Why did not NC establish/ get established J&K State Minority Commission in earlier years & declare state level minorities?
DAYA SAGAR
The party manifesto released by J&K National Conference in view of the 2024 Elections to Legislative Assembly of J&K , scheduled for 18th September to 1st October 2024, on page 14 ( SOCIAL WELFARE) among other things promises to work towards the establishing of Minority Commission in J&K . Issuing a manifesto at the time of General Elections to legislature is a regular custom but a few common people ( voter citizen) carry the contents of the election promises for test on ground after the governments are installed , particularly w.r.t those who hold the reins of governance. No doubt those out of power keep on using the manifesto promises of those in power to criticize them which is not taken that seriously by common masses till next elections come since non- political social groups/ organizations who are expected to work in an unbiased manner are a rare identity in today’s times. Times demand that the voter citizen should also ask some questions on the manifestos instead of only the opponent contesting the elections.
Establishment of a State Minority Commission can be one of the item on which the voter citizen must seek some clarifications from the National Conference leadership since in case of J&K it is not only the establishment of a Minority Commission in J&K but it is also important to notify State Level Minorities for J&K in addition to National Level Minorities. As have already been named by Government of India The question becomes more important since NC and Congress are in alliance for elections and why did not they perform their obligations in this regard when they were earlier in power in J&K or advocated for that when others ( even PDP/ BJP). were in power and even policies regarding had been laid down by government of India long back , even judiciary had at occasion made some references about state minority commission being the responsibility of the state governments and the Prime Minister 15 programme for minorities also made a very relevant reference to states like J&K in reference to identifying state level minorities?
It is very pertinent to make here some references which the voter citizen can take notice of and seek related clarifications from National Conference.
- Section 2(C) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 (Act No. XIX of 1992 to constitute a National Commission for Minorities) gives power to the Centre to declare a community as minority at all India level. Courts have so far opined that it is for the State governments to nominate minorities at state level. So far reference is mostly made to religious minorities and not linguistic minorities where ever the National Commission for minorities Act 1992 ( NMC 1992) is referred.
GOI notified later on 5 religious minorities on national level as Muslims , Christians, Sikhs, Buddhist and Zoroastrians ( Parsis) vide Ministry of Welfare Notification No.816 ( E) dated 23-10- 1993 (Jain community was notified as minority community later by Ministry of Minority Affairs Notification No. S.O. 267(E) dated January 27, 2014). In States like Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, U.P. and Uttarakhand Jains were recognised as a minority before GOI included (2014) them in National level minority .
2.It appears national level minorities have so far been declared on the basis of a religious community being less than 50 % at the national level and minority benefits extended by Union government are being availed by members of national level minority community even in states where the population of national level minority is more than 50 % at state level like Muslims in J&K & Lakshadweep, Sikhs in Punjab, Christians in Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland .This question has also attracted the attention of Judges too. - Prime Minister’s 15 point Programme for minorities was approved by the Union Government in June 2006 for welfare of religious minorities focusing on earmarking certain outlays of various developmental schemes and programmes of the Government of India amongst the eligible beneficiaries, based on their minority status.
3..Some states do have appointed State minority commissions. The respective State Minorities Commission Acts are usuallyfound empowering the local governments to notify the minorities However the States in general too say that Center Government’s Notifications issued under the NCM Act, 1992 will apply in this ( notifying local minorities) regard.
4.Prime Minister’s New 15 Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities at objectives of the programme lays down “that In States, where one of the minority communities notified under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 is, in fact, in majority, the earmarking of physical/financial targets under different schemes will be only for the other notified minorities. Such states are Jammu & Kashmir( after 30-10-2019 now it would be UTs of J&K and Ladakh) , Punjab, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland and UT of Lakshadweep ( ofcourse after 30-10-2019 UT of J&K & UT of Ladakh also). That way the benefits should not be available even to some from the identified minorities but that has not been so far put in practice in states like Punjab ( Sikh 57.69%) or Christians getting benefits in a state like Nagaland (87.93%), Mizoram(87.16%), Meghalaya(74.59%), or Muslims getting benefits in then J&K (68%), UTLakshdweep ( 96.58%). - Some from J&K had approached the Apex court in the past for directing the state government to appointment State minority commission and also declare Hindu as one of the minorities at state level. The petitions have been reportedly disposed off in advising that the NCM Act 1992 does not make it obligatory on the part of States to must appoint a minority commission and J&K State government had in a way somewhere in 2017 for considering the cause of Hindu as a local minority in broader sense.
So the voter citizen must ask NC to satisfy how NC will act differently from the past to (a) immediately appoint / or work as priority for getting a State Minority Commission appointed (b) identify / get identified on priority religious minorities at state / UT level (a ) implement / get implemented guideline 7-b of PM’s New 15 point Programme 2009 for Minorities for excluding a national level religious minority which locally is not a minority in state for benefits of all India level allocations made by GOI for the purpose ?.
(The writer is a Sr Journalist & analyst of J&K Affairs).