The BJP-led Central government is all set to constitute a national commission to study the social, economic, and educational status of members of the Scheduled Caste community who converted to Islam and Christianity, the Indian Express reported.
The government is already discussing the proposal to set up such a commission and a decision is likely to be taken, the report said.
Citing its sources in the Ministry of Minority Affairs and the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the publication reported that a green signal had been given to the proposal and that consultation is ongoing among various ministries, including Home, Law, Finance, and Social Justice and Empowerment.
This move comes against the backdrop of several petitions that are pending before the Supreme Court seeking reservations for Dalits who have converted to Christianity or Islam. The Top Court has given the Centre time till October 11 to lay down its stance on the issue raised by the petitioners.
The proposed commission is likely to have three to four members, with its chairman holding the rank of a Union Cabinet Minister and it may also get a timeframe of well over a year to submit its report, according to IE.
According to existing laws, a person from a religion other than Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism cannot be deemed a member of the Scheduled Caste community.
It is worth mentioning that the issue of SC reservation benefits for Dalits who have converted to Christianity or Islam has been raised before a panel, constituted by the then UPA government headed by Dr Manmohan Singh had, in May 2007, recommended that SC status be completely delinked from religion. The UPA government did not accept the recommendation at the time.
In 2007, another similar recommendation was also made by a National Commission for Minorities study, but that too was rejected on the basis that it was not substantiated by field studies.
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Rabia Shireen is a Staff Reporter at The Cognate.
