Rights of Minority with special reference to Jains

Aviral Jain, 1st Year

Atul Bukhariya, 1st Year

Government New Law College, Indore (M.P)

Abstract

This essay contains, what all rights and benefits are provided by the government of India
to Minority, especially to Jain Community such as scholarship schemes to the minority students
and schemes to the business class. Essay completely depicts the mentality of Jains toward the
schemes of government and the ideology of government in providing such schemes and whether
the administration working for such scheme is sufficient and able or not? This essay separately
covers the domain of rights provided by Constitution to Minority class.

Key words: Jains, Minority, Scholarship, Rights, Government

Objectives

1. To analyses the long battle to claim minority for Jains with respect to other contemporary
world.
2. To look at the status of schemes provided by government to the Jain students and
business class.
3. To depict the mentality of Jain community, to get declared in minority.

Research Methodology

Research methodology used in this essay is primary and secondary sources, quantitative and
qualitative approach. Primary source includes the survey of a Jain hostel and interview from
some business class people of Jain community. Secondary sources are the articles from
newspaper like the Hindu, websites such as iasscore.in, oxforddictionary.com, census India
report, chronicle of government of India, a research of CA Subhash Jain.
Introduction

The Constitution of India doesn't define the word ‘Minority’ and only refers to ‘Minorities’
which are ‘based on religion or language’.1 The definition of Minority given by oxford
dictionary says ‘A small group of people within a community or country, differing from the main
population in race, religion, language or political persuasion’.2 Though the word minority means
small in number but the sense of minority disturb the majority most. If we go with the population
of India then Jains contribute to 0.4% of total India population. According to census 20013 and
census report 2011 said:

Religion Percentage
Hindu 79.8
Muslim 17.22
Christian 2.78
Sikh 2.08
Buddhist 0.84
Jain 0.4
Other 0.7
Report: CA Subash Jain

So the total population of Jains in India is 0.45 crore.4 In the year 2014, Union government under
UPA regime decided that Jains would be included as a minority under Section 2(c) of the
5
National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act, 1992. Before deciding by the Union

1 URL:http://www.iasscore.in/upsc-prelims/atmospheric-circulationswinds
2 URL :https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/minority
3 URL:http://censusindia.gov.in/Ad_Campaign/drop_in_articles/04-Distribution_by_Religion
4 URL:http://www.firstpost.com/india/india-has-79-8-percent-hindus-14-2-percent-muslims-2011-census-data-on-
religion-2407708.html
5 URL:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/jains-granted-minority-status/article5598368.ece
Government, Jains already had the minority status. In as many as 13 big states of India including
Maharashtra (largest Jain population), Karnataka, MP, Punjab, Assam, Rajasthan.6 Beside the
Jains, Muslims, Sikhs, Zoroastrians, Christians, Buddhists are already covered in Minority status
notified by Government of India in Gazette.7 There are certain socio, economic, political and
cultural rights are provided for the minority communities in Indian Constitution. Some rights
provided by the constitution under the list of Fundamental rights which are ‘separate domain’ i.e.
applicable to minorities only and these are reserved to safeguard their identity.

SEPARATE DOMAIN RIGHTS

 Article 25 – Sikh community’s right of ‘wearing and carrying of Kirpans’.

 Article 29(1) – Right of ‘any section of citizens’ to ‘conserve’ its ‘distinct language,
script or culture’.
 Article 29(2) – Restriction on denial of admission to any citizen, to any educational
institution maintained or aided by state, ‘on the grounds of religion, race, caste, language
or any of them’.
 Article 30(1) – Right of all Religious and Linguistic Minorities to establish and
administer educational institutions of their choice.
 Article 30(2) – Freedom of Minority to manage educational institution from
discrimination in the matter of receiving aid from the state.
 Article 347 – Special provision relating to language spoken by a selection of population
of any state.
 Article 350 A – Provision for facilities for instruction in mother-tongue at primary stage.
 Article 350 B – Provision for a Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities and his duties.8

In any of the above Rights, there is no special proclamation which is provided to Jains only
as provided to Sikhs.

Annals of Jain demand for Minority status

6 URL:jainworld.com/Docs/JAIN%20MINORITY%20STATUS
7 "Extra ordinary Gazette" Egazette. GOI. Retrieved 10 October 2016
8
URL: http://www.iasscore.in/upsc-prelims/atmospheric-circulationswinds
Conditions of Jain followers started declining in the colonial era due to mass conversion of
people. The condition became so deteriorating that today only 0.45 crore remains in India. Due
to some similarity between Hinduism and Jainism, people started treating both as one. It took
more than 100 years to Jain community to prove that Jainism in not the part of Hinduism. It is in
the year 2005, after the judgment given by Supreme Court in Bal Patil case, which states that
“Jainism, Sikhism (and Buddhism) are distinct religions, but are inter-connected and inter-related
to Hinduism, so these three are part of wider broader Hindu religion, based on the historic
background on how the Constitution had come into existence after.”9 In 2006 Supreme Court
found that Jain religion is indisputably not the part of Hindu religion. With this statement
Supreme Court also quoted the statement which says that let the state to decide the minority
status of Jains. Concerning with state, In A.M. Jain College v. Government of Tamil Nadu10, the
Court observed that it is also an admitted fact that the Jain community in Madras, Tamil Nadu is
a religious and linguistic minority. Further in other case, In Arya Samaj Education Trust, Delhi
11
& Others v. The Director of Education, Delhi Administration, Delhi & Others, it was held as
follows: "Not only the Constitution but also the Hindu Code and the Census Reports have
recognized Jains to belong to a separate religion." In another case, Kerala Education Bill's case12,
Court held that to claim the minority rights, the Community must be numerically a minority by
reference to the entire population of the State or country where the law is applicable. In that way
also, the Jain Community is eligible for the claim. In another case, The Commissioner Hindu
Religious Endowments, Madras v. Sri Lakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar of Sri Shirur Mutt13, Court
observed that there are well known religions in India like Buddhism and Jainism which do not
believe in God, in any Intelligent First Cause. The Court recognized that Jainism and Buddhism
are equally two distinct religions professed in India in contrast with Vedic religion. These all
cases happened after India’s Independence, cases happened in Colonial India too such as, In
Hirachand Gangji v. Rowji Sojpal14, it was observed that "Jainism prevailed in this country long
before Brahmanism came into existence and held that field, and it is wrong to think that the Jains
were originally Hindus and were subsequently converted into Jainism." Another case, In 1927

