The Telangana High Court directed the State government to file counter-affidavit in a PIL petition challenging 2% reservation provided to persons of Scheduled Castes, who converted to Christianity, for admissions into fifth standard in Gurukul schools. A division bench of Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice A. Abhishek Reddy, hearing the petition on Wednesday filed by one P. Srinivas, observed that there was nothing wrong in Telangana government’s decision to be more liberal by providing more space to converts. Posting the petition after four weeks for next hearing, the bench said the main objective of reservations is to come to the rescue of the more oppressed and backward persons.
Petitioner’s contention
The petitioner’s counsel Harinath contended that once a person from SC converts to Christianity, he or she cannot avail reservation. The petitioner said the 2% reservations for admissions into fifth standard in Gurukul schools are arbitrary and illegal.
The bench noted that with the religious conversion only the name of a person changes. But the backwardness and poverty of such persons remain the same, it said. The purpose of the reservations was to uplift the disadvantaged sections and weaker groups of the social strata. If a SC person switches to Christianity, that person would not become Brahmin or a millionaire. Hence, it would be unjustified to deny them the reservation, the bench observed. The bench said that one has to view the government’s purpose in providing 2% reservation in the matter. “The State wants to uplift persons who were suppressed for several years. Their conversion to Christianity would not make them forward,” the bench remarked. Special Government Pleader Sanjeev Kumar told the court that these 2% reservations were meant only for admissions into fifth standard in social welfare Gurukul schools.