The Justice G. Rohini Commission, which was constituted in 2017 to examine the sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes (OBC) groups, has finally submitted its much-anticipated report to the President of India on July 31. This commission was tasked with addressing the issue of equitable distribution of benefits among various OBC communities, as certain groups were found to be dominating the reservations and government benefits meant for the OBC category.
Historical Background on OBC Reservations
In 1979, the Second Backward Classes Commission, also known as the Mandal Commission, was established to identify criteria for defining socially and educationally backward classes. The Mandal report, released in 1980, identified 52% of the population as “Socially and Economically Backward Classes” (SEBCs) and recommended a 27% reservation for SEBCs, in addition to the existing 22.5% reservation for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST). Consequently, in 1990, the Indian government implemented the recommendations of the Mandal Commission and provided a 27% reservation for OBCs in central government jobs and public sector units.
However, this move faced intense opposition, leading to the matter reaching the Supreme Court in 1992 in the case of Indra Sawhney vs. Union of India. In a landmark judgment, a nine-judge bench with a 6:3 majority upheld the validity of the 27% reservation for backward castes. It also set two crucial precedents: reservation should not solely be based on economic backwardness, and the total reserved seats cannot exceed 50% of available positions.
Objective of Justice Rohini Commission
To address the existing disparities within the OBC category and ensure equitable distribution of benefits, the President of India established the Justice Rohini Commission in October 2017. The primary objective was to examine the possibility of sub-categorizing the over 2,600 caste groups listed in the Central OBC list. The commission aimed to analyze how the 27% reservation for OBCs, in terms of jobs and education, was distributed among different caste groups.
The commission further explored methods of sub-categorization to allocate a larger share of the reservation benefits to historically marginalized OBC communities. Additionally, the commission was tasked with rationalizing the Central OBC list by suggesting corrections and replacements, which would lead to minor changes in the entries.
Significance of the Commission
After extensive research and analysis, the Justice Rohini Commission arrived at a significant conclusion – a handful of caste groups among the OBC communities were dominating the reservation benefits. The commission’s findings are expected to shed light on the socio-economic status of OBC communities that have historically been able to avail benefits. This information is especially crucial as demands for a caste census grow louder among the opposition and several state governments.
The granular data provided by the commission’s report will have a direct impact on the electoral dynamics of political parties, given that some communities that have dominated benefits are also politically influential. By sub-categorizing the OBC groups and redistributing benefits more equitably, the commission’s recommendations have the potential to bring about a fairer and more inclusive system of reservation and government support.
