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YFE Crusader
I S S U E 1 , A U G U S T 2 0 0 8

On the day of

Quota Game in IIT

India’s
independence,
We launch
YFE Crusader
The minimum requirement for ruled that a person with a Was orgainzed in Bangalore,
YFE Crusader a faculty position in IIT is a graduate degree cannot be Delhi and Bombay on 5ht of
is the Voice of PhD. Its beyond any logic that considered backward. There- July. These protests gave the
Hope for the
a person holding a PhD is fore, ruling out the possibility professors platform to put
Anti-
considered backward. The of reservations at the IIMs. forth their views and started
Reservation
only reason that I can think of But as things stand today the debate on this issue again.
Movement
is that the government does The IIT Directors ,sensing
Join Youth not believe in the recruitment support from Faculty and
For Equality process at IITs. In such a case Alumni, turned rejected the
today what is required is an over- government orders.
sight committee which can A PIL has been filed by
Fight against keep a check on the recruit- Youth for Equality to chal-
Reservations ment process. Reservation is lenge the decision of the gov-
not an option at all. ernment.

As things stand, it is already Candle March Saket Anand

difficult to find candidates to
INSIDE fill the faculty positions. This
THIS ISS UE: is because IITs are not ready
to compromise on the quality.
Quota Game 1 The verdict is clear that the
in IIT quality of professors will be
Consensus on 2
diluted if reservations are
implemented. What makes
Reservations
this act more sinister than
is a must
student reservation is the fact
that a student is responsible
Editor’s Pick ! just for himself where as a
Cast in Caste 4 professor is responsible for
the whole class.
Quota Riots 5 We feel that unless the issue
- A Poem of reservations is kept alive
Reservation
means of
6
organized protests the govern-
ment will keep deriving po-
Editorial 7 litical mileage out of this is-
sue perpetually. There are
some issues which have
Letters to 7 missed public attention in
the editor absence of active debate.
For example :
1)The supreme court had
Bangalore
IIT Mumbai
there is 50% reservations in
IIMs.
2) Annual reviews of the
Writing on the Wall !!
quota : This is another issue
that is likely to be slipped “It is often said
under carpet. that caste is a real-
ity in India. But
We feel that this is just the tip your government is
of the iceberg. With the elec-
tions approaching there can in the process of
be many more decision that making caste the
would be made with out any ONLY reality in
public debate and popular India.”
politics will win over rational-
ity. I find no reason why gov- --- Pratap Bhanu Me-
ernment can't and won't apply hta, member of Na-
the same logic to AIIMs , ti onal K nowledge
NITs or for that matter any Commission, while
professional institute. resigning from the
body.
To protest against the deci-
sion of the government a
peaceful nationwide protest
 PAGE 2
Consensus on Reservations is a Must
Addressing a gathering of
academics and intellectuals,
a young professor from a
leading university pointed
out that the last three years
have just been the years of
the “blatant use educational
system for political ends”.
He further elaborated that
the central government has
given a go-bye to all the
previous practices and tradi-
tions and ignored the pend-
Abhinav Bindra ing priority concerns in
Beijing Olympics education.
GOLD Medallist
It is pure politicking, with
no holds barred. The
MHRD has given no con-
crete direction to the policy,
programme or to the institu-
tional functioning. In visi-
ble anguish, the professor
Congratulations to asked the gathering: “were
these not the “wasted years
Abhinav Bindra in education”? His incisive
analysis impressed practi-
cally everyone in the audi-
Merit brought ence. Most of them were
already seriously worried
India the coveted on all that is going on in the
name of educational re-
GOLD Medal forms. Much more was re-
vealed in the subsequent
discussions that followed.
Only three instances could
illustrate the contention and
leave no doubt on the truth
of the matter: the minority
status to Aligarh Muslim
University, the neglect of
86th Constitutional Amend-
ment of 2002 pertaining to
education as fundamental
right, and the issue of 27
percent reservations for the
OBC‟s. All of these were
given high-profile publicity.
The Aligarh Muslim Uni-
versity status was consid-
ered on several occasions in
the past and the view taken
YFE CRUSADER
Professor J .S. Rajput
earlier needed no sudden
reversal except for the per-
ceived „political exigen-
cies‟. The 86th constitu-
tional amendment was en-
acted in the year 2002 after
a long pending demand for
the same. It deserved sin-
cerity in implementation, as
it was the „will of the par-
liament of India‟. There
were demands raised at
regular intervals from vari-
ous quarters for reservations
to additional categories,
apart from the constitutional
provisions for the SC/STs.
It certainly is a complex and
sensitive issue, which de-
serves evolving a national
consensus.
Evidently, none of these
issues were of such an ur-
gent nature that demanded
