organisational structure.

Recently, Chief Minister Mayawati had dissolved all party committees
and asked senior functionaries like zonal coordinators to select
office bearers who can ensure a good show for the party in the coming
assembly elections.

The party is now overhauling its district units — and one of the key
changes is to revive the post of the vice-president there.

"The post existed about a year ago. Now, the party leadership has
decided to restore it," said a BSP leader. The district units will
have four key posts — president, vice-president, treasurer and office
secretary.

According to the new system, the posts of vice-president or treasurer
can be given to upper castes, Muslims or the OBCs.

"It all depends on the caste profile of the district," a leader said.
"If the district has a good number of Muslim population, the party's
vice president can become from the Muslim community."

If an upper caste member gets the post of vice-president, the
treasurer can be selected from the OBC community. "In case the
treasurer is from the Brahmin community, the post of vice-president
can be given to the OBC community."

The party, however, will continue its practice of selecting the its
district unit presidents from the SC community. "Members from Pasi,
Dhobi and Dhanuk communities will also become the party president at
the district level," the leader said.

A decision has also been made to accommodate MLAs and MLCs at the
district level as member of the executive committee. The CM has given
clear instructions to zonal coordinators to constitute district units
with their consent.

"The step is meant to empower MLAs in party affairs at the district
level," said a legislator. "Earlier, the legislators were not directly
associated with the district units. They were supposed to be
communicated about the party's decision by the zonal coordinators."

The party has also started appointing its members as "Zila Prabhari".

"A Zila Prabhari is virtually a replacement of the Lok Sabha
Prabhari," the legislator said. He is supposed to assist the district
president.

Party insiders say Mayawati's chief focus now is organisation. "She
wants to gear up the party's district-level organisation before
September. Thereafter, she will unfold her next plan for the assembly
elections," a leader said.


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[ZESTCaste] Mayawati betrayed mentor Kanshi Ram, says his brother

 

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_mayawati-betrayed-mentor-kanshi-ram-says-his-brother_1408502

Mayawati betrayed mentor Kanshi Ram, says his brother
PTI

Sunday, July 11, 2010 23:09 IST

Shimla: Dalbara Singh, younger brother of late Kanshi Ram, today
accused BSP chief Mayawati of betraying her mentor and party founder
late Kanshi Ram by abandoning his ideals.

"Mayawati has forgotten the ideals of BR Ambedakar and Kanshi Ram. All
those leaders who contributed in the formation of the party have been
neglected by the party chief," he told reporters here.

Singh, president of Bahujan Sangarsh Party, said the political outfit
was floated in 2009 to unite all those in BSP who were "neglected and
humiliated" by Mayawati.

He said the party has been allotted 'road-roller' as its symbol and
would contest elections in states like Bihar and West Bengal in the
run up to the key assembly polls in UP.

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[ZESTCaste] No Dalit cook for students in this UP school

 

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/no-dalit-cook-for-students-in-this-up-school-37033

No Dalit cook for students in this UP school
NDTV Correspondent, Updated: July 12, 2010 15:46 IST

Lucknow: Another shameful incident has brought the caste inequalities
in an otherwise modern India to the fore. Parents rioted outside a
school in Uttar Pradesh after discovering that the cook who prepared
food for their children under the mid-day meal scheme was a Dalit.

The Government middle school in the newly created Ramabai Nagar
district of Uttar Pradesh has 191 students, nearly half of them who
belong to so-called upper castes refused to eat food cooked in school.

Shanti, the Dalit cook was hired by the school 3-4 days ago. When
children found out she was a Dalit, they complained to their parents.

Furious parents came out to ensure the school does not forget the
age-old caste divisions. Fearing trouble, the school principal fled
from the spot.

"These children will go out to study in other schools like even if
they get food there or not, but they will not study here," said Biru
Dubey, an angry villager.

Villagers have even forced the district administration to toe their
line and attacked the police jeeps with stones.

"We have not received many application forms that is why we are giving
them 3 more days. If there are any more women who want to apply, they
can send in their applications," said Govind Raju, District
Magistrate, Ramabai Nagar.

In Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, Dalits comprise over
20% of the population and it's shameful that such an incident has
occurred in a state ruled by a Dalit chief minister.

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[ZESTCaste] SP tries to wean brahmins from BSP

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/national/sp-tries-wean-brahmins-bsp-012

SP tries to wean brahmins from BSP

July 12th, 2010

The war over brahmin votes in Uttar Pradesh is intensifying.
The Samajwadi Party has decided to hold conventions in all districts
of the state to "awaken brahmins and make them aware of the
anti-brahmin policies being pursued by the ruling Bahujan Samaj
Party".
According to Mr Manoj Pandey, state president of the SP's Brahmin
Mahasabha, the Mayawati government has been deliberately sidelining
brahmin icons and leaders while it has been promoting dalit icons
through various parks and memorials.
"The BSP talks of 'Sarvjan' but has it installed even one statue of
any brahmin icon? In fact, statues of upper caste icons like Acharya
Mahavir Prasad Dwiwedi, Pandit Suryakant Tripathi Nirala and Chandra
Shekhar Azad are crying for maintenance and upkeep. This proves that
the BSP government wants to take brahmin votes but ignore the
community and its icons," he said. The SP Brahmin Mahasabha will be
holding conventions in Sultanpur, Barabanki, Kanpur, Kanpur Dehat —
now Ramabai Nagar, Haidergarh, Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Gonda
and Mirzapur this month and other districts will be covered over the
next two months.
The Samajwadi Party obviously wants to cash in on the reported
disillusionment of brahmins with the BSP.
"Brahmins close to one particular leader may have benefited in the
Mayawati regime but the community, as a whole, has been humiliated and
neglected. Even in the bureaucracy, it is only one set of brahmins
officers who have got key postings while others languish in the wings.
This indicates that the BSP has not been able to shed its anti-upper
caste mentality and all this talk of Sarvjan replacing Bahujan is only
designed to mislead the people," says another brahmin MLA of the
party.
The BSP, on the other hand, has been going out of its way lately to
keep the brahmin community in good humour. Though the party has also
been making an all out effort to woo the Thakurs and Vaishyas and
expand its vote base, it is taking all care not to irk the brahmins
who had helped it form government in UP in 2007.
"No matter how hard the SP tries, it will not be able to make inroads
into our brahmin vote base," says a brahmin minister in the BSP
government.
Everyone in the community knows how SP has treated its brahmin leaders
like Janeshwar Misra and Rama Shankar Kaushik and no one will be
fooled. We are also trying to consolidate our base among brahmins so
that there is no erosion," says a brahmin minister in the BSP
government.


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[ZESTCaste] Dalit woman humiliated and victimized in Allahabad

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_6100.shtml

Dalit woman humiliated and victimized in Allahabad
By Vidya Bhushan Rawat
Online Journal Contributing Writer


Jul 12, 2010, 00:19

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Her one eye is completely turned red at the moment, as the upper caste
goons threw slippers at her. The entire body bears the brunt of the
brahmanical violence on July 3 at the Sheetalpur Tikari village under
Tharwai police station in Allahabad. Her clothes were torn and the
goons tried to pee on her mouth, but the police kept her in the police
station for 24 hours and tried to deny anything like that happened.

This is the story of Lalli Devi, 45, who was constructing a house
allotted to her under the Indira Awas Yojna when Devi Sharan Mishra, a
local money lender and well connected person came along with some
other members and demolished the house. As Lalti tried to reason with
the man, she, her husband Gulab and her son aged 12 years were beaten
mercilessly by these goons. Her huts where she used to sleep and cook
were completely razed to the ground.

'It was the incident at around 8 am on Saturday when I was cleaning my
chulha,' said Lalli. 'Eight members led by Devi Mishra just entered in
with lathis and thrashed me after beating my husband and son. Sir,
they put me on ground, put their feet on my chest and tried to pee on
my mouth. I resisted but they tore my clothes, hit at me and threw
slippers at me which hurt my eyes. It is aching now and has turned
red. I am still not able to breathe properly,' said Lalti when I
visited her. There is no place for them to sleep. It's rainy season
and given the nature of our villages, Lalli and her family have no way
to save themselves from the fury of nature.

