Caste benefits to Dalit converts: Supreme Court to consider report in July

The Supreme Court Wednesday said it would consider in July if the report of a commission over reservation to Dalit converts, which was not accepted by the government, could be relied upon and to what extent, and whether, caste could be imputed to Islam or Christianity.

A bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul was told by the central government counsel that the court should await the report of a new commission, constituted last year and headed by former Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan, before proceeding further in the case.

On the other hand, the petitioners argued that the court should not be made to wait for the government to appoint commission after commission.

The Ranganath Misra commission had in the report recommended that Dalits who converted to Islam or Christianity to escape caste oppression in Hinduism should be permitted to avail of scheduled caste reservation benefits in government jobs and educational institutions. The Centre told the apex court in December that the report was flawed and composed within the four walls of a room.