PROJECT TITLE: PROBLEMS OF MINORITY GROUP

INDEX

1.INTRODUCTION 2.BACKGROUND 3.HISTORY 4.MEANING 5.PROBLEMS OF MINORITY 6. NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR MINORITY 7.CONCLUSION

1:INTRODUCTION:
The term Minority represent a group numerically inferior to the rest of the population of a state, and in a non-dominant position whose members - being nationals of the state poses ethnic, religious or linguistic characteristics differing from those of the rest of the dominant population and show, if only implicitly, a sense of solidarity, directed towards preserving their culture, traditions, religions and language. On a close analysis of Constitution we find that minorities have been conferred several rights which can be either placed in a common or separate domain. The rights which fall in the common domain are those which are applicable to all citizens of our country. The rights which fall in separate domain are those which are applicable to the minorities only and these are reserved to protect their identity. The distinction between common domain and separate domain and their combination have been well kept and protected in the Constitution. The Preamble to the Constitution itself declares State to be Secular which indirectly protects the religious minorities. Equally relevant for them, especially, is the declaration of the Constitution in its Preamble that all citizens of India are to be secured liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship and equality of status and of opportunity. Though the Constitution of India uses the term Minorities at two places under Article 29 and 30, not define the word Minority anywhere and left it for the wisdom of future generation it does deliberately as the country had just come over the traumatic shock of communal violence & partition, and a growing tendency was visualized where different group, sect, religion were claiming special rights under different notion of minority concept, endangering national unity. The constitution expressly recognizes only two kinds of minorities i.e. religious and linguistic, however several special provisions for weaker sections like SC/ST, women, disables etc. suggest that it also recognizes economic, sexual, and vulnerable minorities. India represent an unparalleled diversity where six major religions- Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Buddhism and Zoroastrianism; two major language families, Aryan and Dravidian, with eighteen official languages and innumerable dialects and tribal tongues; three racial strains, Aryan, Dravidian, and proto-Australoid; and over two thousand castes, hierarchically ranked, endogamous and occupational are found. Thus in a pluralistic society as of ours any monolithic definition of nationalism is bound to create a situation of conflict between the majority and the minorities. Visualizing it the constitution has mooted the concept of secularism on one hand and on the other hand imposed on the state under different general and special laws, positive and negative duties to ensure the effective realization of several rights conferred to different minorities.

2.BACKGROUND:
Alternative names: Untouchables, Harijans, various caste names, Dalits Location: throughout India, also Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh Population: 110 million (1989 est.) % of population: 14.5% Religion: Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity The Scheduled Castes is the legal and constitutional name collectively given to the groups which have traditionally occupied the lowest status in Indian society and the Hindu religion which provides the religious and ideological basis for an untouchable group, which was outside the caste system and inferior to all other castes. Today, untouchability is outlawed, and these groups are recognized by the Indian Constitution to be especially disadvantaged because of their past history of inferior treatment, and are therefore entitled to certain rights and preferential treatment. The Scheduled Castes are not an homogenous group and are divided into many castes and subcastes, as well as by language and geography. Collectively they are best known outside India as Untouchables but this term is not used in official Indian terminology where the word harijan is more likely to be favoured. Politically-aware members of the Scheduled Castes are likely to use the term dalit. At an everyday level specific caste names are more likely to be used. Some derogatory names have been banned by law; in practice they are commonly used. Members of the Scheduled Castes are found all over India in some areas rising to over 25% of the population. With total numbers of over 100 million, they are the largest minority group in the world indeed one person in 40 is born untouchable. There is controversy on the origin of untouchability with some accounts stating that it was a feature of ancient Indian society and others that it was introduced with the Aryan invaders in the third century BC. The philosophy of caste is contained in the Manusmiriti, a sacred Hindu text dating from the second century BC and is related to the theory of transmigration of the soul and of karma (rebirth) and dharma (duty). Untouchable outcast communities were forbidden to join in the religious and social life of the community and were confined to menial polluting tasks such as slaughtering animals and leatherworking. The introduction of Islam from the thirteenth century AD led to widespread conversions by many low caste and untouchable groups and by the mid-nineteenth century about one quarter of the population was Muslim. The period of British rule from the late eighteenth century brought little change and attempts to ensure that public facilities, such as government schools, would be open to all castes had little impact. During the first half of the twentieth century the British Indian government began to take an interest in the condition of untouchable groups and depressed classes and their special position was recognized under the term Scheduled Castes. Among Indian politicians two main

approaches emerged, typified by two political and religious leaders who have by their ideas and actions made most impact on Untouchable advancement.

M. K. (Mahatma) Gandhi, whose chief aim was liberation from colonial rule within a distinctive philosophical system based upon amhinsa (non-violence), believed in raising the status of Untouchables while retaining elements of the traditional caste system but removing the degrading stigma and manifestations of untouchability, and coined the term harijan (Children of God) to describe them. This term is still used widely today by the non-Scheduled Caste communities although many Scheduled Caste members have now rejected it. The other approach came from Dr B. R. Ambedkar, a brilliant Untouchable lawyer, who believed that only by destroying the caste system could untouchability be destroyed. Ambedkar became the chief spokesperson for Scheduled Castes who demanded recognition as a separate entity similar in status to Muslims, Sikhs and Christians. Ambedkar was forced to drop this demand after Gandhi threatened a hunger strike, but as a consequence Scheduled Castes were granted increased electoral representation and a guarantee of special protection and rights for them. Ambedkar also rejected Hindu values and in 1956 converted to Buddhism, later followed by about three million converts.

