Representation of Anglo-Indians in the Indian Legislative System
Keywords:
Anglo-Indian, Article 331, 333 of Constitution, Lok Sabha, State Legislative Assembly, Political Representation, progress, population, defects, misuse.Abstract
Article 331 of the Constitution of India, 1950 enables the President of India to nominate not less than two members belonging to the Anglo-Indian Community to the Lok Sabha. Similarly, Article 333 of the Constitution of India enables the Governor to nominate a member belonging to the Anglo-Indian Community to the State Legislative Assembly, if in case necessary. The Political Representation for the Anglo-Indians is being provided from the date of enactment of Constitution. Over the years, the population of the Anglo-Indians has been decreasing and the Population Census and other reports indicate that their population is reduced to 40,000 across the country. This paper aims to analyse the progress made by the Anglo-Indian Community out of the political representation provided to them in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies. Further, it seeks to highlight how the reservations provided to this community were misused to a large extent by the political leaders. Towards the end, this paper would suggest the alternative solution to the political reservation extended to them, if in case it is found to defective and misused by the political leaders to a large extent.
References
1. Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd Edn. United Kingdom : Oxford University Press; 1989.
2. "Anglo-Indian". Oxford Dictionary Online. Retrieved 30 Jan 2012.
3. Cressey Paul F. The Anglo -Indians: A Disorganized Marginal Group. Soc Forces. I935; XIV: 263-268p.
4. 'The Term "Community" has the Meaning in India of "Ethnic Group," Namely, a Group with Distinctive Racial or Cultural Characteristics. The Term has no Ecological Referent.
5. Fisher Michael H. Excluding and Including "Natives of India": Early -Nineteenth- Century British -Indian Race Relations in Britain. Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East (CSSAAME). 2007; 27(2): 303–314p. [305]
6. Maher James Reginald. These are the Anglo Indians. London: Simon Wallenberg Press; 2007.
7. Stark Herbert Alick . Hostages to India: OR The Life Story of the Anglo Indian Race. 3rd Edn . London: The Simon Wallenberg Press: Vol. 2: Anglo Indian Heritage Books
8. Anglo-Indians Mark Christmas with Charity. India: The Times of India; 26 Dec 2008. Representation of Anglo-Indians in the Indian Legislative System Bhavesh Goel JCLJ (2020) 68–76 © Law Journals 2020. All Rights Reserved Page 75
9. Anthony Frank . Britain's Betrayal in India: The Story of the Anglo Indian Community. 2nd Edn. London: The Simon Wallenberg Press; 2007; 144–146p. 92
10. Stark Herbert Alick . Hostages To India: OR The Life Story of the Anglo Indian Race. 3rd Edn . London: The Simon Wallenberg Press ; 2007; Vol 2: Anglo Indian Heritage Books.
11. ISC, XVI, 276 -278, 3 I0, and 312, and Reginald Craddock, The Dilemma in India London: 1929; I06-I07p.
12. ". . . while, in 1921, before the Montagu - Chelmsford Reforms, there were less than 1000 unemployed Anglo -Indians in India, today after a decade of the Reforms and the operation of the Indianization of the Services, nearly 20,000 or more than one - third of the able -bodied men of the community, are unemployed -the majority of them homeless and in rags, roaming the streets in quest of food. . . . The most distressing feature of this economic tragedy is to be seen in the hundreds of young men and women. . . unable to secure employment anywhere, except at a wage on which they cannot possibly exist, but which many have been forced to accept rather than starve..” Gidney, "The Future of the Anglo -Indian Community" . Asiatic Review. Jan 1934; XXX: 27-42p.
13. It may even be that the community was characterized by too much group consciousness-and that its attempts to maintain social distance between itself and other sections of the population have been more important in the etiology of community difficulties tha n any lack of group unity. There can be no doubt that what other Indians saw as Anglo -Indian feelings of superiority in regard to Indians, their contemptuous racism and occasional brutality, did much to alienate those sectors of Indian society which came t o have increasing political power. The possibility that this same group cohesiveness made the group identifiable and obnoxious to the British must also be considered.
14. Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru, et al . Constitutional Proposals of the Sapru Committee. Bombay: Padma Publications; 1946; 250-254p.
15. Sapru. 250-251p.
16. As promulgated 1950.
17. For example, Articles I5-I6 and 25-30.
18. In an attempt to determine the current importance and "newsworthiness" of the Anglo-Indian community the writer went through five and a half year s of the Times of India (January I, I950 -July 31, 1955). Coverage of this newspaper could be expected to be somewhat more complete and, quite possibly, somewhat more favorable in its treatment of the Anglo - Indian community than would have been true of, for example, various Congress organs. However, with particular interest in the Bombay Schools Case and in the broadest possible coverage of the community the Times of India seemed the most valuable choice if only one paper was to be used.
19. Article 366(2) of th e Indian Constitution . 1950.
20. Mixed Portuguese and Indian.
21. Supra note 15.
22. Indian Constitution, 1950: Article 14: Right to Equality.
23. Article 15(4) of the Indian Constitution.
24. Constitution of India, 1950: Part IV: Directive Principles of State Policy.
25. Article 325 of the Indian Constitution.
26. Article 331 of the Indian Constitution . 1950.
27. Article 333 of the Indian Constitution . 1950.
28. The Constitution of India. 1950.
29. Article 336 of the Indian Constitution . 1950.
30. Constitution of India (80th Amendment).
31. 23rd, 45th, 62nd, 79th , and 95th Amendment.
32. National Committee for Xth International Congress of Anthropology and Ethnological Sciences . India: Dec 10 -21, 1978. Vol. 1.
33. Wright R , Wright S . The Anglo -Indian Community in Contemporary India . Midwest Q. 1971; 12(2): 175-185p.
34. Tenth Lok Sabha Member’s Profile. Lok Sabha Archives, New Delhi. JCLJ (2020) 68–76 © Law Journals 2020. All Rights Reserved Page 76
35. Glenn D’Cruz . Midnight’s Orphans: Anglo-Indians in Post/Colonial Literature. P. Lang; 2006’ 189p.
36. Bhattacharya S. Philosophical Foundation of Education. Part 1. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers & Distributors; 2002; 15p.
37. Mr. Anthony’s Presidential Address : The Anglo-Indian Review . 57:39 Nov -Dec 1966.
38. Tsui Amy BM, Tollefson James W. Language Policy, Culture, and Identity in Asian Contexts . New York: Routledge; 2007; 187p.
39. Noel Pit ts Gist , Roy Dean Wright . Marginality and Identity: Anglo -Indians as a Racially -mixed Minority in India . Netherlands: Brill Archive; 1973; 132p.
40. KAMS vs. State of Karnataka & Ors (Writ Petition No. 14363/1994).
41. 2002 8 SCC 481.
42. Article 19(1) (g) of the Constitution of India, 1950: Right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business to all citizens subject to Art.19 (6) which enumerates the nature of restriction that can be imposed by the state upon the above right of the citizens.
43. Heinrich Mario Nink . English in India: History, Features and Users. Munich, Germany: GRIN Verlag; 6 Oct 2008; 7-8p.
44. Noel Pitts Gist , Roy Dean Wright . Marginality and Identity: Anglo Indians as a Racially -mixed Minority in India . Netherlands: Brill Archive; 1973; 119p.
45. Tollefson James W. Language Policies in Education: Critical Issues . UK: Psychology Press; 2002; 165p.
46. Bryan Oliver Peppin . Political Nominations & the Anglo -Indian: A Reality Check . The Hindu Centre for Politics and Public Policy; Mar 2019.
47. The Telegraph . India’s Anglo -Indian Community Fights for Survival. 6:10 PM, 1/10/2019.
48. TNM Staff . Vote for Note Case . The Times of India; 6: 14 PM, 1/10/2019. Cite this Article Bhavesh Goel . Representation of Anglo - Indians in the Indian Legislative System . Jurisprudence. 2020; 3(1): 38–76p.