According to police officials, there was a land feud between the two
which was in the court and there was a stay on it. When Lalli Devi was
constructing her house, given to her under Indira Awas Yojna, Devi
Mishra and his gangsters demolished it and also razed her other huts
to ground, beat up her husband and thrashed her when she reacted. She
was humiliated and her body bears the mark of the thrashing.

This nondescript village resembles the old structural villages of
India, which Baba Saheb Ambedkar described as a 'den of feudalism,
nepotism and corruption.' The village in darkness. The village has
five families of Yadavs, 10 families of Patels (OBCs), 25-30 families
of Passies (Dalits) and nearly 20 families of Brahmins. Nearly 10
families belong to Telis i.e. Guptas and one family belongs to
Dhaikar, a Dalit community which is engaged in bamboo weaving work.
They make bamboo baskets and other related things. And seeing the
tyranny of the caste system in the village, none of the communities
came to her rescue. The Brahmins, as master manipulators are using all
techniques to disturb her. They are in the power structure everywhere.
She is alone. The Kurmis near her do not feel for her; the Pasis are
known to resist yet not a single person is ready to speak. The terror
of these Brahmin is so high that a Dalit woman says, 'Why do you speak
to us. Are you not able to see our faces and judge as what is the
situation here?' Lalli Devi know this situation as she says, 'Most of
the people saw me being dragged on the ground and my cloths torn but
nobody wants to speak as they fear the powerful.'

A police Jeep is patrolling in front of her house. She went to the
police station to lodge her complaint, but she was not only hounded
but kept at the police station for 24 hours. Daily Amar Ujala and
Hindustan reported it on July 6 and later the local news channels
started running the story on their prime time which suggested that
Lalli Devi was attacked and her clothes were torn but police deny she
was paraded in the village. However, the question is whether hiding
things make the grave incident less grave? For the police officials,
it is like any other land dispute. They term it as a fight between two
leaders for lording over the Dalits and other communities in the
region. The Brahmin politics of Allahabad is well known to be
explained here. But for the information of the readers, the member of
Parliament is a former pracharak of BJP but now his 'heart' is changed
and hence is a man of 'social justice' in the BSP, though his
brother's heart still beats for BJP and hence he is MLA from that
party. The other brother has just achieved victory for MLC on BSP
ticket. None of them had visited so far. But the leaders from other
political parties are also visiting her. I do not know but Lalli Devi
tells that she was given support of Rs 3000/- by one politician and Rs
1000/- by the other. That is the cost of the dignity and respect of a
Dalit woman in India.

The police officers on duty are mostly agreeing that she was beaten up
and 'sab kuchch galat hua' but they are not ready to accept that 'her
dignity' was attacked. When I ask them whether any case has been filed
under the Prevention of SC-ST Atrocities Act, they answer in the
affirmative, but that has to be verified at later stage and action
need to be seen. The culprit Devi Mishra's supporters charge that the
Lalli Devi is working on behalf of village Sarpanch Yogesh Tiwari who
functions as a Sarpanch pati, defecto Sarpanch of the village.

Antecedents of the culprits

Most of the villagers say that the Brahmins play power politics in the
village and that Devi Mishra is a moneylender. As we know well that in
Uttar-Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, the moneylenders suck your blood more
than even the corporate. Here the interest rates are exorbitantly
high. According to the villagers, it is according to the 'favor' done
by the moneylenders but nonetheless it starts from a minimum interest
of 5 percent per month but normally is 10 percent month. Most of the
villagers actually mortgage their papers and the problem is that at
the time of receiving the money, they do not really bother to check
the contents of the agreement and later are trapped in the game and,
therefore, lose their land or other immoveable assets.