9 CA 4730 of 1999
10 (1993)1 MLJ 140
11 AIR 1976 Delhi 207
12 AIR 1958 SC 956
13 AIR 1954 SC 282
14 AIR 1939 Bombay 377
Madras High Court in Gateppa v. Eramma and others15, Court held that "Jainism as a distinct
religion was flourishing several centuries before Christ". Jainism rejects the authority of the
Vedas which form the bedrock of Hinduism and denies the efficacy of the various ceremonies
which Hindus consider essential.

After the long battle for claiming the minority status, in the year 2014 Union Government under
UPA regime declared Jains in Minority. Announcing Jain as minority just before the election of
2014 is seems to be a political step of Congress as government didn’t give any further
importance to its decision.

Status of Jain Minority with the contemporary World

To get the title of minority is a long process overall. First, it was the difficult task for the Jains to
explain the contemporary world that Jain is a different religion to Hinduism because the whole
world was in the misconception that Jainism is the part of Hinduism, so proving the distinction

Number

Strength Surveyee Benefitter Non Benefitter

was the biggest hindrance for Jain community but as we already seen through various Supreme
Court orders that Jainism is distinct from Hinduism. Now after getting the title of minority, there
is a battle for claiming the benefits which a Minority citizens enjoy. If we discuss about the
benefits which a minority class enjoys, broadly they are two, first benefits to the students for
their studies and second, benefits to the working class especially Businessman because Jain
community mostly comprises of businessman.

15 AIR 1927 Madras 228

If we talk about student benefit for Jains, then a number of scholarship scheme has been
launched by government of India, namely pre matric scholarship scheme, post metric scholarship
scheme, Merit-cum-Means scholarship scheme.16 If we particularly talk about the pre matric
scholarship scheme, then a survey had been conducted by me in Acharya Gyan Sagar
Chhatravas, Hukumchand Nasiya, Jabari bagh, Indore (M.P.). In which total 85 student
participated, among them 46 student filled this pre matric scholarship scheme form. Among 46
only 11 student received the amount. Which is not even the 1/4th of student filled the form. Just
23.91% student get the benefit. After talking those guys who filled the form, one Sugam Jain
said, he was filing the form for last 2 years but he didn’t receive any amount. Other Mohit Jain
says, he didn’t receive any amount and even a Cyber café took the charge of filing the form, not
even get that amount. Another Vishal Jain said, he didn’t even get the form of scholarship.
Another Abhishek Jain said, he was filing the form for last two years but get the scholarship
amount only this year. Among the 46 students of this hostel, one Samyak Jain is the only lucky
student who received the scholarship amount every time he filed. So this was the status of
minority scheme among Jain student of Nasiya. Further we talk to the business class in Tilak
Nagar, there one Mr. Alok Gangwal, who is a cloth Merchant told us that to declare Jains in
Minority is good but giving them special benefit is of no mean because Jain community is able to
bare themselves and earn their basic comfort. This can be true because a fact says that 62%
donations are made by Jain community then who can donate to a donar?17 Same report also
suggest us that 0.4% population of Jains paid the 26% of income tax.18 Another, Mr. Ashok Jain
told us that they want the scholarship for their children but they are not aware of such scheme
and no one is there in his contact who knows about such scheme. One Mr. Mohit Jain filed the
form for the starting the disposal manufacturing factory but he didn’t receive any answer of that
form. Beside a group of people in Jain community thought that they are rich community and
doesn’t need any such scheme. This can be evident from the report of National Family and
Health Survey (NFHS 4) in 2015-16 which states Jain is the wealthiest community in India and
its 70% population is in top quintile and only 1.5% population is in lowest quintile.19

16 URL:http://www.minorityaffairs.gov.in/schemesperformance/scholarship-schemes
17 URL:jainworld.com/Docs/JAIN%20MINORITY%20STATUS
18 URL:jainworld.com/Docs/JAIN%20MINORITY%20STATUS
19 URL:https://currentaffairs.gktoday.in/delhi-richest-state-jain-wealthiest-community-nfhs-4-wealth-index-
01201851622.html
Conclusion

Rights of Minority are those claims of a community which became the necessity for
maintaining their existence. Besides the schemes of government for the minority, proper
application of policy is an enormous issue especially with Jains as evident from the upper facts.
Although report is boastful to Jains but there exist a class in Jains too which definitely need the
assistance of government. And it is the duty of government to provide proper help at least to
those people.