The Union Government has filed its Counter Affidavit in the Supreme Court against a petition which seeks the continuation of the Scheduled Caste (SC) status of people who have converted to Islam and Christianity. 

The petitioner seeks a declaration that the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order 1950 is discriminatory and violates Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution as it does not accord SC status to persons converting to religions other than Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism.

In its Counter Affidavit, the Centre stated that “the object of the reservations and identification of Scheduled Castes is over and beyond the social and economic backwardness. It is submitted that the identification of scheduled castes is centered around a specific social stigma [and the connected backwardness with such stigma] that is limited to the communities identified in the Constitution [Scheduled Castes] Order, 1950.”

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment submitted in its affidavit that the Report of Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission (which favoured continuation of SC status of people converting to other religions) is flawed as the report was created without conducting any field studies and thus cannot be corroborated with the situation on the ground. The Centre stated that the said Commission had taken a myopic view of the social environment in India and had not considered the effect that the inclusion would have on the present castes listed as SCs and thus the Government had not accepted the findings of the said commission.

It was stated by the Government in the affidavit that, given the importance and sensitivity of the issue, the Union has constituted a three-member commission headed by former Chief Justice of India K. G. Balakrishnan to look into the issues of providing SC status to people who claim to have belonged to the SC but have converted to other religions.

The Government further stated that the exclusion of Christianity or Islam was because the system of Untouchability was not prevalent in the Christian or Islamic Society.

“The Constitution (Scheduled Caste) Order, 1950 was based on historical data which clearly established that no such backwardness or oppression was ever faced by members of Christian or Islamic Society. In fact, one of the reasons for which people from Scheduled Castes have been converting to religions like Islam or Christianity is so that they can come out of the oppressive system of Untouchability which is not prevalent at all in Christianity or Islam,” the affidavit said.

The Centre also took reference to a dissent note in the report of the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities which stated that Christianity and Islam are essentially foreign religions and thereby they do not recognize the caste system and conferment of SC status on converts will amount to the introduction of caste system in those religions.

The Government also highlighted in its affidavit that Article 341 empowers the President of India to specify the castes, races, or tribes or groups within which shall for the purposes of the Constitution be deemed to be SC. The decision is to be taken by the President under Article 341 in consultation with the Governors of the State. The affidavit also cited various judgments of the Supreme Court and submitted before the Court that it has no power except to give effect to the notification issued by the President under Article 341.