Devi Mishra's supporters say that Lalli Devi does not own that land on
which she was constructing her Indira Awas, as the land legally
belongs to him as he bought it, while Lalti Devi says that her
father-in-law was a habitual drunk and nobody ever took him seriously.
She also says that her husband is not well and has hearing problem.
The fact is that she lives in the Abadi, i.e. human settlement side
which is never recorded, and on the ground the grave reality is that
Mishra and his goons assaulted her. Even if everything that Lalli Devi
was saying is wrong, that never justifies the grave violence inflicted
on her by the arrogant brahmanical forces of the region and the
dubious role played by the local police which were unable to arrest
the culprits.

Though nobody is verifying things yet, some of the Dalits, on the
condition of anonymity, informed that Devi Mishra is a junior engineer
with some government department. According to them, he does not go to
his office. Probably, it is a common decease in UP and elsewhere that
the upper caste benami officers. It is up to the government to think
over it and take action against him if it is proved that he is a
government servant. Not only should his job records be produced to the
court but also all those who connived with him in this misdeed should
be arrested.

The village and the lonely woman

As Baba Saheb Ambedkar said, the caste system has never provided any
unity of the oppressed and hence annihilation of caste is essential
for social justice but how and who would be interested in it as
annihilation of the caste itself meant elimination of the brahmanical
social order? This hierarchical structure keeps people isolated and it
is the biggest obstacle in the unity of the oppressed people
ghettoized in their own shells. Here, also, if one sees the isolation
of Lalli Devi, one only realizes how prophetic Ambedkar was in his
analysis of our 'great' 'villages' which has ascending order of
respect and descending order of contempt as, the community that Lalli
belongs to does not serve any political purpose for those for whose
vote matters the most.

Just adjacent to her huts are people who are not ready to share her
pain and agony. Women are inside their houses. In the local PDS shop,
I meet an old man who refuses to answer my question. I ask him, Baba,
just tell me what happened to Lalli and this man says 'sab karmo ka
phal hai,' everything is the result of her karma. I ask Baba, what is
your caste and this man informs me that he is a 'Kurmi' which is a
powerful backward community. Yes, she does not belong to your caste
and hence you are not bothered about her, I scold him. Near him, is a
lonely woman whose brick house is just adjacent to Lalli. Yes, Uma
Devi is a Teli by caste. A single woman, she narrates her plight as
how her land was snatched and converted by the powerful Brahmin in the
village and she was thrown here. Uma is a lonely woman, left by her
husband and rejected by her family, she lives a life of pain and
agony. She does not speak. The villagers speak for her as if she
cannot speak. The cruelty of village life is reflected in the eyes of
Uma. Even a child can scold her in front of everyone to the 'delight'
of all the elders.

She shares the pain of Lalli but only says that she was not at home.
Everyone is speaking the same language of not being there. How is it
possible in the village, where you can see huge crowds on a small
issue, that a woman is being robbed, molested and none of them has
seen it? The police will work for a few days and after some time the
'situation' comes back to normalcy. Villagers know it well that they
will have to respond again and as there is no 'witness' to the case,
Lalli Devi may not get justice. The only possibility is that a few
politicians and administration officials would try to 'compensate' her
honor in a few thousands rupees. But Lalli Devi says, 'Sir, I was born
here. My parents and grandparents lived her for so long. I cannot
leave this place. This is my home. I want to die here only.' But the
pressure is on her to leave as none is ready to cooperate with her and
we all know that after several years the judiciary would not be able
to give her justice. Lalli Devi knows that politicians are coming;
media is highlighting the issue but just for a few days. After that
she will remain alone along with her husband and a child. 'Politicians
promise a lot but I know they never come back,' says Lalli.

While Lalli says she did not face any caste based discrimination but
the fact is isolation and ghettoisation is a way of life in the
villages and an accepted norm. As her opponents are charging her as a
close associate with Pradhan, she says categorically that she neither
knows the Sarpanch nor wants to get involved in their activity. How
will be interested in us? she asks.

