Prashik It is perhaps known to every liberal (if they have at least basic understanding) that our constitution enshrines three values which it holds essential for human progress. They are as propounded by Dr Ambedkar: Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. If you are a medico, you have probably seen the term fraternity thrown around a lot …
Judicial Subversion of Affirmative Action Jurisprudence
Bobby Kunhu “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it. Democracy in India is only a top-dressing on an Indian soil which is essentially undemocratic.” ~ Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Annihilation of Caste The jurisprudence around reservations and affirmative action …
Open Letter to casteist Telangana MLA Dharma Reddy from a Swaero
Vara Lakshmi Swaero ToMr. Challa Dharma Reddy, Honorable MLA, Parkal, Telangana, Re: Rebutting your recent public statement on ‘upper castes’ not securing jobs while “others” without merit were getting positions through reservations Dear Sir, As a citizen of India and a resident of Telangana, I am writing to express my extreme opposition to your recent remarks …
Storming Libraries, ‘Achhe Din’ and the New Education Policy
N Sukumar and Shailaja Menon The NEP 2020 has been rolled out amidst the Corona pandemic with the grandiose dreams of unleashing India’s potential as a world teacher (Vishwaguru). Ironically, a few months back police stormed the library of Jamia Millia Islamia, thrashed students and vandalized the reading space. No one knows when the culprits …
Presidency University engages with Dr. Ambedkar
Ekalavya Ravidas The historic Hindu College of Calcutta, later named as Presidency College and currently known as Presidency University, has conventionally been an academic space almost exclusively occupied by the upper caste Hindus. The minorities of India, particularly those who are now known as SCs, STs, and OBCs and those who constitute 85% of India’s …
Covid-19: Bhilwara Model, Breaking the myth of merit
Neeraj Bunkar While the whole world is fighting with the Corona pandemic, India too has not been able to keep itself out of its grasp. On January 30th, 2020, the first case in India was reported in Kerala. The number rose to 3 by the February 5th, when some students returned to India from China’s …
OBC Quota: Reservation without Accommodation
Raja Choudhary Public universities and colleges in India have an insufficient number of hostels in India. Even so, the Government of India has no further plan for new hostels. As per the All India Survey of Higher Education (2015-16), there are 799 Universities, 39,071 Colleges, and 11,923 Stand Alone Institutions listed on AISHE …
10% EWS: Conceived by Courts and Delivered by Cong-RSS and BJP
Ayaz Ahmad Abhishek: How did the 124th amendment bill and 103rd CA Act come about? Ayaz: The constitutional debate in courts around reservation from 1950 onwards focused on reducing reservation to an exceptional policy instrument. Towards this end, the principle of formal equality as enshrined under Articles 15(1) and 29(2) were given primacy over the principle …
The Republic of Reservations
Dr. N. Sukumar The principle of merit is largely undefined. However, the social and economic worth of individuals and institutions are valued on this amorphous principle. Any standard definition of merit will again feed the myth of the “family farm” comprising of parental background, educational alma mater, economic occupations, physicality and geographical location. Needless …