Ravivarma Kumar, former advocate general of Karnataka, explains the legal and social aspects of India's backward classes category, why it exists, why its membership transcends religion, and why there is a political tussle over defining who is backwards.
Due to their numerical significance, many political parties woo the communities classified as socially and educationally backward classes during election campaigns. But recent developments in Karnataka and Bihar signal an effort to change the political and social understanding of who can identify a backward class, which communities constitute this category, and what welfare measures they are entitled to. Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, Indira Jaising, asks Ravivarma Kumar, former advocate general of Karnataka, to explain the legal and social aspects of India's backward classes category, why it exists, why its membership transcends religion, and why there is a political tussle over defining who is backwards.