State-wise equitable implementation of Mishra Commission’s Muslim quota

By Syed Shahabuddin,

The Mishra Commission has recommended 15% reservation in government jobs, education and development benefits for minorities and, of that 10% exclusively for Muslims. These figures clearly suggest that the Mishra Commission has framed its recommendations in the national perspective for implementation by the Central government. In the light of the Sachar Committee Report and its own investigation and its acceptance of religious minorities in the country and in the states as weaker sections, it appears that the Commission has given a weightage of 75-80% to minorities in every state. It follows therefore that the Mishra Commission recommendations, which are meant for the country as a whole, have to be adjusted state-wise as there are very few states which have more than 20% minorities and/or 15% Muslims in the state population which was the starting point of the Mishra Recommendation.

As far as the Muslims are concerned, apart from Jammu & Kashmir where it forms a majority and does not therefore come under the purview of the Mishra Commission, it forms a large minority in Assam, West Bengal and Kerala with more than 20%; and in UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Delhi, with more than 10% of the state population. The last two have in absolute terms very small Muslim population. MP and Gujarat fall in the grey zone of 9-10%, other states have much smaller percentage of Muslims.

The level of backwardness of the Muslim communities in various states is not uniform nor we have any specific data on their relative backwardness as compare to SC/ST but the Sachar Committee has pointed out that the Muslim community in West Bengal is the most backward of all Muslim communities in the states of the country. It also said that the Muslim community as a whole in the country is almost as backward as the SC/ST. In view of these two conclusions, although we do not have any economic, educational, social or administrative data or information on representation in public recruitment, it is not difficult to work out the exact level of relative backwardness of the Muslim community in each state.
Keeping this in mind, a tentative attempt is made to determine a suitable quota for the Muslim community in each of these states;

It may be kept in view that within the Muslim community, there is much economic, educational and social disparity. While some of these disparities can be equalized by eliminating the Creamy Layer in a manner that all families whose income is above a prescribed level are not entitled to reservation benefit. Secondly, it may be laid down that candidates either for government job or higher education from sub-communities already notified as OBC but possess minimum condition of eligibility should enjoy preference.

The real problem then arises is that most states with the exception of West Bengal and Assam have exhausted Mandal quota for OBCs. In both West Bengal and Assam neither the government nor the community has taken the trouble of having all backward groups & sub-groups notified as OBC. Therefore, a problem arise that if the Muslim community is accorded the benefits of the Mishra formula, the total reservation in 6 major states as well as in Delhi and Gujarat will exceed 50% ceiling laid down by the Supreme Court.

The Mishra Report does not look upon the ceiling as an absolute limit but only suggestive and therefore flexible. Moreover, the number of Backward Classes and their levels of backwardness vary from state to state and therefore and then cannot be a uniform cut-off limit for all states.

The best solution will be to prescribe uniform easily accessible parameters for collecting relevant social, economic, educational, representational and administrative data in the coming Census of 2011 which would determine the level of backwardness of each identified and conscious social group or sub-group, apart from giving its population. The admissible quota can then be easily determined and the total reservation can then be calculated.

Simultaneously, the Supreme Court should be moved by the Government, or by a PIL, to review the 50% limit and permit each state to arrive at its own total by applying the results of the development-orientated Census in 2011.

Another aspect of the matter is that some Muslim sub-communities have been included in the OBCs list of various states. In the national perspective, the notional Muslim share in the Mandal Scheme is only 3-4%. However, if the Central and State Government accept the Mishra recommendation, the Muslim sub-communities now included in the OBCs will partially move to the SC Lists but largely they shall be covered by the Mishra Quota. This would mean that space now occupied by the Muslim OBCs shall stand effectively vacated and be available for Non-Muslim OBCs.

It may be added that Mandal had estimated the proportion of Non-Muslim OBCs in the national population as 44%. We have no data to establish their relative backwardness nationally or in any state as compared to the SCs but we may assume that to be at least 60%, their reservation quota should then be 44×60=26.4. This implies that the entire Mandal OBC quota shall become available for the Non-Muslim OBCs. Today, different intermediate castes and even some high castes are demanding reservation. That is a separate question. Muslims see no objection in categorisation whether it is the question of OBCs or STs or SCs. Categorization enhances equality and social justice.

We can only hope that the Census 2011 will provide the population of each social group & sub-group and necessary data to determine their relative backwardness. It should then be possible scientifically to divide the entire OBCs quota among its various castes, components. However, it is important that first the Muslims should be given their due quota under the Mishra dispensation before they give up their claim on the OBC/Mandal quota.