M A I L B A G

Double standard on the policy of reservation

Apropos of the articles and letters on reservation, the upper castes make a hue and cry whenever the backward castes are given the benefit. However, when the Centre planned to emulate Rajasthan to provide reservation to the EBCs among the upper castes, they didn't utter a word against the policy.

A foolish argument of the anti-reservationists is that it is affecting merit and efficiency. We have been ruled only by the “merited” upper castes, which claim “merit” as their sole monopoly. Of our 15 Prime Ministers, all belonged to upper caste and out of these, 11 were Brahmins, the most intelligent caste. They also occupy all the top positions in various ministeries and departments.

India is managed by upper castes, the so-called “meritocrats”, but it has become a beggar nation. Having the highest number of holidays in a year, our people have become the laziest in the world. We are at the bottom in all spheres. Hence, what is the use of this merit and efficiency?

The “merited” upper castes, and not the underprivileged people, are responsible for this mess. Even if it is argued that the latter have no brains, in a democratic nation, which assures equal rights to all the citizens, even the brainless have the right to rule themselves. The British denied home rule to India having maintained that Indians have no brains. Gandhi, Tilak and others said “Indians prefer self-rule to British rule”.

The underprivileged constitute 65 per cent of India's population. Together with religious minorities, they become 85 per cent. If they say that they want to rule the country, their argument would be perfectly democratic. India will be torn to pieces if the identity and dignity of its different segments are not respected. Reservation is the well established and constitutionally accepted approach to develop the socially sub-merged communities and bring them into the national mainstream.

CHAND SINGH MADAAN, Chandigarh

II

Dr V. Eshwar Anand " No end to politics of reservation "(June 28) has rightly pointed out that “the government is doing a great disservice to the country by ignoring merit and packing a sizeable chunk of positions though reservations”. I would like to quote a few experiences to strengthen this view. First, a girl student bemoaned her failure to get admission to MBBS course in spite of her score of 66.35 per cent in the entrance exam, while another student got admission with a poor percentage because she belonged to the reserved category. I asked her not to feel bad, but this did not console her.

Secondly, a student got himself adopted by a Scheduled Caste family and managed to get admission in an engineering college claiming the benefit of reserved category. And thirdly, a doctor, holding the post of Professor and Head of a department in a prestigious medical college in India, decided to migrate to another country. On being asked the reason(s) for his decision to migrate, he said, “I have decided to leave India for the sake of future of my children. The children, howsoever bright they may be, can’t hope to get admissions in a professional institute on merit. They should either belong to a reserved category or I have to possess many lakhs of rupees.

Prof P.V. GUPTA, Chandigarh