Religious minorities, caste, and preferential quotas in South Asia

Abstract

While the Pakistani Constitution prohibits the practice of untouchability, it does not specify affirmative actions to eliminate this practice from society. The Scheduled Castes (Declaration) Ordinance of 1957 declared 40 non-Muslim castes as Scheduled Castes. Interestingly, the ordinance applies an overarching non-Muslim category to these castes instead of specifying their religions, effectively excluding Muslim castes from this categorization. The Order of 1957 reflects a tension between constitutional guarantees of equality and the deeply rooted caste system that shapes the broader South Asian society.

This paper critically examines the Pakistani state’s retention of the colonial category of ‘Scheduled Castes’ exclusively for its non-Muslim population, while clearly retaining it for Hindus and vaguely applying it to low-caste Christians. Through an analysis of government documents, legal proceedings, and narratives from Scheduled Castes, this paper will discuss how the post-colonial state perpetuated a system of caste-based discrimination by institutionalizing the Scheduled Caste category and how marginalized caste groups within the Hindu community of Tharparkar and the Christian community in the capital city of Islamabad navigate this category. This paper, therefore, aims to provide an insight into how these communities negotiate their identities and rights within a framework that both recognizes and limits their status. The paper contributes to broader discussions on caste, religious minorities, and state in Pakistan by offering a critical perspective on the intersection of caste and law in Pakistan