„sudden, immediate and
unilateral‟ announcements.
It is indeed surprising why
no national level debate was
considered necessary before
making the proclamations?
It surprised practically all
concerned. Nothing con-
crete has so far emerged out
of any of these three. The
Aligarh Muslim University
issue was taken to the court
and the amendment to its
status was turned down.
The 86th constitutional
amendment enacted in 2002
was, as expected, modified
by the government, which
came to power unexpect-
edly in May 2007. It was
keen to put its own stamp
on it. All that it could cite in
the name of achievement is
a model bill, which no state
is willing to accept and en-
act. The MHRD wanted to
implement 27 per cent res-
ervations right from the
academic year 2007-2008 in
one go! It is alleged that the
ministry made this an-
nouncement without con-
sulting any one outside the
ministry! It was internally
assessed that no one would
be in a position to oppose it,
as it was a political
„masterstroke‟.
They were right. Every
party had to say „yes‟. All
that could be brought by
way of some objectivity and
rationale was the staggering
of the implementation of 27
per cent reservations over a
period of three years! The
Supreme Court stayed it on
April 19, 2007 and refused
to vacate the stay on April
23, 2007. Breaking the es-
tablished judicial traditions
and practices, the central
government thought it expe-
dient to approach the Chief
Justice of India instead of
the designated bench for
preponing the hearing of the
case. Whatever follows on
May 9 or later, the damage
to social cohesion has been
done. The politics of educa-
tion has succeeded in creat-
ing permanent lines of fric-
tion and distrust amongst
various groups of communi-
ties. Was this the planned
objective?
Here is an educational issue
which tremendous social
and economic imperatives
for the weaker sections. It
stands politicized 100 per
cent though the reservation
was limited only to 27 per
cent. It would not be easy to
recollect or recall any move
of this magnitude that, if
implemented the way sug-
ISSUE1, AUGUST 2008
gested by the MHRD, could
cause unprecedented damage to
the quality of education being
provided to the learners in the
institutions of higher learning. It
created tremendous amount of
avoidable bitterness amongst the
young of India. It sent shock
waves amongst academics sin-
cerely concerned about the lev-
els of quality in higher educa-
tion.
The basic principle of providing
additional support to the needy
stands accepted in the Indian
psyche. This does not apply to
political moves that target castes
(beyond SC/ST) and religions.
The Constituent Assembly re-
jected religion based reserva-
tions but the present govern-
ment seems to ignore that his-
toric approach rather fully. The
great enthusiasm generated
amongst the “secularists” with
the submission of the Sachar
Committee Report and 27 per
cent reservations confirms the
widespread perception that the
present ruling conglomerate is
determined to divide the society
on the considerations of castes
and religions. “First right to
national resources” did tremen-
dous damage to the Muslim
community on one hand and
succeeded in enhancing the ap-
prehensions of the others to-
wards it. Today, the general
perception is that Sachar Com-
mittee report is just a well-
planned ploy to prepare grounds
for religion-based reservations.
No one doubts that most of the
Muslims are backward educa-
tionally and, hence, economi-
cally. It also remains that such
backwardness exists to varying
extent amongst many of the
other communities as well. Af-
ter six decades of independence,
how can the state decide to look
after some and leave the rest to
their fate? Sachar Committee
could really have made a his-
toric contribution if it had just
added one sentence to the effect
that others in similar situations
and conditions be also treated
on par. Whole country would
have found it acceptable and
implementable. The approach of
the government over the last
three years gives no indication
that it would consider this Re-
port on a broader canvas with
national interests in considera-
tion than the vote-bank politics
alone.
PAGE 3
The Supreme Court judgment of
April 23, 2007 provides a great
opportunity to all the political
parties, and particularly those in
the government, reconsider the
ways and means to provide edu-
cationally sound support to
weaker sections. It is time to
begin a process of generating a
national consensus on the issue
of providing equality of educa-
tional opportunity to the weaker
sections irrespective of caste or
religion as the consideration.
Even those who approached the
Supreme Court against the 27 "India must be
per cent reservations are not
against additional support to the the only country
OBC‟s and others in similar
in the world,
situations of deprivation and
deficiencies. All concerned where people
must be trusted and invited to
find a national consensus. fight to be called
backward"
The author is the former
Chairman of the National - Narayan
Council for Teacher Education
(NCTE) and also a former Di- Murthy, Infosys
rector of the NCERT
PROTEST MODE
Candle March, May 2008
Benaras Hindu University
 Cast in Caste
PAGE 4