Peoples : Main languages: Hindi (official), English, Urdu Main religions: Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Janism, Buddhism, Judaism Main minority groups include Dalits (scheduled castes) 166.6 million (16%) 2001 Census, Muslims 120 million (13.4%), Adivasis (scheduled tribes) 84 million (8%) 2001 Census including Nagas 100,000 (0.1%); also Christians 25,080,000 (2.4%), Sikhs 14,800,000 (1.9%), Kashmiris 9 million (est., 0.9%); others include Buddhists, Jews 6,000 (BBC News, 2008), Anglo-Indians, Andaman Islanders, Parsis

3.HISTORY:
Recognition and protection of minority rights in India was hardly an issue prior to the starting of twentieth century because of the hegemony of minority over majority and ruling class minorities unwillingness to interfere within the private, personal and religious matters of either group. All people had freedom to be governed by their religious and customary laws within their private affairs. The issue became relevant during early twentieth when Britishers gradually started power sharing with the Indian natives; and minorities especially Muslims led by Jinnah suspected their protection in the hands of majority Hindus. To address such fear Britishers along with certain princely states made special provisions for minority representation in legislature and government jobs. The Separate electorate system introduced by Britishers had two fold objectives (1) to mobilize several communities especially of minorities in India to participate in power sharing; (2) to prevent the strong nationalism growing under the single umbrella of Congress. The separate electorate system whereas criticized by congress; minorities led by Jinnah welcomed this model. Dr.B.R. Ambedkar a dalit leader also started demanding for separate electorate system for dalits an oppressed category of Hindu society. However after an assurance given by congress and Mahatma Gandhi that in independent India special provisions shall be made for economic and social minorities he relinquished his demand of separate electorate for dalits.

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF MINORITY RIGHTS IN INDIA:

1. Constitutional Assembly Stand on Minority Rights: Nation building is a dynamic process of integrating a plurality of social groups into a common framework of identity and loyalty ill a political community. While convincing to few representatives in constituent assembly who had created a little disagreement about the need for pluralism and special provision of justice for minorities Dr. B.R. Ambedkar said: To diehards who have developed a kind of fanaticism against minority protection I would like to say two things. One is that minorities are an explosive force which, if it erupts, can blow up the whole fabric of the state. The history of Europe bears ample and appalling testimony to this fact. The other is that the minorities in India have agreed to place their existence in the hands of the majority. In the history of negotiations for preventing the partition of the Ireland, Redmond said to Carson ask for any safeguard you like for the Protestant minority but let us have a United Ireland. Carsons reply was Damn your safeguards, we dont want to be ruled by you. No minority in India has taken this stand. They have loyally accepted the rule of the majority, which is basically a communal majority and not a political majority. It is for the

majority to realize its duty not to discriminate against minorities. Whether the minorities will continue or will vanish must depend upon this habit of the majority. The moment the majority loses the habit of discriminating against the minority, the minorities can have no ground to exist. They will vanish.

2. The Sub-Committee Report on Minorities: - This subcommittee after thorough analysis of present future aspect of minorities and country, prepared an interim report which dealt with the question of Fundamental Rights from the point of view of minorities. The report recommended 1. All citizens are entitled to use their mother tongue and the script thereof, and to adopt study or use any other language and script of their choice. 2. Minorities in every unit shall be adequately protected in respect of their language and culture, and no government may enact any laws or regulations that may act oppressively or prejudicially in this regard. 3. No minority, whether of religion, community or language shall be deprived of its rights or discriminated against in regard to the admission into state educational institutions, nor shall any religious instruction be compulsorily imposed upon them. 4. Notwithstanding any custom, law, decree or usage, presumption or terms of dedication, no Hindu on grounds of caste, birth or denomination shall be precluded from entering in educational institutions dedicated or intended for the use of the Hindu community or any action thereof, and 5. No disqualification shall arise on account of sex in respect of public services or professions or admission to educational institutions saves and except that this shall not prevent the establishment of separate educational institutions for boys and girls. The Advisory Committee accepted the recommendations partially and recommended the following clause to the Constituent Assembly: 1. Minorities in every unit shall be protected in respect of their language, script and culture, and no laws or, regulations may be enacted that may operate oppressively or prejudicially in this respect. 2. No minority whether based on religion, community or language shall be discriminated against with regard to admission into state educational institutions, nor shall any religious instruction be compulsorily imposed on such minority.

