Casteism destroys Hindus: anti-quota petitioner tells SC

New Delhi, Aug 23 (UNI) Opposing the reservation policy of the government, counsel for 'Youth For Equality' and 'Citizens For Equality' P P Rao today submitted before the Supreme Court that casteism has destroyed the Hindus.

Mr Rao also told the five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan that India could not be called a nation when it was divided by thousands of castes and he went on to add that caste and fraternity were incompatible and the two could not co-exist.

Other judges on the bench are Justices Arijit Pasayat, C K Thakker, R V Raveendran and Dalveer Bhandari.

The apex court is hearing a batch of petitions challenging the government notification providing 27 per cent reservation to OBCs in admission to centrally run educational institutions of higher studies.

Mr Rao also contended that Naxalites were expanding their area of influence by enlisting the backing of frustrated youth.

Caste-based reservation posed a serious threat to the integrity of the society and to the social and democratic fabric of the country, he further contended.

Such reservations were violating the Indian Constitution which says that there can be no discrimination among the citizens of the country in the name of caste, creed, religion and gender.

The counsel also contended that such caste-based reservation policy depressed the bottom layers and pushed further the upper layer among OBCs and without excluding the creamy layer from the benefits of quota policy, the objects of uplifting these castes can never be achieved.

The petitioners are also demanding the review of the Mandal Commission Report which is the foundation of the new quota policy of the Central government. The Mandal Commission Report, based on 1931 caste based census, says that the OBCs constituted 52 per cent of the total population of the country which is not acceptable to those opposing the caste-based reservation policy.

The arguments remained inconclusive and shall be resumed on Tuesday next.

On March 29 this year, a two-judge Bench had stayed the operation of the notification of the reservation policy for one year holding that the beneficiaries of the policy must be identified first.

Justice Pasayat has pulled up the Central government for playing the game without framing the rules.

UNI