Restrain Centre from implementing Sachar committee report, plea filed in Supreme Court

Followers of Sanatan Vedic Dharm have filed a plea in the Supreme Court seeking to restrain the Centre from acting upon the Sachar committee report, which was submitted in November 2006, for initiating any scheme in favour of the Muslim community. Constituted by Dr. Manmohan Singh, the then Prime Minister on March 9, 2005, the seven-member committee headed by former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court Rajinder Sachar studied the economic, social and educational status of Muslims.

New Delhi: Followers of Sanatan Vedic Dharm have filed a plea in the Supreme Court seeking to restrain the Centre from acting upon the Sachar committee report, which was submitted in November 2006, for initiating any scheme in favour of the Muslim community. Constituted by Dr Manmohan Singh, the then Prime Minister on March 9, 2005, the seven-member committee headed by former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court Rajinder Sachar studied the economic, social and educational status of Muslims. The committee submitted their report on Nov.7, 2006 recommending various suggestions for upliftment of Muslim community.

"The notification dated 9.3.2005 issued from the office of Prime Minister, Government of India, nowhere mentions that same was being issued after any cabinet decision. Thus, it is clear that the then Prime Minister on his own whims issued the direction of appointing the committee to inquire into the social economic and educational status of the Muslim community. Whereas, by virtue of Articles 14 and 15 no religious community can be treated separately. The power to appoint a Commission to investigate into the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes vest with the President of India under Article 340 of the Constitution of India," read the plea.

Five followers, who have jointly filed the plea, contend that the conditions of SC and ST is worse than any other community but the Centre has failed to take any steps to uplift them. On the other hand, Muslims, who were the rulers for a long period of time, are entitled to special treatment which they should not be. Petitioners say that during the Muslim rule and British era, SC-ST and OBCs of Hindus were "suppressed, tortured, butchered, converted either by force or by allurement and had to face atrocities" and therefore if PM was interested in initiating any scheme, he should have done for them.

"Terms of reference would show that the intention of the then honourable Prime Minister was to bring beneficial scheme for the Muslim community in the garb of a report of Sachar committee. It is relevant to mention that the constituent assembly has rejected the move to give reservation to any community on a religious basis as admittedly the principle of secularism was adopted by the Assembly with cheers where there is no room for showing any favour or dis-favour to any religion, religious denomination or community. It is well-established that a thing which cannot be done directly cannot be achieved indirectly," read the plea.

Petitioners say that the Centre has initiated various schemes in favour of religious minorities simply because they are from a religious minority irrespective of the fact that they have not been declared as socially and educationally backward class by any commission constituted by the President of India. Citing their own financial condition, petitioners contend that they are not entitled to any scheme even though their income is much below the limit of annual income earmarked for entitlement for religious communities.

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