01/31/2020 India (International Christian Concern) – On Wednesday, January 29, the Supreme Court of India granted the government of India four more weeks to reply to a petition challenging the exclusion of low caste Christians and Muslims from Scheduled Caste benefits and protections. In effect, the court has delayed making a decision as to whether low caste Christians and Muslims should be treated as equals to their Hindu counterparts.

Recognizing centuries of social oppression, India constitutionally assured special benefits and protections for low caste communities. The communities receiving these benefits and protections were designated “Scheduled Castes”.

However, in 1950, the President of India passed a constitutional order under Article 341(1) of the Indian Constitution stating that “no person who professes a religion different from Hinduism shall be deemed to be a member of a Scheduled Caste.” The order effectively cut off desperately needed benefits and protections to all non-Hindu low caste individuals.

The 1950 Presidential Order was later amended in 1956 and 1990 to include low caste Sikhs and Buddhists. However, low caste Christians and Muslims remain unable to receive the Scheduled Caste benefits and protections merely because of their religious identity.

According to most Christian groups, some 80% of India’s Christian population come from low caste backgrounds. For many converts from Hinduism, they are forced to choose between continuing to receive the Scheduled Caste benefits and protections or converting to the religion of their choice. Because of the difficulty of this choice, many choose not to report their religious conversion.

Radical Hindu nationalists often used access to the Scheduled Caste benefits as a lure for religious minorities to convert to Hinduism. Sometimes these radicals threaten low caste Christians with the denial of these important benefits as a way to immediate whole communities.

Making the Scheduled Caste benefits religion neutral would be a huge step towards greater religious freedom in India. No longer would low caste individuals have to weigh access to needed benefits and protections against practicing the religion of their choice.

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