India cannot afford to entertain for too long religious or social chauvinism without in the process seriously undermining its own strength.

The report among other things has strongly suggested that the demand of the Dalit Muslims and Christians for equal status vis-à-vis Dalits of other religions is legitimate and therefore should be positively considered by the Central Government.

The report states, and rightly so, that change of one's religious belief does not qualitatively alter one's social status; people continue to remain or are at times forced to remain within their social stratification even when their other living conditions change. So when a Dalit opts out of one religion and accepts another, for reasons known to him, he still continues to be a victim of all disabilities of a Dalit; there is hardly any noticeable change in the social attitude towards him.

And therefore, to deny someone the Constitutional benefits of reservation in education and employment based on his religious persuasion is nothing short of a gross violation of the fundamental principle of equality of all before law enshrined in the Constitution of India.

For the past 50 years and more, the Christians and Muslims of Dalit origin have been demanding for equal rights before the law of the land. That their grievances have been ignored for over half a century speaks volumes of the nation's callous attitude towards its weaker sections.

This is all the more manifest against the fact that while Dalits of other religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism, are given the reservation in education and employment, the same is denied to Dalit Christians and Muslims on the ground that these religions do not recognise Caste as integral to human society.

While it is true that Christianity and Islam neither recognise nor endorse Caste as legitimate social stratification, the sad fact of Indian society is that a Christian or a Muslim Dalit will always get the same social treatment or worse, ill-treatment as his counterparts in other religions.

This is in spite all the catechising that goes on in both religions on the importance of building up of believers' community devoid of social hierarchy.

However, there is one silver lining in these two religions. And that is there is a growing consciousness among the followers of these two religions that they need to move towards a better social democracy and one cannot fail to notice some very appreciable efforts towards that goal in almost all their institutional network.

As for instance, Dalits students study in the same schools and colleges as others without any discrimination; Dalit as well as other employees work shoulder to shoulder in Christian institutions without reference to their Caste profile.

The demands of the Dalit Christians and Muslims to get equal status before law were very often ignored and even openly opposed by some dominant social and political formations in India on fictitious and frivolous grounds.

Their reasoning against the demands of the Dalit Christians and Muslims for reservation seem, more often than not, condescending rather than compassionate to the legitimate demands of these sections of Indian society. The argument often used, almost ad nauseam, is that granting reservation facilities to Dalit Christians and Muslims will encourage casteism in India especially in the two religions that do not encourage Caste hierarchy in human society.

There is nothing more absurd a position than this, for how could one presume that by giving reservation facilities to the Dalit Christians and Muslim casteism will be perpetuated? It is already there for ages; it is neither the invention nor contribution of Christians and Muslims of India.

In fact, they are victims of it as they have not been able to eradicate its strong influence on Indian society. Besides, it also gives an impression that casteism is tolerated and even tacitly endorsed as a normal way of social structuring of the majority community in India. While it is considered 'normal' in the majority community, it should be different in smaller communities - good rhetoric, but hardly a reality in a society that shows little tolerance for change in status quo.

In all these discourses on casteism and reservation for the weaker sections of society what remains latent and yet forms the axis is the application of double standards for different communities of India. What is right for the majority community seems not right for minorities; what is easily availed by the majority community is hardly accessible to others; what is easily condoned for the majority is strictly monitored for others. And above all while patriotism of the majority community is easily presumed, the minority communities' is constantly suspected.

All this leaves a feeling of alienation amongst some sections of Indians which ill behoves the nation's integration.

India cannot afford to entertain for too long religious or social chauvinism without in the process seriously undermining its own strength, something we all as responsible citizens should resist with the best of intentions.