Cabinet scraps NCBC, new panel for OBCs to have constitutional status

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet today gave the go ahead for setting up a National Commission for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes with constitutional status, bowing to the demand from OBCs for an entity for them which is on par with the panels for SCs and STs.

The Cabinet also cleared a proposal for dissolving the National Commission for Backward classes and repealing the law under which it was established.

National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) was a statutory body under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment established on August 14, 1993.

It duties included receiving representations from the persons belonging to backward classes on various issues like discrimination faced by them, non-implementation of reservation rules by authorities etc.

It was, however, not empowered to look into the grievances of people of Other Backward Classes. Under Article 338(5) read with Article 338(10) of the Constitution, National Commission for Scheduled Castes is the competent authority to look into all the grievances, rights and safeguards relating to Backward Classes.

The Bill to provide constitutional status to the body will be introduced in Parliament.

The Commission will comprise a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson and three other members.

The Cabinet's decision followed demands for constitutional status for the National Commission for Backward Classes in order to allow it to hear the grievances of OBCs in the manner in which the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes do. The latter two are constitutional bodies and not a statutory entity like NCBC.