Category Governance

The Supreme Court of India delivered a 3-2 verdict today (7 Nov 2022), in favor of the ruling Hindutva government’s initiative to allocate a 10% Reservation Quota for “upper caste” Indians in education and jobs. This 10% EWS (Economically Weaker Sections) Reservation Quota is branded as a pro-poor program but it is exclusive only to the so-called “upper castes”.

Post-Independence, India set aside a 50% Reservation Quota for citizens that belong to castes that were categorized as SC/OBC/SC classes. The rationale for quota for SC/OBC/STs, who represent 80% of India’s population, was to undo the damage done by caste-driven repression for over 1,500 years. Upliftment from economic backwardness was not the only goal. It was also meant to address societal discrimination directed at and caste stigma associated with affluent SC/OBC/STs. Poor “upper castes” were not subject to such systemic repression and hence their economic success or failure was more of a function of their individual efforts and talent.

If a quota program is initiated to uplift the poor, there is absolutely no justification for excluding SC/OBC/STs from the program because it violates anti-discrimination provisions of the Constitution of India. This is more of an effort to appease the ruling dispositions’ core vote bank of “upper caste” voters. While the ruling party’s agenda is driven by “upper caste” interests, the only way they differ from other national parties is the brazenness by which they push their agenda. What India desperately needs to move forward in a progressive direction is a political party, at the national level, that is aligned with SC/OBC/ST interests and agenda – representing a clear, compelling idealogical alternative.

India’s ruling classes, essentially the “upper castes”, will do themselves a favor if they understand that a British-style, caste driven, top down social hierarchy is not conducive to transitioning to a 21st century great power. Rather, a compassionate, equal opportunity, merit-driven hierarchy that inspires all citizens and delivers great overall societal outcomes, as in China and some European countries, is essential.

you should be thinking that this is more and more of a treasure that you have and that the best thing you can do with it is to share it laterally horizontally, copy and paste that everywhere so that the thing that you have in your hands that might have been useful to people goes everywhere that it needs to be …

“.. it is a form of censorship if you bully change makers and innovators by making them prove to you how they can self sustain and grow financially. If that’s what you put them through first, you are censoring our ability to be creative, communal and collaborative right when we most need to do that. And I would encourage you if you have the comfort, the privilege, the power to maybe back off on that a little bit and try investing in some of the people that are running these experiments with ownership design, (then) you are making a very timely and helpful investment (for the humanity, for the planet) .. ”

“If you are fortunate enough to have a company, to have resources or even bump into a change maker or an innovator who has a good idea, if you have something that’s relevant right now in your hands, that’s amazing. That is so fortunate obviously, obviously most people don’t have that. If you have that and then you think ‘you know what I’m gonna do is I’m gonna build myself like an empire out of this. And how would I do that (is) okay I got to really consolidate in .. 2-3 countries over .. 3-4 years, it doesn’t make sense to do that anymore … (to) maintain all (of) our power and control as we get over there …’ ”

“you should be thinking that this is more and more of a treasure that you have and that the best thing you can do with it is to share it laterally horizontally, copy and paste that everywhere so that the thing that you have in your hands that might have been useful to people goes everywhere that it needs to be …”