As I move around in the Pasi locality, a lot of sign boards bear the
slogans of NREGS, promising a bright future for the villagers. 'Why
should you leave village when the work is at home,' is one slogan. The
question one must ask these people is why migration is increasing. Is
it just for work or it is for dignity also? What do we expect from
people like Lalli Devi? Will she be allowed to live a life peacefully
in the village by the feudal structure?

There is scarcity of water in the village. In the hamlet of Pasis, for
over 25 families, they have just one water connection. So it is war
among the poor. One family pays Rs 18/- a month apart from the basic
investment of Rs 3000/- yet no water on time. 'Of course, water will
be here for a few days as Netas come here and TV cameras roam around,
but once things die down, nothing happens. It will again be the same
politics of Mishras and Tiwaris, says a villager. None of them have
land and yet less than 10 percent of them have the BPL card. It is
shameful, says an old man, that all the landless people have an APL
card. As far as the job card is concerned, they do not get any work.
Poor people do not even know that they have to apply for the job. They
feel it is a favor by the village Pradhan or some political party.

Conclusion

Lalli Devi's honor was violated at Sheetalpur Tikari. Her house has
been demolished. Even the police admit that she was beaten
mercilessly, though they do not agree with everything that Lalti Devi
speak. The issue is much bigger here. Is the crime against her less
serious? What are the police doing. Have they really taken
investigation to a conclusion? How will it destroy the nexus of the
money lending upper castes who are illegally grabbing lands of the
Dalits in these areas? Our experience shows that the police and
authorities try to shut your mouth by compensating the person. They
know well that after some days the issue would close down.

Human Rights are meant for each citizen of the country. A truly
democratic governance structure should ensure that the most
marginalized and tiniest minority must feel safe and secure. Our
villages do not provide that confidence where the women, like Lalli
Devi, feel secure and can live a life with freedom and dignity. The
goons can come any time and assault her and our structure tries to
compensate it in a few thousand rupees while condoning the racist
nature of our society. Though the police cannot fight such violence,
they can best do the work impartially and take the case to a logical
conclusion. It will take a long time. How can we ensure justice to
Lalli Devi? Can our Human Rights bodies take any action against the
authorities and follow it up? But if it takes years to get justice,
then how will Lalli and her family remain free and safe from the
violence of the village and that of the goons? Will the police act
against their own officers who denied anything happened and Lalli was
lying?

Indian villages need radical changes. India's administration needs
bigger changes so that the democratic thought can flourish and women
like Lalli Devi do not live in constant fear and humiliation. Can we
grow and ensure that each one in the country lives in dignity and
self-respect? Right now, we can only wait for justice for Lalli. Hope
the Uttar-Pradesh authorities are listening and take swift action.

Vidya Bhushan Rawat lives in Dehli, India, and works as a full-time
human rights defender. He has made several documentaries and also
written books on the issues of human rights, Dalits, women and
minorities. He also publishes the blog Manuski : Humanism for All.


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[ZESTCaste] Differentiating Between Forward and Backward Castes

