IN the concluding week of the Budget Session, Parliament passed some important bills. The Lok Sabha passed the National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal) Bill and the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Third Amendment) Bill. Speaking on this, P Karunakaran said certain communities in the country have been suffering from extreme social, educational and economic backwardness. Giving the OBC Commission the constitutional status is a welcome step. The government should ensure that posts of the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Members of such commissions do not remain vacant. We give reservation to a caste in one state, but the same caste is not awarded reservation in other states. Every state has its own mechanism to decide the category of castes. Now, according to this Bill, the rights of the states for inclusion or exclusion from SC to OBC or from OBC to ST are being taken away by the Centre. It is a herculean task to get any caste included in or excluded from the lists of SC, ST or OBC. The rights of the states are being taken away. It is really the question or the basic principle of the federal setup. Hence, this clause must be taken away and there should be clarity on this issue. In the Rajya Sabha, the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Third Amendment) Bill was referred to a Select Committee of 25 members, including CPI(M) MP T K Rangarajan.

THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT | Peoples Democracy