Reservations

 Mention of the word 'Reservation', is akin to showing a red flag to a bull, before you can complete your sentence that it was train reservation that you were referring to and not reservations for the supposedly downtrodden and oppressed, the youngsters will be up in arms. We have reservations  about the concept of reservation itself notwithstanding. Have you ever wondered, why are the train seats and berths reserved while flight tickets are booked or restaurant tables reserved!! You may attribute it to the Quirks of the Queen's language! 

While I have been singularly fortunate having joined the Armed Forces, where no such reservations are prevalent, our generation had its first major encounter in1989, when the word reservation became a part of the lexicon for the youth, when Mandal and Kamandal were pitched against each other. Kamandal signifying the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and Mandal named after Mandal Commission which had recommended 27% additional reservation for the OBCs (Other Backward Castes). While we were aware of reservations in Govt jobs and professional institutions for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes, it was limited to 10%. A sudden jump of 27% percent shook the students out of their stupor and they reacted by playing with fire, literally immolating themselves against the implementation of this ill advised policy amendment by the then PM Mr VP Singh. Without going into the gory details of the tragic consequences of that agitation, suffice to say, the students ended up losing not just their seats in academic institutions but also subsequent prospects of decent Govt employment opportunities as well. 

When Reservation was conceived by the architects of the Constitution it was supposed to be for a period of ten years as a temporary measure. How it came to be perpetuated ad infinitum is the story of blatant opportunism across party lines. 

Anyway, to return to the present day situation where my daughter is an affected party courtesy the latest Medical PG Entrance reservation policy of allocating 65% seats to various reserved categories and leaving just 35% for the General category. The irony of the situation dawned on us when discovering her plight despite such a good score in the Entrance test, our chef commented wryly, “Aap General category hain na!!”(Unfortunately you belong to the General category). Reverse discrimination was as blatant as it could be. A couple of years back, my friend’s nephew was going steady with a girl, her classmate in a professional institute. When the boy’s parents approached the girl’s parents for marriage, they were refused point blank because the girl belonged to a reserved category and they did not want their progeny to lose the privileges granted due to the reservations available in all walks of life in India.

Where does this leave the General category middle class student, he is suddenly made aware that he is underprivileged because he/she belongs to a supposed Upper caste, whose ancestors more than a century ago suppressed the so called people whose progeny today enjoy this privileged and exalted status. The irony is city dwellers were probably not even aware that the caste conundrum had such ramifications. Situation in the rural areas though is different, there are a number of incidents where the Upper castes are reported to have carried out atrocities on the downtrodden, but even there it is the rich Upper caste and not their poorer kith and kin as they are subjected to similar humiliation due to their penury. 

The Fourth Estate has played a very negative role in perpetuating casteism by dutifully highlighting only one side thereby vilifying entire communities. During elections, our national jamboree and favourite pastime this is taken to ridiculous levels, where only caste calculations are highlighted right from the selection of candidates to demography of the constituencies. I wonder why such blatant caste based analysis and reporting is permitted. The liberals would argue that by merely ignoring and not reporting this phenomena is not going to disappear, yes but having overdone it for almost seven decades since independence we are nowhere near getting rid of this monster either. Isn’t it time we change tracks, look for other alternatives or shall we continue in this same state, thereby further increasing the chasm into an unbridgeable social divide.