3. (a) All minorities whether based on religion, community or language shall be free in any unit to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. (b) The State shall not, while providing state aid to schools, discriminate against schools under the management of minorities whether based on religion, community, or language. The clause was incorporated as clause 24 with some drafting changes in the Draft Constitution prepared by the Constitutional Advisor. The Drafting Committee revised the text of clause 24 twice, the most significant change being the re-drafting of sub-clause (1). The clause finally took the shape as Article 23 of the Draft Constitution. The Drafting Committee, at the revision stage divided Article 23 into two separate Articles - Article 29 and 30 as now contained in the existing constitution. However other kind of language related issues were given the constitutional rights rather than fundamental rights. Thus except for a few concessions which the Assembly admitted for the Anglo-Indian community no other religious minority could secure any political rights. The concession to Anglo-Indians, as finally incorporated in the Constitution, comprised of provisions authorizing the President to nominate not more than two members of the AngloIndian community to the House of the People if in his opinion that community happened to be inadequately represented (Art. 331). A similar provision was made for nomination in the State Legislative Assemblies (Art. 333). Both the provisions were to remain in force for a period of 30~years only (Art. 334), a provision for reservation in railways, customs and postal and telegraph services for ten years, the reservations being on the same basis on which they were made before 1947 (Art. 336). A special provision for continuance of special educational grants for a period of ten years which were available to that community in l948 (Art. 337). Due to the partition of country there was a strong feeling against the communal forces and hence no attempt was made on any occasion even to define the term minority in precise words. The feeling was so strong that the words certain classes were substituted for the word minorities wherever it occurred in the text of the Constitution. Not only is the use of the term minority in the Constitution very rare but also no group is mentioned explicitly as a minority therein. The term minority is mentioned in only two Articles, 29 and 30. Here too the use of the term is not for definitional purposes. In one of the Articles it is used only in the sub-heading of the Article and not in the text of the Article. More so Article 366 of the Constitution, which is exclusively utilized to give the meaning of words and terms used in the text of the Constitution gives meaning to 30 such expressions. But here too the term minority is not covered. This attitude of the founding fathers with regard to minority term shows that they had grown allergic to the use of the term in the Constitution.

4.MEANING :(OF MINORITY UNDER INDIAN CONSTITUTION)

As earlier said the Constitution neither defines the term minority nor provides details relating to the geographical and numerical specification of this concept though it talks about the rights of minorities under Article 29 and 30. . However The U.N. Sub-Committee on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities has defined minority as A group of citizens of a State, constituting a numerical minority and in a non-dominant position in that State, endowed with ethnic, religious or linguistic characteristics which differ from those of the majority of the population, having a sense of solidarity with one another, motivated, if only implicitly, by a collective will to survive and whose aim it is to achieve equality with the majority in fact and in law. As per the existing standard of human rights minority is a group which basically possess following characteristics (1) Its members experience discrimination, segregation, oppression, or persecution by a dominant group; (2) It is characterized by physical or cultural, linguistic etc traits that distinguish from the dominant group; (3) It is a self-conscious social group (4) Membership in a minority is generally involuntary; and (5) The members of a minority, by choice or necessity, typically marry within their own group. In order to clear the constitutional stands about the concept of minority first attempt was made in Re Kerela Education Bill where Supreme Court held that the minority means a community, which is numerically less than 50 percent of the total population. However it does not gave the exact picture of geographical extent within which the criteria of 50% is to be determined. Later on in Guru Nanak University case, while rejecting the contention of the state of Punjab that a religious or linguistic minority should be determined in relation to the entire population of India, Supreme Court ruled that a minority has to be determined in relation to the particular legislation which is sought to be implemented. If it is a state law, the minorities have to be determined in relation to state the population. The court has pointed out if various sections and classes of Hindus were to be regarded as minorities under article 30(1), then the Hindus would be divided into numerous sections and classes and ceases to be majority any longer. The sections of one religion can not constitute religious minorities. The term minority based on religion should be restricted only to those religious minorities, e.g., Muslims, Christians, Jains,Buddhists, Sikhs, etc, which have kept their identity separate from majority, namely, the Hindus. In TMA Pai foundation case the eleven judges bench of the Supreme Court confirmed the position that minority status of a community is to be decided with reference to the state population.

EXPRESSED MINORITIES UNDER THE CONSTITUTION

If we see the provisions of the constitution it talks about only two kinds of minorities i. e. religious and linguistic minority. India is a land of diversity and of different religions with Hindus in majority. According to the 2001 census the religious composition of the population is as follows4.1 Religious Composition of the Indian Population Religious group Population Growth Sex Literacy Ratio(1991(%) (%) (%) 2001) 80.46 13.43 2.34 1.87 0.77 0.41 0.65 20.3 36 22.6 18.2 18.2 26 103.1 931 936 1009 893 953 940 992 65.1 59.1 80.3 69.4 72.7 94.1 47 Work Sex Sex participation ratio(rural) ratio (urban) Hindu Muslims Christian Sikh Buddhist Jain Others 40.4 31.3 39.7 37.7 40.6 32.9 48.4 944 953 1001 895 958 937 995 894 907 1026 886 944 941 966 925 950 964 786 942 872 976 Sex ratio(child)

