Having failed to find a common factor to define Untouchables and how to expalin the phenomena of the down trodden and the ostracized( I will deal with Ostracism when I discuss how the so-called Caste system and intermarriages, Taboos and criminality), the apologists tried to locate a factor. They found,nay seemingly found, what they were searching for.. Meat eating and Beef eating,! Ambedkar, who is reputed to have written the Constitutions of India single handedly- forget about the facts below, "On the 14 August 1947 meeting of the Assembly, a proposal for forming various committees was presented.[9] Such committees included a Committee on Fundamental Rights, the Union Powers Committee and Union Constitution Committee. On 29 August 1947, the Drafting Committee was appointed, with Dr B. R. Ambedkar as the Chairman along with six other members assisted by a constitutional advisor. These members were Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi (K M Munshi, Ex- Home Minister, Bombay), Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer (Ex- Advocate General, Madras State),N Gopalaswami Ayengar (Ex-Prime Minister, J&K and later member of Nehru Cabinet), B L Mitter (Ex-Advocate General, India), Md. Saadullah (Ex- Chief Minister of Assam, Muslim League member) and D P Khaitan (Scion of Khaitan Business family and a renowned lawyer). The constitutional advisor was Sir Benegal Narsing Rau (who became First Indian Judge in International Court of Justice, 1950–54). Later B L Mitter resigned and was replaced by Madhav Rao (Legal Advisor of Maharaja of Vadodara). Owing to death of D P Khaitan, T T Krishnamachari was chosen to be included in the drafting committee. A Draft Constitution was prepared by the committee and submitted to the Assembly on 4 November 1947. Draft constitution was debated and over 2000 amendments were moved over a period of two years. Finally on 26 Nov. 1949, the process was completed and Constituent assembly adopted the constitution. 284 members signed the document and the process of constitution making was complete'(wiki) had hunted texts to find Meat eating/Beef eating as the criteria and his findings are as under... "In the first place, we have the fact that the Untouchables or the main communities which compose them eat the dead cow and those who eat the dead cow are tainted with untouchability and no others.." " There is really no necessity to enter upon any speculation as to whether beef-eating was or was not the principal reason for the rise of Untouchability. This new theory receives support from the Hindu Shastras. The Veda Vyas Smriti contains the following verse which specifies the communities which are included in the category of Antyajas and the reasons why they were so included L.12-13 “The Charmakars (Cobbler), the Bhatta (Soldier), the Bhilla, the Rajaka (washerman), the Puskara, the Nata (actor), the Vrata, the Meda, the Chandala, the Dasa, the Svapaka, and the Kolika- these are known as Antyajas as well as others who eat cow’s flesh.”
Tag: Reservation Policy
While there has been confusion reigning in on the subject of social divisions,Gandhi, in his own self-styled avatar of one who can and should comment and contribute to any or all social and religious issues,whether it makes sense or not, muddled the waters by calling a group as 'Harijans'. "Harijan (Hindustani: हरिजन (Devanagari), ہریجن (Nastaleeq); translation: "child of God") was a term used by Mohandas Gandhi for Dalits. Gandhi said it was wrong to call people "untouchable", and called them Harijans, which means children of God. It is still in wide use especially in Gandhi's home state ofGujarat.(wiki) As things stood they were confusing; Gandhi added to it by giving a new name Harijan, Child of God as if there were not enough names! What exactly happened is that people increased their vocabulary for a non-existent class. So the terms that are used denote specifically anything and has become a tool in the hands of Politicians to garner votes. There is also a confusion about the terms Untouchability ,Reservations and SC ST.. These Terms are used sa if they are interchangeable. We have seen , to an extent what Untouchability is or is not. More points on this to follow. on this later, What is Reservation? "Reservation in India is a form of affirmative action designed to improve the well-being of backward and under-represented communities defined primarily by their 'caste' (quota-system based on 'gender' or 'religion'). These are laws (both Constitutional and statutory) or merely local rules/regulations/practices (not derived from any Act passed by the Parliament or State-Legislature) wherein a certain percentage of total available vacancies in educational institutes and government jobs are set aside for people from backward communities and others.Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) are the primary beneficiaries of the reservation policies under the Constitution — with the object of ensuring a level playing field.(wiki) That is on a Non existent concept the whole system was devised. There is no clear concept of the yard stick to apply to determine which constitute a SC . As a result whoever can gather muscle strength and crowd can demand inclusion in the Reservation quota. An depending on the exigencies of Political climate the parties as VP Singh did by The Mandal Commission. If there has been a genuine concern for the downtrodden, the yard stick of Economic status would have been fixed. That was not to be, because Politicians would never have had a chance to polarize the polity to garner Votes if they had fixed economic criteria as the factor for extending benefits. In Life there is no equalizer greater than Money. If you are rich or occupy an important position, people flock to you, no body cares about your roots.
If these people have been given reservations so far, why not now? This submission has serious implications, invalidating Reservation system. Looks as though the Reservation Policy is like a Condom to be used whenever necessary and be thrown out once it is used. The difference is the Reservation Policy is Eternally Usable.
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