A delegation of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Members of Parliament, including some union ministers, on Tuesday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to demand that an order providing reservation in government jobs be replaced by an Act to bring greater benefits to them.
"Members of the SC/ST Parliamentary Forum met the prime minister today to demand that an Act is necessary to provide reservations to SC/ST, which is done through a government order," Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan said.
The MPs also demanded that the Bill in this regard, which was passed in Rajya Sabha in the last session of Parliament, be amended as it excluded some government establishments in providing reservation to the two categories.
"We demanded that there should be no exception. Section 4 of the Bill, passed by Rajya Sabha, should be deleted. The Bill should be prepared immediately and passed in the next session of Parliament," Paswan said.
The delegation included union ministers Sushil Kumar Shinde, Kumari Selja, Namo Narayan Meena and Vincent Pala, and MPs from other political parties.
"The prime minister gave us a patient hearing and said he will hold consultations on this issue," Paswan said.
Meena, who is minister of state for finance, also brought up the issue of job reservation for Scheduled Tribes by the Delhi government.
"In the Delhi government, 7.5 per cent reservation in jobs to STs is being provided under a home ministry notification of 1955. But a recent Supreme Court order said a Presidential notification is required for this reservation in jobs and education. The prime minister assured us that he would take up the matter," Meena said.