Current Status: After independence, the Indian constitution abolished untouchability in law. Today Dalit politics largely centres on the just dispensation of the affirmative action benefits granted to them under constitution. Various laws were made that were derived from Constitution like the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955/1976 and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989. However, these laws remain ineffective in their implementation. Politically, dalits have not been able to participate in mainstream debates and discussions despite the system of much-debated reservations that works both at national and state levels. Almost 90 per cent of Dalits live in rural areas. Economic exploitation remains their most acute problem. They are almost all marginal farmers or landless labourers. Large numbers migrate to cities or to labour-scarce rural areas in different parts of India. Many are in debt and are obliged to work-off their debts as bonded labour, despite the fact that this practice was abolished by law in 1976. In these cases a labourer takes a loan from a landlord or moneylender and in return agrees to work for that person until the debt has been repaid. In practice such debts are difficult to repay as interest rates are high and poverty forces the labourer into deeper debt. The debt can then be passed on to the next generation and it is almost impossible to escape the cycle of bondage. In some areas many high-caste landlords pay their Dalit labourers minimum wages in cash or food, or nothing at all; resistance is frequently met by violence, sometimes resulting in the death or injury of the victim. Mob violence against Dalit communities is frequently reported, sometimes

led by landlords, and has been especially noticeable in situations where Dalit workers have joined labour unions or made progress in gaining education and economic mobility. The empirical evidence shows that their capability deprivation with regard to other caste groups is higher. Recent data from Census 2001 shows that the literacy rates for the SCs was as low as 55 percent, compared to a national average of 69 percent. Similarly, the life expectancy estimates for 1998-99 show that at national level, the life expectancy for Dalits was 62 years and 66 for other castes. The infant mortality rate among the SCs was around 83 per thousand live births which was considerably higher than for the other caste (68 per thousand). The percentage of under-nourished children at national level was 54 percent for the SCs, and 44 percent for the non-SCs. An average of 44.15 percent of Dalits households did not have access to health care services, while this figure amounted to 37% for other households. Similarly, in terms of access to property or resources, such as ownership of agricultural land, 56% of Dalits owned less than one acre (of which 47.5% owned less than half acre). Landless and near landless (that is, those owning less than one acre) put together account nearly 70% of the total Dalits in 1991. Dalits have also witnessed an increase of 2.4 per cent in crime (from 26,252 cases against Dalits reported in 2003 to 26,887 cases in 2004. Reservation has been in existence since its inception without any interruption. This has helped in creation of new educated Dalit middle class, but this is relatively and proportionately very low. The majority of Dalits still fail to utilize the privileges under this scheme. A majority of Dalit Children in both rural and urban areas do not attend schools. Though education documents assure us that schools are available within walking distance to all children in rural areas, this does not even hold if one looks more closely at official statistics. Further, given the spatial segregation of Dalit communities in villages and among them specially those who traditionally remove night soil and the fact that schools are located within the upper caste areas, the question of how socially accessible schools are is also relevant. Dalits and Religion: Dalits are not limited to the religion of Hinduism, but they are present in other religions too. Islam: Muslim society in India can also be separated into several caste-like groups. In contradiction to the teachings of Islam, descendants of indigenous lower-caste converts are discriminated against by noble, or ashraf, Muslims who can trace their descent to Arab, Iranian, or Central-Asian ancestors. There are several groups in India working to emancipate them from upper-caste Muslim discrimination. The Dalit Muslims are referred to by the Ashraf and Ajlaf Muslims as Arzal or ritually degraded. They were first recorded in the 1901 census as those with whom no other Muhammadan would associate, and who are forbidden to enter the mosque or to use the public burial ground. They are relegated to menial professions such as scavenging and carrying night soil.

Ambedkar wrote about the Dalit Muslims and was extremely critical of their mistreatment by upper-caste Muslims, writing: Within these groups there are castes with social precedence of exactly the same nature as one finds among the Hindus. Sikhism: Dalits form a class among the Sikhs who stratify their society according to traditional casteism. The most recent controversy was at the Talhan village Gurudwara near Jalandhar where there was a dispute between JatSikhs and Ravidasia Sikhs. The Different Sikh Dalits are Ravidasia Sikh and Mazhabi Sikh. Although Sikhism does not recognize the Caste System, many families, especially the ones with immediate cultural ties to India, generally do not marry among different castes. There are sects such as the Adi-Dharmis who have now abandoned Sikh Temples and the 5 Ks. They are like the Ravidasis and regard Ravidas as their guru. They are also clean shaven as opposed to the mainstream Sikhs. Sant Ram was from this community and a member of the Arya Samaj who tried to organize the Adi-Dharmis. Other Sikh groups include Jhiwars, Bazigars, Rai Sikh (many of whom are Ravidasias.) Just as with Hindu Dalits, there has been violence against Sikh Dalits. Christianity: Across India, many Christian communities still follow the caste system. Sometimes the social stratification remains unchanged and in some cases such as among Goan Christians, the stratification varies as compared to the Hindu system. Conversion to Christianity does not necessarily free Dalits from the bondage of the caste system. Buddhism: In Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and a few other regions, Dalits have come under the influence of the neo-Buddhist movement initiated by Ambedkar. Some of them have come under the influence of the Neo-Buddhist and Christian Missionaries and have converted away from Hinduism into religions such as Christianity and Buddhism in what they have been told is an attempt to eliminate the prejudice they face. Steps taken by Government of India: The Infrastructure and Project Monitoring Division (IPMD) in the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation monitors the performance of infrastructure sectors and Central sector projects costing Rs.20 crore and above. Under this division was set up a Twenty Point Programme(TPP) with the objective of improving the quality of life of people, especially those living below poverty line. As per TPP-2006 there are 20 points and 65 items. TPP-2006 includes Anusuchit Jaati, Jan Jaati, Alp-sankhyak evam Anya Pichhre Varg Kalyan [Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Minorities and OBCs] as one of its points. After independence, the Government of India has taken number of steps to strengthen the educational base of the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The National Policy on Education 1986, updated in 1992 envisages paying greater attention to the education of the educationally backward minorities in the interest of

