‘Constitutional right, not charity’: Chirag Paswan backs reservation amid Delhi protest, asks for systematic demands
Here's the latest protest news from across India:
Amid continued demands to scrap reservation, which prompted protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Saturday, union minister Chirag Paswan backed the system, saying it is not charity but a constitutional right granted to those who have faced discrimination.
Adding to this, Union Minister and Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas) president Chirag Paswan shared that the government would engage in dialogue with anti-reservation protesters. (Hindustan Times/Santosh Kumar) He underscored that reservation is not something that can be ended simply because someone demands it, but is a constitutional right that stems from the idea of bringing people from communities that have faced caste-based discrimination into the mainstream.
Meanwhile, “Reservation is not something that can be ended simply because someone demands it. Nor is it charity given to anyone. Reservation is a constitutional right. The idea behind it has been to bring into the mainstream people from communities who have faced discrimination for one reason or another,” Paswan told reporters in Bihar.
Notably, “This includes people belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. What is a Scheduled Caste? These are the castes that have been listed in the Constitution, with untouchability being the basis for their identification,” he added.
As per the latest buzz, “They were identified on that basis and included in the Schedule, and reservation was then provided to these castes. Similarly, there are Scheduled Tribes. These are tribes that have been listed in the Schedule and whose way of life, language, dress and customs are distinct and rooted in their own traditions.”
In further updates, Paswan noted that people from these sections of the society were identified and provisions were made to bring them into mainstream society, through the means of reservation incorporated into the Constitution of India by Babasaheb Ambedkar.
On top of that, He added that overtime these provisions have been strengthened and shared that poor people from upper castes are also made eligible to benefit from reservation.
“With the aim of identifying such groups and bringing them into the mainstream, provisions for reservation were incorporated into the Constitution of India drafted by Babasaheb Ambedkar. Over the years, these provisions have been strengthened from time to time. And today, even poor people from the upper castes are eligible to benefit from reservation.”
Source: Hindustan Times