Nehru and Rajiv on Reservation

The BJP govt has opted for a caste census, that it had opposed all along. Congress claims they were the reason for this census. Let me remind all of what Nehu and Rajiv said on reservations. I am of the opinion that reservations based on caste and not on economic status would cause havoc to India. Except SC & ST, that too based on economic criteria, there should be no reservations at all.

Pandit Nehru on Reservations:

“I dislike any kind of reservation, more particularly in service. I react strongly against anything which leads to inefficiency and second-rate standards.”

“I want my country to be a first-class country in everything. The moment we encourage the second-rate, we are lost”

“The recent meeting we held here, to consider national integration, laid down that help should be given on economic considerations and not on caste”

“The only real way to help a backward group is to give opportunities for good education”

“But if we go in for reservations on a communal and caste basis, we swamp the bright and able people and remain second-rate or third-rate”

Rajiv Gandhi on Reservations : ( during Mandal Commission in Parliament )

“The fact is that you need a comprehensive plan. You need a comprehensive vision, you cannot look at these things in an isolated manner. We, the Congress, are in favour of a comprehensive action plan, an affirmative action plan for the backward communities. We need that. The problem cannot be solved by playing politics or by limited politically motivated manipulations.

I will give an example. Supposing we have a person who has been a Supreme Court judge for a number of years, say 10 or 15 years and then joins politics and becomes a Cabinet Minister, is he socially backward? Is he educationally backward? Do his children need help?

I am not saying how many. Even if there is one, that assistance should go to somebody else rather than to him. This is the point. For example, do we want the benefit that the government is giving to be cornered by the Ministers or the sons of Ministers? Do we want the benefits that are being given by the government to be cornered by big landlords and people who have a lot of property?

Do we still have that goal of a casteless society? … If you believe in a casteless society, every major step you take, must be such that you move towards a casteless society. And you must avoid taking any step which takes you towards a caste-ridden society. Unfortunately, the step that we are taking today, the manner in which it has been put, is a casteist formula. While accepting that caste is a reality, we must dilute that formula and break that formula by adding something on to it. So that at least we start inching away from the casteist formula. This is where I feel that the Leftists are not carrying out their responsibility. And you should do that. It is within your powers to do it, it is not within our powers to do it”