Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission For Religious And Linguistic Minorities:
The Supreme Court revisited a 2007 report by the Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, which recommended Scheduled Caste (SC) reservation for Dalit converts to Christianity and Islam.
- The Centre had discredited the report, but the apex court believes it contains valuable information that could help determine if excluding Dalit converts from the SC category is unconstitutional according to the Constitution Order of 1950.
Highlights of the Ranganath Report:
- The recommendation of Scheduled Caste reservation for Dalit converts to Christianity and Islam was made in the 2007 report of the Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities.
- Dalit Christians and Muslims face discrimination not only from upper-caste members of their own religion but also from the broader Hindu-dominated society.
- The exclusion of Dalit converts to Christianity and Islam from the SC category violates the constitutional guarantee of equality and is against the basic tenets of these religions, which reject caste discrimination.
- The denial of SC status to Dalit converts to Christianity and Islam has led to their socio-economic and educational backwardness and has deprived them of access to reservations in education and employment opportunities (as provided under article 16).