equity and social justice. In pursuance of the revised Programme of Action (POA) 1992, two new Centrally-sponsored schemes, i.e., (i) Scheme of Area Intensive Programme for Educationally Backward Monorities; and (ii) Scheme of Financial Assistance for Modernisation of Madarsa Education were launched during 1993-94. Over a time, it has been felt that all these schemes need to be implemented in an integrated way so as to have wider coverage, greater thrust and visibility of minority education programme. In the Tenth Plan the aforesaid two schemes have been merged to form the Area Intensive and Madarsa Modernisation Programme. The National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions 2004 has been set-up by an Act of Parliament under which minority education institutions can seek affiliation to Scheduled Universities. University of Delhi, North Eastern Hill University; Pondicherry University; Assam University; Nagaland University and Mizoram University are at present in the Schedule. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation has updated the National Housing and Habitat Policy, 1998. The new National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy, 2007 (NUHHP2007), has been finalised in consultation with all concerned and laid in the Parliament on 07.12.2007. The new Policy is aimed to provide housing and other basic infrastructure to economically weaker sections, low income groups and other sections of the society at affordable cost. This policy lays special emphasis on SC/ST/BC/Minorities. Government of India have come up with various schemes for the upliftment of Dalits. In 2006, the Government has drawn up and implemented a reservation policy through a legislative enactment in Parliament that will entitle members of Other Backward Classes (OBCs), both Hindu and Muslim, to avail of fifty per cent of seats in all government educational institutions and all government-aided and sponsored educational institutions. This is in consonance with the objectives of the Ninth Five Year Plan (1997-2002) that chooses to enhance growth with social justice and equity. It needs to be mentioned that the Ninth Plan emphasizes on the removal of historical social wrongs through the vehicle of private participation and private ownership in industry.

5.Problems of Religious Minorities:

1.The problems of minorities, who are relatively lesser in numerical strength than the majority community, have been gaining too much importance in the politics of many nations in the world. Both the developed and developing countries are also caught in the problems associated with the minorities. In many third world nations, nowadays, racial tensions, communal violence and ethnic clashes make headlines almost daily. For instance, the ethnic conflict between the Buddhists and the Tamils is still going on in Sri Lanka, which has put a major obstacle in the way of economic development of that country. 2.India, which is known as a peace-loving nation, is also not spared by the problems of minorities. India is a multi-religious country and her society is pluralistic in nature from the religious and other points of view. Since a very long time, people belonging to various religious communities have been living together in this country. Not only major religious communities are spread all over the country, but the people belonging to all religious communities reside in each village and town in the country. Religious minority groups in India are chiefly the Muslims, the Christians, the Sikhs, the Jains and the Buddhists, who have been able to preserve their group identities and have also stayed in the mainstream of national politics. 3.The Muslims in India constitute the largest religious minority in the country. Though a minority in its numerical strength, it is as big as to make it the second biggest Muslim population in the world, next to Indonesia. The Muslims constituted 13.4 per cent of the Indian population according to the 2001 census, and form an important segment in the social fabric of the country. But economically, Muslims are the most backward community with the lowest employment rate. With such backward economic status, there was hardly any incentive for a modern secular education. 4.Unlike the Muslims, the Christians are the second largest and oldest religious minority in the country. It is chiefly spread in south India, particularly in Kerala. Consistent with the social philosophy of their religion, the Christians, in India are well represented in the social welfare activities of the country with particular concern for the service of the unprivileged. Their role in the sphere of health and education is well recognised. But recently, some Christian missionaries of the country have been alleged to be involved in conversion activities that led to communal conflicts which witnessed large scale attacks on the churches and Christians in Gujarat, Orissa and several other states. The very recent attacks on Christians and churches in the Kandhamal district of Orissa shook the entire Christian community of the world.

5.Similarly, the early part of the 20th century witnessed the rise of numerous Sikh sectarian organisations that emphasised the distinct Sikh identity. Sikhism is another important religion in India which is spread in different parts of the country, especially in Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Bihar, etc. Claiming Punjab as their motherland, the Sikhs have developed a very strong subnational identity, carrying with them the vital elements of the Punjabi culture. The Sikhs are excellent cultivators in the rural areas; they have played a very significant role in the Green Revolution of the country. In urban areas, most of them earn their livelihood in the trade and commerce sectors. They have always maintained a larger share in defence forces of the country. Like the Muslims, Sikhs and Christians, other religious minorities of the country, such as the Jains and the Buddhists have also stayed in the mainstream of Indian politics. 6.The Constitution of India has provided the minority groups with some safeguards. The Preamble of the Constitution describes the concept of secularism which means that the State has no religion of its own, and there is equal respect for and protection to all religions. No one is to be discriminated on grounds of religion and everyone is guaranteed full and equal freedom of religion. Article 30 of the Indian Constitution states that the minorities have rights to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. This includes the right to choose the medium of instruction, curricula, and subject to be taught. Minorities can impart instructions to their children in their own languages. The National Commission for Minorities undertakes review of the implementation of the policies formulated by the Union and state governments with regard to minorities. It looks into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguards of minorities, and conducts research and analysis on the question of avoidance of discrimination against the minorities. 7.The minority communities have to face several problems in India. The minorities are not able to integrate properly in the Hindu-dominated society. There is apprehension among some sections that for enlarging its base, the Christian community is involved in converting the low caste Hindus or tribes to its own community or religion, resulting in the killing and intense conflict between the majority Hindus and the Christian minority. This has created too much insecurity and fear among the Christian minority in India. The minorities claim that unlike their Hindu counterpart, they are relatively deprived in areas like employment, politics and social facilitation. According to them, they are poorly represented in civil services as well as in medical and engineering colleges. The serious communal riots especially after 1960s have instilled a sense of insecurity among the Muslims and tend to push them into their narrow communal shell. The anti-Muslim violence in Gujarat during February-May 2002 supposedly in retaliation to the Godhra incident has shaken not only the Indian Muslims, but all the concerned Indian

