Why UPA's reservation for Jats is a frightening joke

The UPA government’s recent decision to include Jats of nine states in the Central OBC list is arguably the most frightening joke of this millennium. It is a joke because even the prosperous, politically dominant Jats of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Bharatpur and Dhaulpur districts in Rajasthan have now been deemed socially backward and, therefore, entitled to reservation in Central government jobs. The sheer hilarity of this decision has already manifested in Punjab where Jats, both Hindus and Sikhs, hadn’t been in the state OBC list till now. This was why this prosperous and powerful social group was not included in the UPA’s fiat on OBCs. Not to be outdone, and presumably hoping to have them included in the Central list in the future, the Akali Dal-BJP government decided to pin the badge of backwardness to Hindu and Sikh Jats. Yes, on March 5, they were included in the state OBC list. Really, can there be a bigger joke than that? But this joke is frightening because it turns the philosophy of affirmative action on its head, threatens to deny benefits of reservation to the most backward classes, and mocks the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC), whose responsibility it is to include or exclude castes from the central reservation pool. The NCBC has persistently advised the government against including Jats, other than those living outside Bharatpur and Dhaulpur districts in Rajasthan, in the Central OBC list. But the lame-duck UPA government, in a jiffy, swept aside this recommendation. What is also frightening is the silence of all political parties at the brazen subversion of the reservation policy. From BJP to Left to all regional outfits to Aam Aadmi Party, there hasn’t been a squeak. [caption id=“attachment_1423477” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Members of the Jat community agitate, demanding reservation under the OBC category. AFP.[/caption] Could you have expected them to behave otherwise? The Lok Sabha election is just a month away, and they wouldn’t want to alienate, or anger, this powerful social group concentrated in contiguous pockets. For instance, the Jats in Haryana constitute 25 per cent of its population and are the veritable driver of its politics. It is possible for many to draw a terrible lesson from the UPA’s decision – trigger a riot to qualify for reservations (or to have any of your demands accepted). Though the Jats have been agitating for an inordinately long period to be included in the Central OBC list, it can be argued that the UPA chose to override the advice of NCBC now only because of the political implications of the Muzzafarnagar riots. Doubt it? Well, here is the timeline of the Jat demand for OBC reservations. In 1997, the NCBC rejected the request of Jats in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh for inclusion in the central OBC list, but accepted it in the case of Jats outside the districts of Bharatpur and Dhaulpur in Rajasthan. In 2010, it also turned down a similar request of Jats of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Neither the NDA nor the UPA government took a decision on it, palpably apprehensive of annoying the numerically preponderant and politically powerful community. Since the Central Government didn’t take any decision, the NCBC continued to receive petitions suggesting it should review the advice given to the government. The commission, however, cited the NCBC Act of 1993 to say it wasn’t empowered to review the advice once tendered. In 2011, as the UPA government’s stock dipped, it empowered the NCBC to review its advice. This inspired Jats to inundate the commission with requests for inclusion in the Central OBC list. In June that year, the NCBC decided to defer the review till the completion of Socio-Economic Caste Census, which was already underway. Believing the data thus obtained might be inadequate, the NCBC in October, 2012 commissioned the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR) to conduct a limited survey in six states, including Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, to determine whether the Jats were indeed socially backward. For a government nervous about the looming election, a survey implied the grim possibility of missing the general election deadline. Such social surveys require massive preparations, particularly as ideas about backwardness are subjective and require tremendous felicity to elicit. Unwilling to wait, the Union Cabinet took a decision on December 19, 2013, that the “NCBC be requested to reconsider its earlier decision of conducting a survey and tender its advice of inclusion of Jats in the Central list of OBCs based on the reports and material available.” Cynical political calculations underlay the government’s seemingly innocuous request. For one, the thumping the Congress received in the assembly elections of Rajasthan and Delhi testified to the alienation of Jats from the Congress. Two, the Muzaffarnagar communal riots were redefining the political loyalties of social groups in west Uttar Pradesh. The Jats in particular were deserting Congress ally Ajith Singh for the BJP. Might not the inclusion of Jats in the Central OBC list stem the rot for the UPA? More significantly, the suggestion to the NCBC to “tender advice” on the “reports and material available” was outright motivated. Since the NCBC would have no option but to primarily rely on the reports of different state backward class commissions, on the basis of which Jats had been included in the state OBC lists, the chances of extending reservation to Jats in Central Government jobs and educational institutions were deemed extremely high. In a way, the government was mounting pressure on the NCBC to fall in line. Unfortunately for the UPA, the NCBC didn’t turn out to be a pushover. It found most of the state commission reports wanting: either the surveys were grossly inadequate and partial or they hadn’t adhered to the criteria the NCBC lays down to judge the social backwardness of social groups. Backwardness is both a subjective and relative phenomena. The NCBC, for instance, found that Haryana’s surveys of Jats compared them to higher castes, but not to those lower in the caste hierarchy. Indeed, it requires a willing suspension of disbelief to imagine Jats as a socially backward community. Though considered a peasant caste, or shudras, it is not they who suffer from acute social discrimination such as denial of access to common wells. Contemporary narratives tell us that the situation is, in fact, the reverse. For instance, caste skirmishes in a swathe of territory around Delhi often ensue because of Jats denying Dalit bridegrooms to mount the mare during wedding processions. In its advisory report, dated February 26, to the government, the NCBC lists Jats who have held high posts, from ministers to governors to ambassadors. It cites a Haryana-sponsored survey to show that Jats have already about 4.15 per cent share in Class-I and Class-II services in the state, only lagging behind Brahmins (6.2 per cent) and Banias (4.72 per cent). Ironically, these figures the state survey had cited to claim that Jats in Haryana are socially backward. [caption id=“attachment_1423481” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  A Jat community leader. AFP.[/caption] Obviously, those canvassing for the inclusion of Jats in the Central list have a fuzzy idea about affirmative action. It isn’t a tool for socio-economic mobility, nor does it seek to give representation to social groups in government employment in proportion to their population. Affirmative action merely aims to create a level-playing field for social groups suffering from disadvantages arising from discriminatory social structures. From this perspective, it is ridiculous to conclude that Jats are discriminated against just because they are a peasant caste, or shudras. No doubt they cultivate land, but they are also landowners and present in substantial numbers in government services, the army, and politics. Just count the number of Jat chief ministers India has had. Pointing to the peril of including them in the Central OBC list, the NCBC issued a dire warning: “…If Jats are included even though they are not the backward class, they will corner all the posts of the Other Backward Classes and the Most Backward Classes will be totally deprived of their opportunities in the Central Government Services and admission in educational institutions.” But this precisely what the UPA government did on March 2. The very idea behind forming the NCBC was to conduct periodic social surveys to weed out from the reservation pool those castes which had been scientifically determined to have overcome structural backwardness. This was thought necessary in order to ensure the benefits of affirmative action accrue to the most backward classes. But we are pursuing a reverse policy – including castes which are socially advanced. For instance, a 1999 NCBC report categorically states that Jats in Punjab are advanced in all aspects. And to think the Badal government has them in the state OBC list now! There was a time Indian politicians had a worldview extending beyond their social group. When the Mandal Commission report was adopted, a delegation of Jats descended on former prime minister Charan Singh to complain against their exclusion from the Central list of OBC. The redoubtable kisan leader berated them for thinking they are socially backward, endorsed the Mandal report, and sent them packing home. It is a measure of India’s backward journey that his son, Ajit Singh, is delighted at the inclusion of Jats in the Central OBC list, believing it assures him a victory in the forthcoming elections. The author is a Delhi-based journalist and can be reached at ashrafajaz3@gmail.com