Kochi: The Kerala Region Latin Catholic Bishops’ Council (KRLCBC) has called for discussions by the government with Dalit as well as other backward communities in connection with the implementation of reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) among forward communities.

The council, in a statement, expressed several apprehensions regarding the EWS reservation among members of backward communities, including the Latin Catholics and Dalit Christians.

The statement came against the backdrop of the decision of the Kerala government to implement 10 percent reservation in government jobs and education sector for EWS.

“Even as the government is moving rapidly with the procedure to provide reservation for the economically weaker sections in the forward communities, the communities like Scheduled Casts and Scheduled Tribes, Dalit Christians and the other backward communities, including the Latin Catholics who are socially and educationally backward due to historical reasons, have serious concerns regarding the implementation of the same,” said the October 31 press statement.

It added that the forward community members in Kerala are only 4 percent of the total population. “The real poor people among the forward communities see only 10 percent of the total population of the forward communities. As per these calculations, the 10 percent reservation is for the 2.5 percent of the total population. This high magnitude would result in Dalit and other backward communities losing their seats,” the bishops’ council stated.

The council, meanwhile, said that some sections with vested interests are trying to add a communal color to the demands raised by the backward communities. This would affect the communal harmony of the southern Indian state. Hence, the council calls for discussions that would yield results based on justice and social realities, the statement said.

The bishops’ council also said the government should clear the concerns of the backward communities about the present implementation of EWS reservation, which has procedural errors that need rectification.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com