In the six decades since independence, we have touched the skies and measured the depths of the oceans. We have established ourselves as a progressive, responsible, secular, democratic nation and have achieved many milestones in areas as varied as agriculture and information technology.
Yet, 60 years of age is also a time for introspection as we come to terms with the changing global political economic security scenario. The clouds of recession are still on the horizon and disparity between the rich and poor are getting wider by the day, thanks to a skewed global economic (dis) order.
As a welfare state, we are all committed to securing and protecting the legitimate rights of the poor, downtrodden and underprivileged including farmers, workers, landless farmers, Dalits, OBCs and minorities.
Our founding fathers had the foresight to introduce reservation which they firmly believed was the only way to bridge the deep chasm in our society, torn apart by centuries of discrimination, exploitation and step-motherly treatment towards the weaker sections.
This affirmative action initiated by the architect of our Constitution Dr B.R. Ambedkar immensely contributed to the uplift of the poor, underprivileged and downtrodden sections of our society over the past six decades, though much more remains to be done.
The Karnataka Government under the leadership of Sh H D Deve Gowda as Chief Minister was among the first states to provide and implement quotas for OBCs and Muslims, way back in 1995 itself.
The Janata Dal Government had also earmarked 33 per cent reservation for women in education and employment sectors. Fifty per cent of posts were also reserved for women in the education sector.
The Committee headed by Hon’ble Justice Rajinder Sachar had recommended reservation for Muslims recently but the Deve Gowda Government in Karnataka had the privilege of providing for the first time separate reservation for the community, which is not to be found anywhere else in the country. Four per cent of the posts were reserved for the Muslims under a separate category IIB.
While formulating and implementing the Karnataka Model, the Deve Gowda Government made it a point to ensure that the most backward among the backwards got the maximum benefit and to ensure this, different categories were created and reservation was given based on the extent of backwardness of the communities.
The Karnataka Model is as follows:-
| Category |
Per Centage |
| General Merit |
50% |
| SC |
15% |
| ST |
3% |
| Category 1 |
4% |
| Category 2A |
15% |
| Category 2B (Muslims) |
4% |
| Category 3A |
4% |
| Category 3B |
5% |
| Total |
100% |
The Karnataka model has not only been implemented successfully over the past one decade but has not been opposed or tampered by any party in Karnataka. The Janata Dal (Secular) believes that this should be the model formula for the country which does not violate the reservation threshold as decided by the apex court while ensuring social equality and justice for the people without creating divisions among them.
It is also the party’s firm view that to maintain cohesion, equality and solidarity in the society, all political parties should evolve through consensus a social and economic support mechanism for the poor among the Forward Classes.
The Janata Dal (Secular) is also of the view that political empowerment is as important a tool for social and economic emancipation of the backward classes, women and minorities as much as reservation in education and employment opportunities.
Decentralization of power through local bodies was yet another step taken by the nation’s leaders to take development to the remotest corners in a democratic manner. It was the then Prime Minister Sh Rajiv Gandhi who had placed the 64th Constitution Amendment Bill before the Parliament, which was finally approved in 1991.
The Janata Dal Government in Karnataka under the leadership of Sh H D Deve Gowda had taken the bold step to amend the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act in 1995 to provide political reservation and herald social justice in the truest sense.
Backward classes were regrouped under two categories BCM (A) and BCM (B). Under BCM (A), about 192 castes were identified with social and educational backwardness as the yardstick. Most backward castes, converted Dalit Christians and Muslims were provided 26.4% reservation under this category while other backward castes and minorities including Jains and Sikhs were included under BCM (B) category with annual income as the yardstick and provided with 6.6% reservation.
Apart from this, 33% seats were reserved for women, a move which Sh Gowda tried to bring about across the country during his tenure as Prime Minister by introducing the Bill providing for 33% reservation to women in Parliament and state legislatures. Unfortunately, it remains a dream till today.
The silent revolution that was heralded in Karnataka witnessed wide representation of an unprecedented number of women and backward classes in all the local bodies. The Janata Dal Government took the initiative to reserve the posts of Chairman and Vice-Chairman of rural and urban local bodies for women, SC/ST, OBCs and Muslims – a step that immensely contributed to the political empowerment of these deprived sections.
At a mammoth gathering of the exploited masses at Koppal in North Karnataka on January 17, 2009 under the banner of Janata Dal (Secular), two resolutions were passed calling upon all political parties to include in their manifestoes a commitment to implement the Karnataka Model of Reservation in education and employment for the benefit of backward classes, women, Muslims and other minorities.
The meeting, attended by lakhs of people from across the state and covered extensively by the local, state and national media, also urged all political parties to commit themselves to bringing suitable constitutional amendments to provide political reservation to OBCs and women on the lines of Karnataka state.
The Janata Dal (Secular) calls upon all political parties to seriously consider including the said Karnataka formula, as part of their commitment to equality and social justice, in their respective party manifestoes, with a view to bring the much-needed ray of hope into the lives of our underprivileged and downtrodden masses whom the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi had referred to as ‘Daridranarayan’.
It is high time we rise above our narrow differences and build a consensus on crucial issues such as poverty alleviation, combating communalism and emancipation of the socially and economically backward citizens. Only then alone can India, that is Bharat, be a super power in the real sense of the term.
Development and growth will have to be all inclusive and we should not end up creating islands of prosperity surrounded by oceans of poverty, illiteracy, hunger and deprivation by following an exclusivist model.
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