The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) has found that four Opposition-ruled States of West Bengal, Bihar, Punjab and Rajasthan are flouting reservation norms meant for the Other Backward Classes (OBCs).
As per a report by The Economic Times, a large population of OBCs are being deprived of reservation benefits in government jobs and educational institutions. NCBC has found discrepancies in the implementation of reservation policy during field surveys conducted between February-May 2023.
According to it, OBC certificates have been granted to Bangladeshi immigrants and Rohingya Muslims in the State of West Bengal. The Commission also found that 118 out of 179 castes, which have been given OBC status, belong to the Muslim community.
Opposition-ruled states of West Bengal, Rajasthan, Bihar, Punjab are denying reservation benefits to OBCs, finds National Commission for Backward Classes. @NCBC_INDIA says Rohingyas, Bangladeshi immigrants have got OBC certificates in Bengal. Read in @ETPolitics… pic.twitter.com/UlBZWwmGtV
— BJP OBC MORCHA (@BJP4OBCMorcha) June 9, 2023
While speaking about the development, NCBC chief Hansraj Gangaram Ahir noted, “I would like to state the commission has no bias against any community but we asked the state how there is a distinct bias in favour of Muslims.”
He pointed out that the Commission was told during the survey that several Hindu OBC communities had converted to Islam. After seeking a written explanation, the West Bengal government reportedly claimed that it is unclear as to how many people converted to Islam.
“It is clear that the state has arbitrarily given non-deserving communities OBC status,” the NCBC chief emphasised.
Flawed reservation policy in Rajasthan and Punjab
The Commission also found non-implementation of reservation policy in the Congress-ruled State of Rajasthan. According to it, seven districts had no individuals with OBC status although a large number of backward communities were residing in those regions.
“No caste certificates had been issued. The state was following a flawed policy in which they were taking the income of the entire family to give OBC certificates,” Ahir said. “This made several people ineligible for non-creamy layer OBC certificate,” he stated.
NCBC has also directed the AAP government in Punjab to increase OBC reservations from 12% to 25%. The Economic Times reported that a total of 37% reservation (25% for Scheduled Castes and 12% for OBC) was allotted in the State.
Since the upper limit of reservation is 50%, the Commission has directed the Punjab government to increase the OBC quota by an additional 13%
Bihar flouts reservation norms for OBCs
Similarly, the JDU-RJD-ruled State of Bihar was faced with similar anomalies when it came to the implementation of reservation norms. NCBC found that the Bihar government was including the agricultural income of Class III and Class IV employees for calculating total income.
As such, they were given non-creamy layer OBC certificates. The practice had been prevalent in the State for a span of 30 years (1993-2003). The Commission has asked the State government to make amends.
Bihar had also been issuing flawed certificates to individuals belonging to the Kurmi caste.
