Define ‘minority’: SC asks panel to review state-wise populations

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has directed the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) to “consider” a representation to include Hindus as minorities in eight states of the country. A bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi said the decision should be taken “preferably, within three months”.

The direction came when SC heard a petition by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay. According to the plea, Hindus in eight states — Lakshadweep (2.77% of the population according to Census 2011), Mizoram (2.75%), Nagaland

(8.75%), Meghalaya (11.53%), Jammu and Kashmir (28.44%), Arunachal Pradesh (29%), Manipur (41.39%) and Punjab (38.49%) — are numerically in minority in terms of population despite being the majority community in the entire country. To be sure, the petition seems to have got the facts wrong about Manipur, where Hindus account for the majority, although the state also has a Christian population of roughly the same size. The Centre, the plea alleged, was acting in an arbitrary manner by designating only Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis as minorities in the country, not Hindus. Senior advocate professor Bhim Singh said issue of minority and majority was settled by the constituent assembly while drafting the Constitution.