citizens. During the caste conflicts, communal violence, etc., the minority groups seek police protection. But the government in power also finds it difficult to provide such protection for all the members of minorities. For instance, the Modi government in Gujarat was unable to provide protection for the Muslims after the Gujarat massacre, in which huge numbers of Muslims were killed. Again, the then Rajiv Gandhi government at the Centre was severely criticised for its failure to provide adequate security for the Sikh community of Delhi because of the communal riots that broke out after the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. Now, secularism began to be used merely as a slogan of opportunism. The politicians found it easy to align a large number of multi-cultural citizens into culturally distinct groups for the realization of their vested interests. Most of the communal riots in the country have been the handiwork of disgruntled politicians, anti-social elements and criminals. Demolition of the Babri Masjid in December 1992, the Mumbai riots, and the Godhra carnage and subsequent massacres in 2002 revealed the serious weakness and susceptibility of Indias commitments towards democracy and secularism. Thus, the condition of religious minorities in India continues to be very complex and critical. 8.In order to improve the condition of the religious minorities in India, the government in power should make every effort to restore their confidence. It is also necessary to create conditions in which the minorities are assured that their constitutional and legal rights are safeguarded. The government should seriously respond to the real needs and requirements of the poor and needy minority groups. The government should seriously consider the Sachar Committee Report without any delay and implement its recommendations. People-to-people contact, social consciousness, abolition of illiteracy etc. may prove useful confidence-building measures. The secular values must be internalised by the people and political parties. No political party should be permitted to contest election by exploiting the emotions of a particular community. Efforts should also be made to promote liberal social reforms to deal effectively with communalism and the influence of communalist leaders. The secular political class of India should campaign for widening the base of education for Muslims. The religious minorities have to be empowered educationally and economically. The progress of the country can be achieved if all the religious communities in India live in perfect harmony.

OTHER IMP.PROBLEMS:
1. Equality before Law and Equal Protection of Law: Article 14 guarantees every person equality before law and equal protection of law. In order to ensure the better protection of this right to the minorities, state is clearly directed under prohibitory articles like Arts. 15(1), 16(1), and 29(2) to not discriminate any person from availing the benefits of constitutional rights, on ground of religion or language amongst several other grounds. Over the years the court has also continuously observed that equality provisions under the constitution means not only dejure equality but also defacto equality and hence state is under constitutional mandate to ensure that minorities who usually belong to the weaker section of society are able to realize their rights and to ensure this mandate it is entitled for making favorable affirmative discrimination. Few such enabling provisions imposing state obligation for special treatment and protection to all weaker sections under common domain are 1. Duty to make special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens 2. Duty to make provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens. 3. Duty to endeavor to eliminate inequalities in status, facilities and opportunities amongst individuals and groups of people residing in different areas or engaged in different vocations; 4. Duty to promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people (besides Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes); and 5. Duty of citizens to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities.

2. Restrictions on Freedom of Religion: Freedom under article 25 is not absolute; it is subject to following restrictions (1) In the name of religion, no act can be done against public order, morality, and health of the public. For example, in the name of religion untouchability or traffic in human beings e.g. system of devadasis cannot be tolerated. The freedom of religion is also subject to the other provisions of this Part e.g., right to freedom of speech and expression, freedom of assembly and association, etc. (2) The freedom to practice extends only to those activities which are the essence of religion. It does not cover secular, political or commercial activities associated with religious practice.Thus in Acharya Jagdishwaranand Vs. Commissioner of Police, Calcutta held that the Tandava dance in procession or at public places by Ananda Margis carrying lethal weapons and human skulls was not an essential religious rite and hence the order prohibiting such procession was not violative of the right of petitioners under Articles 25 and 26. (3) Article 25 cant be used to deny state from its authority to eradicate social practices (viz. bigamy and polygamy under Hindu law) and dogmas which stand in the path of the countrys onward progress. Such laws do not affect the essence of any religion. This sub-clause ensures an individuals legal right to enter into a temple unobstructed irrespective of his caste, untouchability, social inequality, etc.