The ant & the grass-
hopper
“The story says
that as the
winter set,
Grasshopper
starved & the
ant survived due
to its efforts in
collecting food ”
Today the grasshop-
per would have
called a press confer-
ence to show how the
ant thrives while it
suffers...India would
have punished the ant
… and grasshopper
would have got a
quota
The recent supreme court
verdict on OBC quota in
central education institution
was a fine balancing act
despite the enormous
amount of pressure being
exerted on judiciary by the
government in an attempt to
curb the so called judicial
activism without realizing
that it has a become a ne-
cessity due to complete
failure of the government
on all fronts. The various
bright aspects of the order
are
1 No Quota in post graduate
courses (Though govern-
ment is trying its level best
to intentionally
ignore it)
2 Exclusion of creamy layer
from the benefits of reser-
vation.
3 Review of quota policy
every 5 years.
But still this verdict will
have far reaching conse-
quences on life inside the
campus in coming years as
we already see in state gov-
ernment owned institutions,
firstly the campus gets di-
vided into two “almost
equal” halves. I say
“almost equal” because
many students from re-
served category pick up
unreserved/open seats, or
unreserved/open seats get
shifted under reserved cate-
gories due to some biased
rules like “Ear-Marking.”As
a result general category or
so called upper caste stu-
dents are actually a
“minority” in the campus
and lets not forget there is
reservation in jobs and pro-
motion already present so
the faculty is also “silently”
divided.
Quota based on rational
criteria like economic
status, rural-urban divide,
gender divide, vernacular
English divide etc. would
not have created “US”
verses “THEM” feeling.
But quota based solely on
caste does create this dan-
gerous divide in the cam-
pus. If u come in any cam-
pus by general observation
of socio economic status of
students coming from OBC
quota will tell any neutral
observer that they neither
require nor deserve benefits
of reservation. Yes there is
some consensus that sched-
ule castes and scheduled
tribes do deserve quota but
even amongst them the
creamy layer must be kept
out.
The term OBC in our con-
stitution was never other
backward caste. It was
other backward class .The
class could comprise any-
one, it could have been vil-
lage artisans or economi-
cally backward upper caste.
The important word in OBC
should have been backward
and not caste because it is
the most cosmetic and divi-
sive criteria to decide back-
wardness.
As far as current OBC,s are
concerned they include
Yadav‟s who were kings
2000 years ago !A Yadav
(Yaduvanshi) has been wor-
shipped by all caste and
classes in India. Jats were
also rulers, Patils were vil-
lage headmen, Patels of
gujrat who were once agri-
culturists have come to play
a significant role in the
world of commerce, Simi-
larly in southern India
Redd y‟s, Vokkli-
gas,Lingayats, Chettiyars,
Vanniyars, Ejhavas in Ker-
ala are major beneficiaries
of OBC reservations but are
not backward by any ra-
tional standards like Human
Development Index and do
not require any help spe-
cially quotas. In current
Parliament more then 200
MP‟s are so called
OBC‟s,18 Chief Ministers
are from backward commu-
nities.
It is this political clout that
is forcing such votebank
politics in the name of
MANDAL commission
report. The blunders in
MANDAL commission are
because of the fact that it
was based on cost indexing
of 1891 and census of 1931
when even Pakistan, Burma
and Bangladesh were part
of British ruled India. Man-
dal report was a politically
motivated report used for
potential political gains and
had glaring inadequacies in
it highlighted by the speech
given by The Late Prime
Minister Rajiv Gandhi in
Loksabha on 6th September
1990.
The division in the campus
and the frustration in the
general category or so
called “upper caste” stu-

