History re-written

For the first time in the history of appointments to Public services the Backward Hindus came to be recognized and a separate allocation was made for them.

Article 16(1) of the Indian Constitution reads as follows:-

16(1) There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the State.

(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence or any of them, be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office under the State.

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(3) Nothing in this article shall prevent Parliament from making any law prescribing, in regard to a class or classes of employment or appointment to an office under the Government of, or any local or other authority within, a State or Union territory, any requirement as to residence within that State or Union territory, prior to such employment or appointment.

(4) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens which, in the opinion of the State, is not adequately represented in the services under the State.

(4A) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for reservation in matters of promotion to any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes which, in the opinion of the State, are not adequately represented in the services under the State.

(5) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any law which provides that the incumbent of an office in connection with the affairs of any religious or denominational institution or any member of the governing body thereof shall be a person professing a particular religion or belonging to a particular denomination.

Article 335 reads as follows:-

The claim of the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes shall be taken into consideration, consistently with the maintenance of efficiency of administration, in the making of appointments to services and posts in connection with the affairs of the Union or of a State.

The Constitution as originally passed contained Article 16(4). Yet, soon after the Constitution came into force the Govt. of India suggested to State Governments that the existing system of recruitment to Public services on communal basis should be abrogated at an early date as it was inconsistent with the letter and spirit of Article 16 of the Constitution and that suitable provisions within the meaning of Article 16(4) and Article 335 of the Constitution should be made for protecting the interests of the weaker sections of society.  There were also objections from a section of the public to the communal reservation followed in the matter of admission of students to the Professional Colleges.

(To Be Continued)