3. STATUS OF OTHER VULNERABLE MINORITIES UNDER INDIAN CONSTITUTION Besides the expressed religious and linguistic minorities the constitution also recognizes several vulnerable minorities who faces structural discrimination from the dominant majority in the specific area. Such vulnerable groups include Women, Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), Children, Aged, Disabled, Poor migrants, People living with HIV/AIDS and Sexual Minorities. 1. Economic Minorities: Scheduled castes and Scheduled tribes mainly constitute economic minorities in India. They are presently facing several problems because of their socio-economic conditions. The main causes for vulnerability amongst Scheduled Caste are interconnected such as - economic dependency on upper castes, landlessness , joblessness, occupational diseases, illiteracy, malnutrition, inability to access public utilities etc which results in their physical, psychological, emotional, and cultural abuse .Schedule tribe with 8% of total population forms another economic minority who usually lives in forest or on hills. They also face almost same

kind of vulnerability as faced by scheduled castes. However their condition is even worse than schedule castes because they were granted neither property rights, nor compensation in lieu of development induced displacement as forest and hills are usually considered by the government as common property owned by state. The health outcomes among the Scheduled Tribes are very poor even as compared to the Scheduled Castes. The Infant Mortality Rate among Scheduled Castes is 83 per 1000 live births while it is 84.2 per 1000 per live births among the Scheduled Tribes.Besides the general equality and non discriminatory provisions of Article 14,15(1)&(2),17 29(2) constitution has incorporated several special provisions for SC/STs directly and indirectly such as special provision for admission in educational institution ; favorable reservation in jobs , employment , promotion; preventing social injustice and other forms of exploitation; giving autonomy in governance;providing special grants; favorable reservation of seats House of the People and Legislative Assemblies of the States; establishing National Commission for the Scheduled Castes and scheduled tribes;preparation of the list of tribals; and also for state specific protection of these people.Besides these general provisions of constitution several enactments has also separately protect their rights the most important amongst these are -Protection Of Civil Rights Act 1995 And Forest Rights Act 2006 which penalizes untouchability and gives land rights to tribals on forest land traditionally occupied by them. 2. Minorities based on Age: Improved medical knowledge has enabled the significant growth of elderly people above 60 years who are now constitute a significant vulnerable minority , their vulnerability occurs due to physical disability, illness, death of spouse, increased economic dependency on dependants for access to food, clothing and healthcare. Children and aged people are vulnerable because of their age. So far as children are concerned their vulnerability is associated with their gender, caste, poor economic condition of parents, lack of nutritious food, health care etc. Children and aged people forms the weaker section of society so besides all equality principles. Besides equality articles, Art. 15(3)(state to make special provisions for children,24(prohibition of child employment in Hazardous activities), 39(e)&(f)(tender age of children is protected and adequate nutritional demand is supplied to them), 45 and 21-A (Right to education) etc of constitution and Prohibition of Child Labour Acts 1986 as amended in 2006 deals with several aspect of children. So far as Aged people are concerned Article 41(requires state to provide social security against unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement), Art.47 (state to provide standard living condition) of constitution makes special provisions for them. They are also benefitted from section 125 Cr.P.C, Hindu Adoption, and Maintenance Act 1956, Domestic Violence Act etc. The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Seniors Citizens Bill, 2007 seeks to comprehensively deal with aged people.

3. Minority Based on Disability and Migration: There are about 21.9 million disabled populations in India which faces several kind of vulnerability depending upon the nature of disability. Amongst such disability the worst kind of problems are faced by people suffering from mental disabilities. Five out of ten leading causes of disability and premature death worldwide are due to psychiatric conditions. Such people faces severe forms of human rights violations as they are kept in chains, denied basic needs like food, clothing and face different forms of physical and sexual abuse. The reason for their vulnerability is unskillful nature, economic dependency on family, and lack of medical facility on part of government. Migrants also form vulnerable minority groups. International illegal migrants are abused and exploited by employers, migration agents, corrupt bureaucrats, and criminal gangs. Internal migrants are employed in cultivation and plantations, brick-kilns, quarries, construction sites, fish processing, informal manufacturing, construction, services, transport sectors etc as casual labourers, head loaders, rickshaw pullers, and Hawkers which are unsuitable to health. Among the migrants most vulnerable people are Internally Displaced People ethnic conflicts, religious conflicts, political reasons, development projects, natural disaster etc. Inability to adjustment in new environment many times results in cardio-vascular stress, psycho-trauma, endocrine stress, musculo-skeletal stress, ulcers etc. The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights, and Full Participation) Act 1995, Mental Health Act 1987 and several various labour laws relating to payment of wages, condition of work , absolute liability of owner in certain hazardous handling activities, as well as constitutional provisions relating to weaker sections of society like Article 41(requires state to provide social security against unemployment ,old age ,sickness and disablement),Art.47(state to provide standard living condition) deals with the disables and migrants. 4. Women as Minority: Women form a special class of minority who has low status as compared to men in Indian society and are considered generally political minority. They have little control on the resources and on important decisions related to their lives. Women face double discrimination being members of specific caste, class, or ethnic group apart from experiencing gendered vulnerabilities which includes infanticide, sexual violence, forced abortion etc. In India, early marriage and childbearing affects womens health adversely. About 28 per cent of girls in India get married below the legal age and experience pregnancy. During infancy and growing years a girl child faces different forms of violence like infanticide, neglect of nutrition needs, education, and healthcare. As adults they face violence due to unwanted pregnancies, domestic violence, sexual abuse at the workplace and sexual violence including marital rape and honor killings. Constitution besides under the general articles of equality and prohibition of discrimination based on sex under Article 14,15(1)&(2), also empowers the state

for making special provision for women and children. It also provides for adequate means of livelihood to women , equal pay for equal work to sexes, health facilities, and maternity reliefs to women, fundamental duty of citizens to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women. Besides all these articles 243-D and 243-T brought through 73rd and 74th amendment to the Constitution on year 1992 provides for reservation of seats for women in Panchayats and municipalities respectively. Besides it there are several provisions of I.P.C. (113-A, 498-A, 312,) and section 125 of Cr.P.C. several legislations specifically deals with women protection and empowerment. Now there is ongoing consensus to reserve one third of the seats in legislature for women to grant them political justice.