YFE CRUSADER
ISSUE1, AUGUST 2008 PAGE 5

dents creeps up when they see
sons and daughters of senior
government officials, politicians
businessmen, doctors, engineers
and professors getting the bene-
fits of caste based reservations
and along with that 100 %
waiver of college fees and other
benefits like scholarships re-
gardless of economic status and
caste specific book banks. On
the contrary a lower middleclass
general category student gets no
exemption what so ever based
on his/her family income and
also faces “reverse discrimina-
tion” when he voices his discon-
tent over discriminatory caste
based quotas and what about
poor or below poverty line up-
per caste students? Well they
never make it to such Elite insti-
tutions because neither they
have money nor caste for their
rescue, regardless of their merit. cause they prefer to „cast‟ me
They get used to getting second as an “upper caste.”
grade citizens treatment in their
own country, from there own Dr. Gunjan Sharma
government. Youth for equality. Mumbai
This debate
is not about
merit, merit is present among all Equality of
class, caste and religions with-
out borders, its about equal opportunity is
citizenship, equal opportunity,
equals status in our motherland. freedom, but
And I will never accept a sec-
ond grade citizen treatment in equality of
my own country simply be- outcome is
repression

- Dick Feagler

Quota Riots Dr. Y.K. Sharma

Delhi University

Quota here, quota there,

Quota everywhere.
Quota in education, quota in profession,
Quota is there in every vocation.
Quota in banks, quota in ranks,
Quota is there in think tanks,

Begging with quota bowl is the highest honor,

Brightest merit is the worst dishonor
Hail to the racial ladder, Protest against Reservations on 6th May
Connaught Place, Delhi
It can make vultures gladder and patriots sadder .
Everything is fair, in quota racial warfare.
Racial quota is fair, merit quota is unfair,
Fair is foul and foul is fair,
Quoteth Bard of Avon there.
 Reservation
PAGE 6
Saurabh,
Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi

The question we should be counterparts………Does from various castes all over

Michael Phelps
Swimmer
Most number of Gold
Medals in Olympics
World’s greatest
swimmer at the age
of 23…..sheer
brilliance and merit
Is there any other
way to win the
Olympic Gold
except on merit ??
asking is that whether reser-
vation actually works; does
it actually usher in a new
egalitarian society where
caste becomes immaterial.
Have the positive discrimi-
nation policies in the field
of education actually borne
fruit.
Statistics show us other-
wise. 60 yrs ago; the gov-
ernment of India prepared a
list enlisting the various
SC/STs and OBCs. Since
then; this list has NOT wit-
nessed a single dele-
tion.Instead a few hundred
other castes have been
added to the list. If the pro-
ponents of this policy be-
lieve that positive discrimi-
nation works; then where
are those results! For the
past 60 yrs; not a single SC/
ST/OBC caste has been
considered to have suffi-
ciently progressed to be
removed from that list.
Thus; it negates the very
view of the proponents of
positive discrimination that
caste based reservation poli-
cies have been successful.
The second clause is that
how many of the present
beneficiaries actually be-
long to the castes that have
been traditionally perse-
cuted, which are poor, and
helpless. How many stu-
dents who have availed of
the reservation facilities
belong to BPL or low eco-
nomic families. What is the
average family income of
the urban reserved category
students with respect to that
of their general category
the government of India India who demand their
have any answers? How inclusion in the reserved
many of the beneficiaries category list. Their motto is
belong or have any realistic “say with pride; that we are
chance of belonging to poor beggars and backward” The
families of rural India? Will lack of self-respect is palpa-
the urban counterparts of ble in every such act. How
the OBCs relinquish their can a nation where people
benefits for their rural ones? have sold every ounce of
The answer is none; be- self-respect and sense of
cause those urban reserved identity for a free seat or
category students in favour job in some higher institu-
of reservation just want tion ever progress.
their free lunches!
Then how on earth are these Thus; in conclusion; the
policies going to achieve policies being pursued by
the goals that they were the present government are
enacted for! nothing short of Anti Na-
How will we achieve the tional and a pathetic display
dream of an India where of votebank politics.
there is no caste-based dis- The policies if implemented
crimination? would result in grave conse-
quences where the entire
In rural India; current liter- country will be fragmented
acy rates especially among on the basis of caste. Thus
women hover around 50%. the increased reservation
The high dropout rates even has to be rolled back.
before high school are even
more alarming.
The government of India
has conveniently disencum-
bered itself of the task of
improving the education
status of these people be-
cause it suits our petty poli-
ticians fine if the average
Indian rural folk remains
ignorant of the truth or else
they would be able to see
through the façade of these
dastardly politicians and
their nefarious designs
through which they have
been exploited since inde-
pendence.
How can an illiterate or
semi literate reserved cate-
gory person ever compete
with his urban counterparts?
Today; we witness protests