http://bihartimes.com/viewersvoice/2010/July/vv232.html

Differentiating Between Forward and Backward Castes

Indra R Sharma

 "Caste identity breaks the society, Bihari-ism unites." Nitish had
made this statement. Was it a political statement or the real wish of
the Chief Minister? Should I expect ushering in of a bright beginning
of political assistance in reducing the smell of the caste-bias in
every response from the politicians and also sometimes the people of
the region?
From the mails that I receive from the persons of Bihar's origin
living in different states of India and abroad, everyone is concerned
about the developments in Bihar. They celebrate all the good news
coming in media, but get morose with disturbing news too. And in most
cases, the politicians as class are responsible for that.
The overwhelming caste-based approach in everything that happens in
the state is shocking. For example, when the state president of the
party of Chief Minister resigned, he was replaced by a person of the
same caste, presumably to keep the people of the caste in good humour.
And as reported, leaders of the landed upper castes, cutting across
the party lines, met in Patna on Wednesday to discuss the issues
related to Bataidari (Sharecropping) Bill. They decided to organize a
Kisan Mahapanchayat at Gandhi Maidan on May 2. I don't understand if
the bill will not trouble the landowners of other castes who are
pretty big in numbers. So why didn't the organizers call the
representatives of landholders of all castes to participate?
Is it not unfortunate while the country is on fire in most of its
corner, be it Kashmir, Manipur or Chattisgarh, some very senior
cabinet ministers in New Delhi are debating and as I opine wasting
their precious time on the issue of having a census on caste basis or
not?
It is unfortunate but nothing can be done. I know many sections of the
society are still very backward, and the reason for the same is only
the lack of education. The leadership of the region over the last six
decades has failed to understand the importance of education.
Unfortunately, the so-called leaders of schedule castes or so called
other backward class never understood nor attempted to bring about the
revolution through education. Many a times, I and perhaps many hold a
view that these leaders believed in the advantage in keeping the
communities ignorant without education to keep their dominance in
politics.
But my focus here is different. Let me emphasize that there is no
difference between in other backward classes (OBC) and so called
forward classes in the region, if one looks in depth in their quality
of living, affluence level and even culture and values. I firmed up
this view during my last visit to my village, when I happen to move
around doing some research. Around my village that is predominantly of
forward class, there are villages in which some are dominated by the
forward class but in many, the people of other backward classes (OBC)
are dominant. The dominance relates to the land holding of the
village. In each of the village, the major landholding is with the
families of different castes, and not necessarily forward classes. Let
someone take an unbiased study of the living standard and style of the
families. There is hardly much difference between those of the forward
and OBC caste. Rather in many cases, on average OBC families may today
be better off because of the traditional social taboos of restricting
oneself to only the profession of the ancestors.
However, the families with no land holding, irrespective of castes but
particularly dalits and mahadalits, need preferential treatment. Even
the families of OBC and forward castes need government support as the
financial conditions of a large number of them are miserable. With the
abolition of the zamindari back in 1950s and breaking up of joint
families in almost all castes and communities, the land holding on
average is hardly between 2 to 5 acres. It is really difficult to make
good living with that amount of land, particularly where the farming
is totally dependent on the timely rain and monsoon.
Perpetuating the reservation or adding some more may be a political
solution, but certainly not the best solution to bring about equity in
society and improving the relationships between various classes and
categories.
Instead of waiving off the loans, the government must work extensively
on irrigation projects small and big conserving all the water and its
use and for ensured rural electrification for every household who can
afford for improving employability through individual
entrepreneurships.
Every child must be ensured the traditional or job oriented (skill
building) education to have employability.
The overall cost to the nation because of the dismal healthcare
infrastructure is huge. The government and the private sector must
pour huge investment. Many families even today spend everything in its
possession to save life from deceases and remain in perpetual poverty.
But the most important is that all the actions must generate and
improve the fellowship and brotherhood among the all people, and
nothing should be done that is divisive, for example caste census.
Let few regional leaders not make mess of this great nation.


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[ZESTCaste] Legal mechanism to rein in khaps by mid-August

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Legal-mechanism-to-rein-in-khaps-by-mid-August/articleshow/6155996.cms

Legal mechanism to rein in khaps by mid-August

Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN, Jul 12, 2010, 02.15am IST

NEW DELHI: Law Commission is soon expected to come out with
comprehensive suggestions on a legal mechanism to deal with
khap-dictated honour killings.

The report of the commission headed by Justice P V Reddy, expected by
mid-August, could come to the rescue of the UPA government, given the
division of opinion within the Union Cabinet over the efficacy of home
ministry's bill suggesting amendments to the Indian Penal Code to rein
in khaps.

Justice Reddy told TOI that the issue was referred to the commission
some time back but it was taken up in right earnest only after he
assumed charge as chairperson in April. "We have studied the issue
from various angles, including the social aspect, and have held wide
consultations with public bodies," he said.

