In an interesting development, the Union Cabinet on Thursday approved a bill to provide reservations to Scheduled Tribes, perceived as a first step towards fulfilling the long-pending demand of the community. Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal announced that the Cabinet has approved the “Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes Bill, 2024”. While the State government rejoiced calling it a major victory for the STs, the community rejected the approval calling it a mere eyewash.
The question is, how good is the approval? Although the Cabinet has cleared the Bill, it still has a long way to go and will have to be passed in both Houses of Parliament followed by a Presidential accent. Subsequently, the Census Commission will be required to notify the Scheduled Tribe population of Goa based on which the Election Commission will proceed with reservation formalities.
At this point, although the State government has gone gaga over the development, the cabinet approval does not guarantee reservation, nor does it carry a timeline. This is not to suggest that the Centre could renegade on its move, and certainly not when the Centre is riding high on the Modi-ki-guarantee sloganeering. But a doggy past doesn’t bode well here, especially when even recent assurances of appointing a delimitation commission and beginning the process of reservation before the onset of the code of conduct have not been met.
Fast rewind into the history of reservations, and it is not very encouraging either. An ordinance passed by the UPA government in 2013 paving the way for reservations was allowed to be lapsed by the subsequent NDA government in 2014. There is certainly a trust deficit because the will to take the reservations forward was not visible. Even if the intention is good this time, leaving aside the political pressure that is playing in the background, the STs lack the confidence to positively accept what Goyal has just announced, and they are not to be blamed.
If we may recall, political reservation for Scheduled Tribes, although a hotly debated issue in the State Legislative Assembly, hasn’t got the attention it was seeking, although Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has been addressing it on and off. And which is why the STs have seized the opportunity. Elections are times when parties go into overdrive trying to pacify every section and leave no stone unturned. The STs have certainly seized the Lok Sabha election opportunity and stepped up the pedal since Assembly polls are a distant three years away.
On the flip side, while the reservation is long delayed, the governments will have to exercise extreme caution because any hurry at this stage could have repercussions on other communities seeking quotas, especially the Other Backward Classes. Bypassing set procedures in an attempt to placate the protesting STs and insulate the party from political damage, may set a precedent and result in injustices to other communities.
The government has invited this situation on itself, and it will have to be careful in treading the path because overstepping at this juncture may have consequences that it may find equally tough to handle.
