Implement OBC Reservation in J&K : Sunil Prajapati

JAMMU January 30: President BJP OBC Morcha, J&K UT, Sunil Prajapati and Other State Leaders including Raj kumar Tarkhan ( General Secretary BJP OBC Morcha), Sajad Hussain Kumhaar ( General Secretary BJP OBC Morcha) and Romesh Lal ( National Executive Member OBC Morcha ) Meets with  Dr k. laxman BJP OBC National President and Rajya Sabha MP  in delhi,through a memorandum demanded that OBC reservation should be implemented in J&K at the earliest at par with other States, so as to provide long outstanding justice to the aggrieved people of the OBC community in the J&K UT as well as to abolish controversial reserve categories which have diluted the OBC quota.

Sunil Prajapati expressed that the Reservation to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) has not yet been implemented in J&K as per Constitutional provisions, in accordance with Mandal Commission Recommendations, even after revocation of Article 370 while all Central Laws have been implemented and controversial laws enacted during Article 370 time Govts have been removed.

 However, the controversial reservation law enacted by the previous Article 370 time Govts is still in force, which has denied reservation to OBCs as per Mandal Commission Recommendations but instead extended reservation to the people other than OBCs through unconstitutional Reserve categories “Residents of Backward Areas (RBA) and “Areas Adjoining to Line of Control (ALC)”, diluting OBC quota, violating Mandal Commission Recommendations and Article 15(4)&(5) and 16(4) of the Constitution.

The reserve categories RBA, ALC were initially created by Sheikh Abdullaha led National Conference (NC) Govt during 1981 through SRO 394 of 1981 to provide benefit to the people of certain selective Areas/villages of choice classifying them as “Backward Areas” in the valley for political interest to stabilise their vote bank and provided reservation out of SC quota. On implementation of OBC reservation during 1993, the J&K Govt absorbed all 1981 time reserve categories and provided 20% to RBA, 3% reservation to ALC diluting OBC quota. All these area based reserve categories created during 1981, have become unconstitutional after revocation of Article 370, being in violation of Mandal Commission Recommendations as well as Union Govt Ruling of 1993 regarding implementation of OBC Reservation and not have the approval of the Parliament. As such, all these categories e.g. RBA and ALC should to be abolished immediately to provide justice to the aggrieved OBC category in J&K by providing due reservation quota at appropriate percentage.

Though, presently 4% reservation is being provided to OBCs under reserve category Other Social Caste (OSC), which was created during 1981 and provided 2% reservation out of Schedule Caste (SC) quota, for the people of Lower Castes in the Muslim community whose counterparts in Hindu Community were provided reservation under SC category, classifying them as “Social Lower Caste”.  Since, these lower castes in Muslim community were considered as OBCs by the Mandal Commission, on implementation of OBC reservation during 1993, SLC category (Now OSC) was absorbed within OBC quota. Subsequently, certain OBC castes out of those recommended by Mandal Commission were included in OSC category taking total to 27 castes but the quota of reservation remained 2% till enhanced to 4% after abrogation of Article 370 during 2020, which is very less in comparison to OBC population, which may be more than 27% after including the newly added OBC castes. 

As such, Prajapati  urged upon to the Union Govt that OBC Reservation be implemented in Govt Jobs and Educational Institutions as per Mandal Commission Recommendations as well as in Panchayati Raj Institutions as per Article 243D (6) and 243T (6) of the Constitution at the earliest with appropriate percentage to provide justice and equality to the OBC community people in J&K, who are more than 27% and residing in both the regions in equal ratio.