YFE CRUSADER
ISSUE1, AUGUST 2008 PAGE 7

Wish you a very happy Inde-
pendence Day.
Millions of Indians have fought
to get freedom from British but
now millions are fighting to get
freedom from caste based dis-
crimination.
YFE Crusader, the voice of
Youth For Equality Movement
aims to make India free from
caste based discrimination and
we dream to see a country with
equal opportunities for all. After
60 years of Independence, it is
disappointing to see our stu-
dents to use his/her caste as the
prime identity to/not to get into
an educational institution/job.
Today when we try to forget our
caste, we are forced to remem-
ber our caste as the one and only
identity. I am sure our consis-
tent efforts in the direction of
equality, will once make a stu-
dent to forget his caste before
entering into the class room.
We appeal to all like minded
citizens of this nation to join
hands to fight against caste
based reservation. As a part of
our awareness campaign against
ill effects of present reservation
policy we have taken this initia-
tive, where we welcome the
scholarly contributions from all
the well meaning citizens who
oppose caste based reservation.
I am delighted to note that this
is the first issue of YFE Cru-
sader and for the first time we
are bringing out a magazine to
voice our concerns. This e-paper
will be made available on our
website. Articles can be mailed
to YFE Crusader at
yfemovement@yfemovement.com
Write in to YFE Crusader and
make your voice heard by all.
- Editor
The editor can be reached at
editor@yfemovement.com
“YFE wishes u
a very happy
Independence
Day”

thinks like us, but it needs more cam- gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews.

Voice from Kolkata
- Nayan Das
Sir,
I am very honored to be a part of
your movement.
I live in Kolkata. I am a first year
student of computer science depart-
ment in Kalyani Government Engi-
neering College. I was not aware of
the cruel nature of quota till last year.
But now I understand the adverse
effect of quota when I suffer myself.
I want to join your campaign against
quota. I think every general student
paigning to draw the attention of stu-
dents. We have to be loud enough to
draw attention of the blind and deaf
government to mend the constitutional
faults and their poor mentality.
Voice from America
- Swadesh
Sir,
I have just read this article from the
Guardian pa per on lin e, h tt p: //
www. guar dian. co. uk/ wor ld/2008/
apr /10/in dia.h igh er educati on ?
It states that the Indian Supreme Court
has just given the go ahead to raise
reservations to 50%. I am an Indian/
American high school student living in
America, and am greatly troubled by
these events. I request some actions be
taken, and is there any way NRI's can
contribute to this effort? Our country is
committing suicide by accepting status
over skill sets.
May we go as far as to call a Bharat
bandh? Where every student in India
protests these actions by not attending
their classes? If it can be done it should
make some sort of an impact.

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