Prasad stresses need for thorough study of Reservation in India

Mysuru: Emphasising the need for a thorough study on the practice of reservation in India, Chamarajanagar MP and senior Dalit leader V Srinivasa Prasad on Friday called for the constitution of a committee to assess the benefits of the system.
Prasad, who attended a seminar on ‘Journey of Reservation in India’ organised by the BR Ambedkar Chair, and the BR Ambedkar Research and Extension Centre of University of Mysore (UoM), opined that the core idea behind reservation had, in the recent years, been rendered weak. “I am vehemently opposed to the idea of reservation under the existing system of reservation,” he added.
The senior leader said that there was no provision in the Constitution that permitted allowing reservation within the system. “However, the idea has taken hold leading to a lot of confusion among the people. It is also sad that the list of communities under Scheduled Castes / Scheduled Tribes (SCs/STs) keeps getting longer, with more castes being added under these categories. In some states, leaders of a few communities are lobbying for inclusion in these lists. The Constitution is very clear on the subject. Those belonging to communities that were oppressed for centuries together were to be classified SCs, while tribes that inhabited the forests were to be STs. It is really unfortunate that more communities are being categorised thus,” Prasad added.
Highlighting these niggling issues in the existing system, Prasad reiterated the need for a panel, empowered to review the inconsistencies in the existing system. “Many vulnerable sections of society will not receive justice unless these problems are solved. In this globalised world, where nearly everything is in private hands, youngsters from the weaker sections are missing out on jobs, so there is a need to bring in reservation in this sector as well,” said Prasad, adding that Rajya Sabha too was bestowed with executive powers and stressed the need for reserving seats in the upper house of the Indian Parliament.
Retired judge of the high court HN Nagmohan Das, UoM registrar Prof Lingaraj Gandhi and vice-chancellor of Bangalore North University Prof TD Kemparaju were in attendance on the first day of the two-day seminar.