Editorial, The Indian Currents, 21 May, 2000
.. (The Bill) intended to achieve two birds with one shot: to prove BJP one up above other political parties patronizing the causes of the weaker sections ... and at the same time to further the Sangh Parivar's declared objective of murdering the Constitutional principle of reservation in favour of these groups. The first one was understood by other political parties and each tried to outshine others in supporting the bill without even considering the real implication so the same. The second bird is hidden well underneath but at the center itself ...
For the first time the Constitution has incorporated the ceiling of 50 per cent as a constitutional concept. In the very words of Law Minister till now 50 per cent ceiling was only an obiter dictum pronounced by the Supreme Court. Now creating an exemption to the said rule, the rule has been brought into Constitution, and given the status of a constitutional concept recognized by the Constitution. Thus even a future Constitution bench of the Supreme Court ... would be unable to undo the dictum of 50 per cent ceiling ...
... Clause (4B) added to Article 16 says "Nothing in this Article shall prevent the State from considering any unfilled vacancies of a year which are reserved for being filled up in that year in accordance with any provision for reservation made under clause (4) or clause (4A) as a separate class of vacancies to be filled up in any succeeding year or years and such class of vacancies shall not be considered together with the vacancies of the year in which they are being filled up for determination the ceiling of 50per cent reservation on total number of vacancies of that year" ...
The Supreme Court had recently murdered the positive content available in the Constitutional provisions for reservation through a proactive 'legisputational' judicial activism by three consecutive constitution bench decisions. The Dalit MP's belonging to different political parties were planning to counter and neutralize those decisions by presenting private member's bills. Without touching any of these major issues, the BJP through the ingenuity of the Law Minister brought in a very sinister amendment which the MPs of other political parties did not have the time or expertise to understand and counter. The rule of 50 per cent ceiling has really played havoc in relation to the very policy of reservation. Its logic killed the applicability of reservation in single post cadres as propounded by the Savarna dominated Supreme Court. Another Constitution bench ruled that reserved candidates will not enjoy the benefit of seniority if they get it as a result of reservation. Another declared that reservation ought to be excluded from admissions to specialties. Without remedying the harm done by these decisions and without moving amendments to the Constitution to cure the mischief created by the said decisions, the BJP-led coalition decided to bring in such an absurd amendment, only to ridicule the Dalits and the Constitution at the same time. In addition to this they have achieved the impossible of constitutionalising the concept of 50 per cent ceiling.