5. Sexual Minorities: Sexual minorities include people suffering from sexual diseases as HIV/AIDS as well as people who are homosexuals. Indias National AIDS Control Organization estimated in 2005 that there were 5.206 million HIV infections in India, of which 38.4 per cent occurred in women and 57 % occurred in rural areas. The causes for the vulnerability of people with HIV/AIDS are its sinful perception of disease in society, negative response from government, and health professionals, economic conditions, divorce, physical violence, and denial from propertyetc. Sexual Minorities as generally understood are those identified as gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, kothi and hijra. These people usually suffers discrimination and vulnerability due to penal provisions, dominance of heterosexuals in society, religious stigma, police surveillance, limited support from government etc. However recently in the case of Naz Foundation Vs National Capital Territory of Delhi, the High Court of Delhi has declared section 377 of the IPC as being unconstitutional. The Court held that to the extent Section 377 IPC criminalized consensual non-vaginal sexual acts between adults; it violated an individuals fundamental rights to equality before the law, freedom from discrimination and to life and personal liberty under Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

6. NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR MINORITY

In order to preserve the countrys secular traditions, to promote national integration and to remove any feeling of inequality and discrimination amongst minorities, the Government of India constituted a Minorities Commission in 1978 through administrative order which was later on regularized by The National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. The Commission discharges the following functions under Section 9 of the Act (a) evaluate the progress of the development of minorities; (b) monitor the working of the safeguards provided in the Constitution and other enactments; (c) make recommendations to appropriate government for the effective protection of the interests of minorities; (d) look into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguards of the minorities and take up such matters with the appropriate authorities; (e) cause studies into problems arising out of any discrimination against minorities and recommend measures for their removal; (f) conduct studies and researched analysis on the issues relating to socio-economic and educational development of minorities; (g) suggest appropriate measures in respect of any minority to be under taken by the Appropriate government; (h) make periodical or special reports to the Central Government on any matter relating to minorities and in particular difficulties faced by them; and (i) any other matter which may be referred to it by the Central Government As a nations conscience keeper, a glimpse of the voluminous annual reports submitted by the Minorities Commission reflects that it has done a great job in collection of data, sensitization, prompt interference and in giving suitable suggestions. Besides it recently in the year 2005, the Parliament has also enacted the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions Act for providing additional safeguards to the minority educational institutions.

7.CONCLUSIONWITH SUGGESTIONS: Despite of some ups and downs recent celebration of 64 th Independence Day in accordance with the settled democratic principles itself marks that multi-religious, multi-cultural, multilingual, and multi-racial Indian society, has been interwoven into an innate unity by the common thread of national integration where aspirations of minorities as well as those of majorities have been successfully achieved by adopting several constitutional, legal and progressive administrative policies. However over the years the increasing majoritarianism and minoritarianism in Indian society as reflected in several communal violences and violent separatist or autonomy movement based on religion language ethnicity has divided the nation and affected the welfare and development of the society to a greater extent. Absence of a clear concept of minority under constitution has given ample chances for the orthodox people and judiciary to narrow down its broader concept and limiting it only up to the religious and linguistic minorities while excluding several other minorities like minorities based on economic, political, sexual vulnerabilities. Further even the condition of religious and linguistic minorities has not improved despite of their expressed recognition under the constitution as clearly reflected in recent Sachar Committee report and several other reports of the minority commission. They are still vulnerable and have a very limited sharing in community development. Regarding linguistic minorities several ancient languages has either extinguished are about to be extinguished due to the lack of government patronage which is more favorable to only languages recognized under VIIth schedule of the constitution. On ground of above observation I would like to put forward following suggestions Concept of minority should be broadened by specific provisions in the constitution to include sexual, aged, migrants, disabled, and other several minorities. Unfortunately still we have no clear concept of secularism; it should be more specifically defined as secularism has become the mother of communalism. The various communal organizations relating to any community should be banned. A balanced development of all communities must be ensured. Under present model of development tribals have become sacrificial lambs who though form only 8% of population are 50% victim of development induced displacement.

 The growing regional disparity must be curbed by establishing separate fund for weaker and poor states and minorities living therein. Several valuable suggestions of Sachar Committee recommendation must be complied so far as they are compatible with the constitution. Provisions should be made to ensure unbiased proper review of several laws relating to the protection of minorities. Election commission must be given more powers to adjudicate and provide prompt decision as to whether a speech is communal or not. Leaders of communal antecedent should be barred from contesting elections. A separate commission for promotion and protection of extinguishing languages should be established. In nutshell government must take the concept of minority in holistic way while formulating its policies and more positive steps should be taken to protect the minoritys rights.