Dalit Christians Demand SC Status, Citing Constitutional Right to Equality

Hyderabad: A round table conference organised by the Telangana Christian Joint Action Committee (JAC) at the YMCA in Secunderabad has renewed the demand for granting Scheduled Caste (SC) status to Dalit Christians. Speakers at the event argued that excluding Dalit Christians from SC benefits violates constitutional guarantees of equality and religious freedom.

Speaking at the conference, former Telangana Foods Chairman Meday Rajeev Sagar said the fight for SC status will continue until justice is achieved. He stressed that religious conversion does not erase caste-based discrimination, and Dalit Christians continue to face social and economic disadvantages similar to their Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist counterparts who already enjoy SC status.

The Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 currently restricts SC status to Dalits professing Hinduism, Sikhism or Buddhism. The speakers called for immediate amendment of this order to include Dalit Christians. They urged the central government to introduce a bill in Parliament to extend SC status, arguing that the current provision undermines constitutional guarantees of equality and religious freedom.

The meeting was attended by several community leaders, including Telangana Christian JAC president Gollapalli John, Christian Minority Finance Corporation Chairman Deepak John, retired Additional Director General of Police Babu Rao, former MLC Rajeshwar Rao, and pastors Mohan Babu and Rev Rajeshwar Solomon.

Dalit Christians have long maintained that they face the same social ostracism and economic marginalisation as other Dalits, and the denial of SC status perpetuates their disadvantage. The issue has been a subject of debate in legal and political circles, with previous court judgments and government commissions recommending inclusion but no legislative action taken so far.

The conference comes at a time when the broader question of caste-based affirmative action for religious minorities is being examined by various constitutional bodies. The demand highlights the intersection of caste and religion in India's social hierarchy and the ongoing struggle for equality within the framework of the Constitution.