A  reservation for back ward Muslims is now hotly debated. Several questions are asked. Several doubts are being expressed. A closure look at these questions and studied response is needed to dispel false impressions deliberately created on the subject.


Religion cannot be the basis of this reservation. True, the sole criterion is backwardness. Reservations for Muslims are given to those who remain economically, educationally and socially backward. This privilege is only for those Muslims who have been lagging behind. The leading Muslim population will not be under the ambit of reservations. Even Muslims falling under the creamy layer are excluded from the benefits of reservation in many states for instance in west Bengal where ten percent reservations are recently given , Muslims having a yearly income of Rs.4.5 lakh or above are out of this reservation.

Fisher men believing in Hindu religion are OBCs but the same occupational group believing I Islam do not enjoy the same benefit. How can this happen when the constitution prohibits discrimination based on religion.  For example, in west Bengal, there is a community among Muslims named ‘Guri.’ They are basically fishermen… Actually they are called so because they catch tiny (Guro) fishes. Non-Muslims who catch fish enjoy reservations. The question is that why the Muslims doing the same work will be left out of reservation? In the secular India, religion can not be the criteria for inclusion into reservations. But religion can not be a basis for denial of reservations.  There fore, if a fisherman or a cobbler gets the privilege of reservation, it will be so because he is a fisherman or a cobbler by profession, not that he is a Hindu or a Muslim.


The constitution makes it very clear that religion cannot be the basis for providing reservations as far as education and job are concerned. This very belief is the manifestation of modern society. Expansion and strengthening of this value stands to be one of the main pillars of modern state polity. But some questions still remain unanswered – what will happen to them who are socio-economically backward due to various historical reasons? The Constitution itself provides the answer.” “Nothing in this article or in clause (2) of article 29 shall prevent the state from making any special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. “– [Art. 15(4)] It is again stated “Nothing in this article shall prevent the state from making any provision of appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens which, in the opinion of the state is not adequately represented in the services under the state.” – [Art. 16(4)].  “No citizens shall be denied admission into any educational institution maintained by the state or receiving aid out of state funds on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them.” So it is clear that the Constitution provides enough imperative to the subject of reservation for economic, educational and social backward classes. The second cause is the actual situation of Muslims. A careful observation of the Indian Muslims clearly reveals the intensity of their backwardness. However this backwardness varies from states to states. Justice Sachar Committee has illustrated the backwardness of Muslims. Therefore the task is to scientifically establish the criteria for identifying the backward groups among the Muslims. So that reservations can be extended to them.

In 2004 a national commission was constituted under Justice Ranganath Mishra to identify the socially and economically backward people among religious and linguistic minorities. The commission was meant to recommend about the reservation and other development-oriented matters in the fields of job and education for this portion of the Indian citizens. The commission submitted its report to the Prime Minister in 2007. It was produced in the Parliament in December, 2009.

Justice Ranganath mishra commission recommended that 15% posts in every Central and State Government department must be reserved for minorities. 10% would be for Muslims and 5% would be for other minorities. If Muslim candidates are not found for the above mentioned 10% posts, then those would be filled with candidate from other minority communities. By any means it must not be done with candidate from the majority part. Muslims constitute 73% of minority population in India.

The Ranganath Mishra Commission, amongst others, recommended that the criteria for identifying backward classes should be uniform without any discrimination between the majority community and the religious and linguistic minorities.  It, therefore, suggested that the criteria now applied to determine the OBC status amongst the majority community must be unreservedly applied also to all the minorities.  It is in this light that the Commission has recommended reservations to the religious minorities on the lines of the OBC reservation. The Ranganath Mishra Commission has stated that the criteria for identification of backwardness must be uniform across religions.

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