Further to my last posting on this subject, as far as my knowledge and information goes, dalits of all religions were granted reservations and benefits by the government from 1937 onwards due to their social and economic diabilities.
This Act was overturned in 1950, under the influence of hindutva elements, whereby a Presidential Order was passed restricting the reservations and benefits only to hindus. All other religions were cut off. After fighting this discrimination for many years, first the Sikhs in 1959 and then the Buddhists in 1990 were extended the reservations and benefits. It may be noted that both Buddhism and Sikhism are egalitarian religions and do not recognise castes just like Christianity and Islam. However this was the logic given for excluding christian and muslim dalits. A number of Commissions, the last being the Rangnath Mishra Commission have pointed out this discrimination and recommended that the reservation and benefits be extended to all dalits irrespective of religion. However, the government lacks the will to implement this. Regards, Marshall
