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The Justice (Retd.) K.G. Balakrishnan Commission examining the contented of Scheduled Caste presumption for Dalit converts has finished its survey and prepared the study it was tasked with astir 4 years ago, The Hindu has learnt.
The three-member Commission of Inquiry was constituted by the Union authorities successful October 2022, conscionable arsenic the Supreme Court was astir to resume proceeding a batch of pleas that sought SC presumption for Dalit Muslims and Christians. The contented has been pending successful the apical tribunal for 20 years now.
The Commission’s mandate included examining whether SC presumption tin beryllium granted to Dalits who person converted to immoderate religion different than those mentioned successful the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order of 1950. Currently, lone Dalits of Hindu, Buddhist, and Sikh faiths are entitled to an SC classification, dissimilar the Scheduled Tribe status, which does not person a religion criterion.
Multiple extensions
Nearly 4 years aft the Commission was formed, officials alert of the substance said that the study has been prepared and is presently being readied successful a “book format” for authoritative submission. One authoritative said that the Commission should beryllium capable to taxable its study “in a fewer days”.
The Commission was initially fixed a two-year deadline to decorativeness its enactment and taxable a study to the government. Since 2024, the Commission has been fixed aggregate extensions, the past 1 successful April this year, which acceptable the latest deadline astatine June 10, 2026. Gazette records bash not amusement immoderate further hold granted to the Commission.
Pending case
According to the government, the Commission’s survey was meant to look astatine the request for SC presumption for Dalit converts, the absorption to this request and its interaction connected existing SC communities, and the levels and types of favoritism faced by Dalit communities aft they person to different faiths.
Even arsenic a batch of petitions remains pending successful the Supreme Court connected the Constitutional question of whether Dalit Christians and Muslims tin beryllium granted SC status, the apical tribunal had precocious ruled successful the lawsuit of a Christian pastor from Andhra Pradesh that the religion barroom arsenic it exists for the SC classification was “absolute”.
Notably, the Union Social Justice Ministry has made aggregate submissions to the Supreme Court successful these matters, arguing that the SC presumption should beryllium denied to radical who had converted to faiths similar Islam and Christianity, citing the overseas origins of these religions, portion the religions presently included are Indic successful nature.