Asked about the legal issues being deliberated by the commission,
Justice Reddy said, "It is basically two -- whether an amendment to
the existing penal laws would serve the purpose or a wholesome
standalone law is needed to deal with the menace." He refused to
elaborate further.

In fact, the issue being deliberated by the commission was the same
that created a debate within the Cabinet on Thursday. While the home
ministry's bill proposed amendment to Section 300 of IPC to insert an
additional clause "fifthly" to include all khap participants in a
murder decision to be liable for the crime of honour killing, legal
eagle Kapil Sibal had a different take.

According to Sibal, the issue was not as simple as just amending
Section 300 to have an additional clause, which in reality could be a
tool for harassment of innocent people by police. He said the IPC
already provided for making a person a co-accused in a murder case if
he had been always a party to the planning and conspiracy to a
killing, thus the proposed amendment was redundant.

However, Sibal and other colleagues suggested that one could explore
the need for a separate law to specifically deal with honour killings
on the lines of Prevention of Corruption Act. The issue was then
referred to a group of ministers (GoM) for wider consultation.

Justice Reddy said the commission had already held wide-ranging
consultations and crystallised certain views. "Now we have to
carefully examine the contents of all these deliberations before
giving our report to the government. It will take some time," he said.

dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com

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[ZESTCaste] Time to review 27% OBC quota in education?

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Time-to-review-27-OBC-quota-in-education/articleshow/6155833.cms

Time to review 27% OBC quota in education?

Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN, Jul 12, 2010, 02.35am IST

NEW DELHI: This is the third academic year after Supreme Court on
April 10, 2008, upheld the legislation providing 27% reservation for
other backward castes (OBCs) in admissions to central educational
institutions.

The apex court had excluded the creamy layer from benefiting under the
27% quota and said unfilled seats would be go back to the general
category. The government had also assured the court that general
category seats would not shrink as the institutions would create more
seats to absorb the reservation requirement.

We can discount the chaos of filling the seats created for OBCs under
the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admissions) Act,
2007, in 2008-09 as teething problem despite the admission process
getting extended till October. However, the data for the next two
academic years gives an impression that the quantum of 27% may have
been far in excess of what was needed to meet the demographic demand.

In 2009-10, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) transferred 83 of the
413 seats reserved for OBCs to the general category. Of the 10,183 OBC
seats in Delhi University, there were no takers for nearly 2,300
seats.

This year too, DU is witnessing a similar story. University officials
are fearing that nearly 6,000 seats may get transferred to general
category for want of suitable candidates from backward classes,
despite the cut-off being 10 marks less than the last general category
candidate taking admission in the institution.

The general category may not be complaining. But the increased number
of seats will definitely put pressure on the already stretched
faculty, library facilities and allied educational resources available
with the institution.

This is what happens when the political class, without any scientific
survey, fixes quota without identifying what constitutes backwardness
in the social and educational maze. The Supreme Court had repeatedly
warned against this, right from Indra Sawhney judgment in 1992 till
the Ashoka Kumar Thakur judgment in 2008.

Socially and educationally backward classes (SEBCs), who are entitled
for the 27% reservation in government-run colleges and institutions,
are at present determined solely on the basis of the backwardness of
their caste. In both these judgments relating to OBC reservation in
employment and admission, the apex court had stressed that caste could
not be the sole criterion for identifying the social and educational
backwardness of a person.

So, without a proper identification of SEBCs, their number was
guesstimated and a percentage of seats was kept reserved for them. The
apex court realised it but was hampered without contradicting data to
fault the socially affirmative action. That is why it suggested
periodic review of the quantum of quota as well as the necessity of
reservation in admission for SEBCs.

"There must be periodic review as to the desirability of continuing
operation of the statute -- Central Educational Institutions
(Reservations in Admission Act, 2007. This shall be done once every
five years," the five-judge constitution Bench had said in Ashoka
Thakur case.

Is the government prepared to review working of the 2007 law? If not,
then it could utilise the opportunity provided by the census exercise
presently underway to determine the exact number of persons to be
included in the socially and educationally backward category to help
work out the percentage of reservation needed.

dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com

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