The role of Minorities Commission & its functions

Hyderabad: Setting it up was envisaged by a Resolution passed by the Ministry of Home Affairs on January 12, 1978
This article on Minorities Commission is part of the series that deals with Constitutional and Statutory bodies.

Minorities Commission:

Constitution of India does not define the term Minority but identified two types of minorities – religious and linguistic. While the linguistic minorities were the responsibility of the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities which is a Constitutional Body, the religious minorities are the responsibility of the National Minorities Commission.

Background:

The setting up of Minorities Commission was envisaged in the Ministry of Home Affairs Resolution dated 12.01.1978 which specifically mentioned that, “despite the safeguards provided in the Constitution and the laws in force, there persists among the Minorities a feeling of inequality and discrimination”. In order to preserve secular traditions and to promote National Integration, the Government of India attaches the highest importance to the enforcement of the safeguards provided for the Minorities and is of the firm view that effective institutional arrangements are urgently required for the enforcement and implementation of all the safeguards provided for the Minorities in the Constitution, in the Central and State Laws and in the government policies and administrative schemes enunciated from time to time.

Sometime in 1984, the Minorities Commission was detached from Ministry of Home Affairs and placed under the newly created Ministry of Welfare.

With the enactment of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, the Minorities Commission became a statutory body and renamed as National Commission for Minorities.

The first Statutory National Commission was set up on May 17, 1993. Vide a Gazette notification issued on October 23, 1993, by Ministry of Welfare, Government of India, five religious communities viz; the Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) were notified as minority communities.

Later, in 2014, Jains were granted minority status under Section 2(c) of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act (NCM), 1992.

Functions of NCM:

As per Section 9(1) of the NCM At, 1992, the Commission is required to perform following functions:

(a) evaluation of the progress of the development of minorities under the union and States;
(b) monitoring of the working of the safeguards for minorities provided in the Constitution and in laws enacted by Parliament and the State Legislatures;

(c) making recommendations for the effective implementation of safeguards for the protection of the interests of minorities by the Central government or the State governments;
(d) looking into specific complaints regarding deprivation of rights and safeguards of minorities and taking up such matters with the appropriate authorities;

(e) getting studies to be undertaken into the problems arising out of any discrimination against minorities and recommending measures for their removal;
(f) conducting studies, research and analysis on the issues relating to socio-economic and educational development of minorities;

(g) suggesting appropriate measures in respect of any minority to be undertaken by the Central government or the State governments;
(h) making periodical or special reports to the Central government or any matter pertaining to minorities and in particular the difficulties confronted by them;

(i) any other matter, which may be referred to it by the Central government.

Composition of the Commission:

The Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson and five Members to be nominated by the Central government from amongst persons of eminence, ability and integrity; provided that five Members, including the Chairperson shall be from amongst the minority communities.
To be continued…
Deepika Reddy