1932 Domicile Policy, 77% reservation: Soren rings the death knell for himself

1932 Domicile Policy: The Hemant Soren government is facing legal troubles which are only getting worse by each passing day. The disqualification swords are looming over the Soren family as both the brothers – CM Hemant Soren and Dumka MLA Basant Soren have been accused of indulging in illegal mine allotment. Reportedly, ECI has recommended the Governor to disqualify the brother duo. This has caused a massive churning in state politics. Amid all these political turmoils, it seems that the Soren cabinet has stooped to politicians’ last resort, that is, play identity politics and cause a divide on caste or religious lines.

Jharkhand Cabinet passes two draft proposals

With its back to the wall, the Hemant Soren government has taken a sharp U-turn. After ruling out the Khatiyan-based domicile policy in the state assembly, CM Hemant Soren-led cabinet has passed two draft proposals including the controversial 1932 Khatiyan-based domicile policy. Additionally, the Jharkhand cabinet increased the reservation quota in jobs from 60% to 77%.

Further, the Cabinet also approved proposals to send these two bills after ratification to the Union government. It has recommended to include these bills, after passage from assembly, in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution. Notably, before the landmark Basic Structure Doctrine Verdict, laws in the Ninth Schedule had legal impunity from judicial review.

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Jharkhand Cabinet Secretary Vandana Dadel said, “The cabinet has approved the ‘Jharkhand definition of local persons and for extending the consequential, social, cultural and other benefits to such local persons Bill, 2022’. As per the Bill, people who have their names of their ancestors’ name in the Khatiyan (land records) of 1932 or before will be considered as a local inhabitant of Jharkhand.”

Cabinet Secretary Dadel stressed that those who are landless or do not have their or their families’ names in the 1932 khatiyan would have to seek certification from their respective gram sabhas. As per the proposals in the Bill, the gram sabhas would have the power to certify domicile to any individual based on their language and customary traditions. However, this leaves a scope of discretionary powers to the gram sabhas, which have potential to be used for corrupt practices and exploiting local inhabitants.

Moreover, the Cabinet Secretary Dadel added, “As per the (second) bill, the reservation of the Scheduled Tribes (ST) would go up to 28% (from 26%), OBC would get 27% (up from 14%) and 12% for the Scheduled Castes (up from 10%). After including 10% reservation for EWS (Economically Weaker Section), the total reservation would go up to 77%.”

Opposition to the move

Earlier, the BJP government led by Raghubar Das had fixed 1985 as the base year to determine the domicile of the state. The Jharkhand High Court had struck down the decision. The domicile policy is essential to claim different government benefits. That is why, the government announcement making 1932 Khatiyan-based domicile policy will adversely impact the lives of millions of inhabitants. The Soren government is facing stiff opposition for this decision. The opposition party, BJP has lambasted the JMM government for these two draft proposals.

BJP pointed out the hypocrisy of the JMM government highlighting the fact that during his budget speech CM Hemant Soren opposed the 1932 cut off time line. In March, CM Soren had declared that making 1932 as the cut off year would not be legally maintainable.

Also Read: Jharkhand government will brag about Sorens in Jharkhand’s history books

BJP leaders held a press conference and called the government move unconstitutional. They stressed that the government didn’t conduct surveys to give legitimate representation to the socially and economically weaker sections. It categorically stated that the JMM government brought the bills in a hasty manner and didn’t consult domain experts and the public at large. It alleged that the government didn’t follow proper procedure and the bills are unconstitutional.

Also Read: ‘Sabhi logon ko kafan muft dia jayega,’ Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren’s big humanitarian gesture

Interestingly, the Hemant Soren government is facing flak from a section of his own supporters including elected representatives and alliance partners. Congress MP and Working President, Geeta Koda and Jharia MLA Purnima Neeraj Singh, independent MLA, Saryu Roy have expressed displeasure over this move.

Calling the bills unacceptable, Congress MP Geeta Koda said, “With this decision, the general public of Kolhan region of Jharkhand will be deprived of being a local. People of this area will remain as migrants if they do not get the status of local at their own birthplace. Survey settlement in Kolhan was done in 1964, 65 and 70. In such a situation, it is not appropriate from any point of view to make khatian of 1932 the basis of locality.”

She demanded that the bills should be reconsidered and final survey settlement of Jharkhand should be made the basis of locality.

Independent MLA Saryu Roy cornered the JMM government. He asked that if the CM Hemant Soren is serious about the move, he should challenge the previous judgements of the Honourable Courts and seek a 9-member bench. He categorically mentioned that a 5-member bench has given a verdict that Judicial review can be done for certain bills that were included in the Ninth Schedule after they were previously struck down by courts.

It seems that the Hemant Soren government which is facing massive political and legal troubles have used the caste and reservation card. In these desperate measures he is being challenged from his own party and ally partners. With these reservation and domicile policy the JMM government has put its hand inside a bee nest. If the bills are struck down by courts or fail to pass in the assembly. Considering the opposition from BJP as well as alliance partners, there are high chances that it may not pass from the assembly at all. If that happens then the JMM government would have nowhere to go and it effectively will be the death knell for the Soren government in Jharkhand.

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