Context: The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) on Friday issued a notice to Punjab government officials, seeking an action taken report on the alleged sexual misconduct by Lal Chand Kataruchak, a Minister in the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.
The National Commission for Scheduled Castes is an Indian constitutional body established with a view to provide safeguards against the exploitation of Scheduled Castes and Anglo Indian communities to promote and protect their social, educational, economic and cultural interests, special provisions were made in the Constitution. Article 338 of the Indian constitution deals with National Commission for Scheduled Castes.
Institutions are often distinguished by whether they perform a protective or a promotional role. The NCSC is clearly more of a protective institution, though it does monitor the progress of promotional policy initiatives emanating from other state agencies. While its creation was mandated by the Constitution, neither the responsibility of promoting the welfare of the scheduled castes nor that of protecting them against injustices has been vested exclusively in this institution. Indeed, though it enjoys constitutional status, the recommendations of the Commission are advisory rather than mandatory.
General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
- General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
Mains:
- 2020. Which steps are required for constitutionalization of a commission? Do you think imparting constitutionality to the National Commission for Women would ensure greater gender justice and empowerment in India? Give reasons.
- 2018. Whether National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) can enforce the implementation of constitutional reservation for the Schedules Castes in the religious minority institutions? Examine.
So we can see that coverage of constitutional bodies is important. From the perspevtive of Mains as well as Prelims. So in this discussion we are going to cover the following:
- Main functions of the NCSC
- Evaluation of the performance of the comssission:
- Way forward
The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) is an Indian constitutional body established under Article 338 of the Constitution of India. It was set up in 2004 to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the constitutional safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and to protect their rights.
The main functions of the NCSC
- To investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes under the Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force.
- To inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the Scheduled Castes.
- To participate and advise in the planning process of socio-economic development of the Scheduled Castes.
- To evaluate the progress of the development of the Scheduled Castes under the Union and any State.
- To make recommendations for the effective implementation of safeguards for the Scheduled Castes.
Four areas of functioning:
Of the four core areas of the Commission’s functioning – viz., service safeguards, education, economic development and atrocities – the Services Safeguards Wing is the most active. These complaints relate mostly to promotions, discrimination and harassment on various counts, institution of disciplinary proceedings on flimsy grounds, the conduct of departmental enquires in an unfair manner, adverse entry in the annual confidential reports, transfers to far off places or insignificant positions, delay in payment of retirement benefits, delay in the completion of departmental inquires, and so forth. It has also succeeded in institutionalizing the system of liaison officers and special SC and ST cells in all central ministries and public sector enterprises for the speedy and effective resolution of the grievances of employees of these communities.
The NCSC also has the power of a civil court and can summon witnesses, record evidence, and issue orders. It submits annual reports to the President and the Parliament on its performance and recommendations.
The NCSC plays an important role in protecting the rights and interests of the Scheduled Castes, which are one of the most vulnerable and marginalized sections of the Indian society. It ensures that the constitutional safeguards provided for them are effectively implemented and any violations are addressed promptly.
Evaluation of the performance of the commission:
- There are a variety of conflicts that characterise the functioning of the Commission. Firstly, there has historically prevailed a conflict between the Commission and its nodal ministry, the Ministry of Social Welfare (now the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment), which has often taken the form of conflict between the Minister and the Chairman of the NCSCST. Conflict between the Chairperson and members has also tended to characterise the Commission, because of the politicised nature of appointments to it.
- By choosing to interpret its constitutional mandate narrowly, the Commission has laid itself open to the charge of elite bias. The fact that it is most effective in the area of servicerelated safeguards speaks for itself.
- The Commission’s competence in settling service-related grievances may be contrasted with its inability to reduce the incidence of atrocities and violence against dalits, or to effectively fight the persistent scourge of untouchability.
- A particular Commission seems to be only as good as its members, and especially its Chairperson, are. The lack of institutionalisation in the procedures of appointment to the Commission has meant that competent and committed members are less likely to be appointed, especially in a political and policy environment where membership of the Commission becomes a convenient sinecure for unemployable politicians or a temporary shelf for bureaucrats belonging to these groups.
- The most significant handicap of the Commission is the fact that its decisions are not binding, but recommendatory. Though this is not explicitly stated in the Constitution (as amended), Article 338, with all its sub-clauses, is deeply ambiguous on this issue. It gives the Commission quasi-judicial powers of investigation, but does not mention the form in which the Commission’s judgement of a particular issue would be delivered and implemented.
- The quality of reports in terms of the data they contain, and the manner in which the data is organized, has also been declining over the years.
- The Commission is supposed to prepare an Annual Report for presentation to Parliament. Reports are often tabled two or more years after they have been submitted to the President.
- Even when Reports are tabled in Parliament, they are frequently not discussed. There is no evidence in the Lok Sabha debates of a discussion on any of the first four reports. Of the four Special Reports, only one has an all-India scope and this is about service safeguards.
Way Forward:
It is often argued that the Commission is a paper tiger which needs to be armed with greater powers. This argument is premised on an inadequate appreciation of the location of the Commission in the existing constitutional setup. To give the Commission additional powers, in the matter of criminal investigation for instance, would require it to follow prevailing rules and procedures pertaining to evidence and prosecution. These may in fact retard the effectiveness of the Commission by rendering it vulnerable to litigation in the form of appeals to higher judicial bodies, and thereby nullifying its
operational effectiveness, and diluting its moral stature.
- An amendment is required either in Article 338 itself, or in the rules by which the President may fix a period for the discussion of the Report in Parliament.
- It would be appropriate for the Commission to undertake qualitative studies, commission social anthropologists and other social scientists to undertake such studies, and to institutionalize mechanisms by which contemporary changes and transitions in the social structure can be mirrored, recorded and acted upon.
- The process of appointment to the Commission should be made more autonomous of the government of the day.
It would be desirable for the Commission to engage in an internal evaluation of its priorities on an ongoing basis, and to redefine them in a substantively more egalitarian way so as to accomplish its mandate in the spirit in which it was intended.
