Lok Sabha died on Tuesday Bill to amend the Constitution Restore the power of states to compile their own OBC lists after a stalled thaw as opposition parties backed the legislation but called for the 50 percent limit on reservations to be lifted and many of them also called for a box-based census.
As the opposition seeks to corner the ruling BJP on the sensitive issue of the quota, Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Virendra Kumar said several Lok Sabha members’ calls for the reservation cap to be raised above 50 percent should be careful must be checked because it is about constitutional issues.
For the first time since the start of the July 19 monsoon session of Parliament, Lok Sabha saw an orderly debate when the opposition protested over the Pegasus sniff allegations for The Draft Constitution (one hundred and twenty-seventh amendment) Draft law, 2021which was adopted with 385 members voting in favor and no member against.
The bill was passed as the 105th draft constitutional amendment after being renumbered. Due to Covid protocols, some members of the house were sitting in the bleachers, and therefore the division about changes and the passing of the bill was carried out manually using slips of paper.
Kumar moved the bill for review and enactment, calling the bill historic legislation as 671 castes in the country would benefit.
The 102nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 2018 added Article 338B, which deals with the structure, duties and powers of the National Commission on Backward Classes, and 342A, which deals with the president’s powers to notify a particular caste as socially and educationally backward communities (SEBCs) and the power of Parliament to amend the list. Article 366 (26C) defines SEBCs.
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The Supreme Court had rejected the center’s motion to review its May 5 majority ruling that the 102nd constitutional amendment deprived states of the power to notify SEBCs of granting quotas on jobs and admissions.
Many leaders such as BJP ally JD (U) Lalan Singh, Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, Ritesh Pandey of the BSP and TR Baalu of DMK have advocated a caste-based census across the country.
Several opposition parties, including Congress, called for the 50 percent ceiling on reservations to be lifted as the government underscored its commitment to social justice.
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At the beginning of the debate, Congress Leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury wholeheartedly supported the bill, but criticized the government for the 2018 amendment, saying that if the government had included the proposal proposed by the opposition, the current situation would not have arisen.
“You tweaked the Constitution by introducing the 102nd Constitutional Amendment Act in 2018, which gave people the power to go to court, and eventually the Supreme Court overturned the power of states,” he said.
Chowdhury has also criticized the government for allegedly running away from the Pegasus spyware “sniffing” debate, saying that country after country like Hungary, the US and Israel have ordered an investigation into the controversial issue .
“We support this law, but we are calling for the 50 percent cap to be lifted (subject to change). You should listen to the states and make it legal for states to break the 50 percent limit, ”Chowdhury said.
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Baalu from DMK and Yadav from SP also called for the 50 percent ceiling to be lifted with reservations. In response to the debate, Kumar said that the request by several Lok Sabha members to raise the reservation ceiling to over 50 percent needs to be carefully considered as it concerns constitutional issues. The government is aware of the wishes of the members, he said.
It has been stressed repeatedly (by courts) that the reservation cap should be kept at 50 percent. “It is therefore necessary to carefully examine all constitutional and legal aspects in this regard,” said the minister.
He said that in the Indra Sawhney case, the court found that the limit could only be raised above 50 percent in certain special circumstances. Labor and Employment Minister Bhupender Yadav joined the debate, saying that the Modi government was rapidly taking maximum action to ensure justice for Dalits, OBCs and the poor.
At the congress, Yadav said the constituents had provided a reservation for backward classes, but when Congress came to power in 1950 it ruled for 40 years but it didn’t do justice to backward classes.
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“When a non-congressional government came to power for the first time, the Janata Party, the Mandal Commission created no reservation for backward classes,” Yadav said.
At the UPA, Yadav said it was in power from 2004 to 2014 but did not give constitutional status to the Commission on Backward Classes, which the Modi government did.
“This bill seeks to fulfill the fundamental aim and spirit of our constituents to build a country where people experience social, economic and political justice on the basis of equality,” he said.
Supriya Sure (NCP) took part in the discussion, saying that recognition of this amending law should be given to the Maharashtra government, which asked the center to address the issue of OBC reservation.
Sule said another important issue besides this legislation is addressing the 50 percent limit on reservations, without which the change won’t fully resolve the issue. The YSR Congress Party and Shiv Sena also supported the bill.
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All of India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslims Asaduddin Owaisi accused the government of using OBCs as a vote bank, saying that little had been done to uplift the community in reality.
He also turned to the Treasury Department benches and used the Hindi song line – “jab pyaar kiya toh darna kya” while exhorting the government to lift the 50 percent limit on the reservation.
Hasnain Masoodi (NC) accused the government of breaking the country’s federal structure by dividing Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. He wondered if the government could downgrade another 28 states in union territories.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal (SAD) wanted the House to discuss the issue of farmers who have been sitting on the streets for months. She said that although the government had promised farmers income, it had led to rising prices, making the poor even more difficult.
The draft constitutional amendment requires that a majority of all members of the House and a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of this House present and voting be required.
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