The need to form separate association unions of employees belonging to SC/ST, OBCs as well as minorities is being questioned by the general associations, trade unions and various individuals all over India. They say that the employees belonging to these communities could seek redress of their grievances through the (general) associations. To stop the formation of separate unions by the members of these communities various allegations are being made against them such as [naming them] ‘communal organisations’, ‘separatist movement’ etc. We have given befitting replies to all such allegations. However, I do not intend to give my own answer but to quote what others have to say in the matter. The circumstances under which the SC/STs, have been compelled to form their own unions will be clear therefrom :-
“……… it is wrong to assume that service associations of SC/ST communities are based on any particular caste, tribe or religion. They are an amalgam of hundreds of castes & tribes recognised by the govt. and are spread all over India and within the folds of different religions and, therefore, the service associations formed by the employees belonging to these communities cannot be dubbed as communal association catering to the needs of any particular community or religion ”
(Report of the Commissioner for SCs & STs ., New Delhi, 1973-74 para 3-109, page 129).
“….special safeguards in service matters have been provided for SC/STs. under Article 16 (4) and 335 of the Constitution. Thus the SC/STs have got certain concessions and relaxation in service matters which are beneficial to them but about which there is general, though misconceived, feeling that these special safeguards run counter to the interests of employees belonging to the general categories. Therefore, if the SC/ST employees are advised to ventilate their grievances through the general associations, such general associations will not be in a position to deliver the goods in so far as the special interests of SC/STs are concerned. In this connection, it may be stated that a number of general associations/unions, which are dominated by general employees, have been opposed to the introduction of reservation in posts filled by promotion. It is, therefore, not justified to presume that such general associations will fight or protect the special interests of the SC/STs. The Commissioner of SC/STs has not come across even a single case where a general employees’ union took up the case of implementation of the orders regarding reservations and concessions for SC/STs. It is true that individual employees belonging to these communities can represent about their service grievances either direct or through the Commissioner for SC/STs, but they are generally not as versatile or knowledgeable as the associations that develop an expertise and can take up their cases more vigorously, with reference to relevant orders issued by the Govt”.
In his article “Reservation policy in banks A study of caste prejudice”, (Business Standard Jan. 7 & 8.1983), Mr. S. P. Thakurata says that he came across cases where the SC/ST employees were assigned to unimportant departments so that they do not get promotions. “Mr. X, a chamar by caste, worked as a clerk of Santa Bank at the Agra branch for one and a half years. He did the ledger work. For three months, the branch manager, Mr. Rao, assigned him to the cash counter. He was from Western UP. One Brahmin member of the sub-staff worked under him. The Brahmin usually brought slips and cheques from the accountant and passed them to the cashier for cash. The Brahmin was very orthodox. He did not like the SC cashier. If the cashier asked the Brahmin to give him a glass of water, the latter refused. The Brahmin kept two separate water pots, one for the upper caste employees. The Brahmin felt that he might be a sub-staff member of the branch but he was socially superior to the scheduled caste cashier. How a Brahmin could carry out the order of a SC to bring a glass of water, was the question of the Brahmin. When the SC/ST employees complained to the branch manager who happened to be a Brahmin from a southern State, the branch manager personally requested the divisional manager to transfer the cashier, because the cashier had called all his friends and colleagues who were working in other branches of Santa Bank at Agra an told them that a separate water pot was kept for the Brahmins. There was a hot exchange between the SC and upper caste employees. After that incident, the Brahmin sub staff had requested the branch manager to remove the SC cashier from the cash counter. Because a SC employee was the cashier, the branch was incurring losses. The Brahmin sub-staff said : “After a Chamar became the cashier, the goddess Lakshmi became polluted. As a result, our branch started incurring losses day by day”.
“Thus, casteism exists at the branches. These case studies reveal that the reservation policy or quota has not helped integrate the SC and upper caste employees. On the contrary, caste prejudice has brought about disunity among employees”. “It is also clear from the case studies that the SC employees try to mix with the upper caste employees but the latter prevent the SC ones from integrating. The attitude of the upper castes has not changed towards the SC though the Indian government has legitimately rationalised the reservation policy for the SC. The caste factor in turn has alienated the employees belonging to SCs. As a result, the SC/ST employees feel the need to organise themselves.” Thakurata poses the question, ‘what are the reasons for the SC employees having started a new association instead of merging or integrating with the employees’ union through which they could have obtained privileges? The answer to this question as found by him is : The discriminatory attitudes of the higher caste employees of Santa Bank and the slow recruitment to meet the prescribed percentage of SC/ST employees by the management have antagonised almost all the SC/ST employees irrespective of their designation and sex. The attitudes of the upper caste employees have not yet been changed, though public sector banks are professional organisations where inter-personnel relationships count greatly for growth. The reservation policy has not integrated the SC and upper caste employees. In other words, in professional organisations like bank, casteism is a barrier to inter-personnel relationships among employees, not the reservation policy”
The dispassionate treatment of the subject by S. P. Thakurata is noteworthy. From the above it is abundantly clear that the entire system in our country is against the members of these communities who have been exploited for centuries past. (The name Santa is used for one of the nationalised banks).
