In this article, Anubhav Kumar Pandey talks of reservation benefits to OBC, STs, and SCs who have migrated to other states.  

Reservation and issues relating to the reservation are one of the most heated topics of discussion. There are huge hue and cry and lots of confusion.

• Reservation provides opportunity in the form of employment, job, and other such benefits but what about when a person migrates from one Indian state to the other?
• What is the reservation policy on state migration? Can STs, SCs or OBCs, who have migrated to other state get job and employment benefits through reservation schemes? Here is an answer to this question.

Whether a person belonging to an SC or ST in a particular State will be entitled to employment benefits in any other state

Examination conducted by central authorities such as UPSC invites application from all part of the country. In these examinations, anyone, from any state can apply, and they will be eligible for reservation as per the central guidelines. In an examination conducted by state PSC’s, the complication arises when SCs, STs, or OBC from one state applies for the posts in another state in the same category. There can be situations where STs of state A do not come under the list of reserved category of ST for state B.

• Merely because a given caste is specified in State A as a Scheduled Caste does not necessarily mean that if there is another caste bearing the same nomenclature in another State the person belonging to the former would be entitled to the rights, privileges, and benefits admissible to a member of the Scheduled Caste of the latter State.[1]
• It depends on the nature and extent of disadvantages and social hardships suffered by that caste, tribe or class in that State which may be totally non est in another State to which persons belonging to it may migrate.
• Coincidentally it may be that a caste or tribe bearing the same nomenclature are specified as scheduled tribe in both the States but the considerations by which they have been specified may be totally different.
• Right to migration or right to move from one part to another is a right given to all. To Scheduled Castes or Tribes and to non-Scheduled Castes or Tribes as well.
• But when a Scheduled Caste or Tribe migrates, he does not and cannot carry any special rights or privileges attributed to him or granted to him in the original State specified for that State or area or part thereof.
• If that right is not given in the migrated State, it does not interfere with his constitutional right of equality or of migration or of carrying on his trade, business or profession. Neither Article 14, 16, 19 nor Article 21 is denuded by migration, but he must enjoy those rights by the law if they are otherwise followed in the place where he migrates.
• A Scheduled Caste or Tribe of one State is so determined to be entitled to all the privileges and rights under the Constitution in that state only.
• Otherwise, one has to bear in mind that if reservations to those who are treated as Scheduled Caste or Tribe in Andhra Pradesh are also given to a boy or a girl who migrates and gets inducted in the State of Maharashtra or other States where that caste or tribe is not treated as Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe then either reservation will have the effect of depriving the percentage to the member of that caste or tribe in Maharashtra who would be entitled to protection or it would denude the other non-Scheduled Castes or non-Scheduled Tribes in Maharashtra to the proportion that they are entitled to. [2]

Therefore, different state and Union territories have a different list of tribes and caste included in their list and only these categories or castes or tribes can avail the benefits provided by reservation.

Hence, if you have migrated from one state to the other do check before applying for the job or for educational benefits, whether your tribe or caste comes under the same category in the state where you are applying.

Whether a candidate belonging to an SC/ST category in his original state on his migration to another state can get reservation benefits in educational institutions

• The law on this point is also similar to the above question. A person belonging to the SC or ST community of one area, say where he is inhabitant of, will get reservation rights and benefits given to the SCs or STs community of that area only and on migration the same person will get excluded from the benefits given to the SCs or the ST community of the migrated state.
• If the state where the SC or ST is migrating also provides for reservation benefits to the SC or ST community of the migrating people, then things will go simple and the person migrating will be eligible for reservation benefits.
• A man does not cease to belong to his caste by migration to a better or more socially free and liberal atmosphere. But if sufficiently long time is spent in a socially advanced area then the inhibitions and handicaps suffered by belonging to a socially disadvantageous community do not continue, and the natural talent of a man or a woman or a boy or girl gets the full scope to flourish.

The provision in the case of All India Services or examinations

In case of All India Services, Central Civil Services or admission to an institution run wholly by the central government, the members of the SCs, STs, OBCs or perhaps any reserved category are entitled to get reservation benefits irrespective of the state of which they are inhabitants of or the state to which they have migrated to. [3]

Do OBCs who migrate to another state are eligible for reservation benefits in the migrated state

• Castes or groups such as OBCs, STs or OBCs are specified in a given State or Union Territory, which means that such caste will come under the category of SC, ST or OBC under that state or union territory for which it is specified only.
• Merely because a given caste is specified in one state belonging to OBCs does not necessarily mean that if there is another group belonging to the same nomenclature in other State and a person belonging to that group is entitled to the rights, privileges, and benefits admissible to the members of that caste.
• Moreover, the Government of India have also issued instructions from time to time in this regard which indicated that a person belonging to OBC on migration from the State of his origin in another State where his caste was not in the OBC list was entitled to the benefits or concessions admissible to the OBCs in his State of origin and Union Government, but not in the State to which he has migrated.[4]

Provision for reservation where a person moves from one area to the other within the state

If a person from  SC, ST, OBC, or perhaps any reserved community moves from one region of his state where his community scheduled to another part of the same state where his community is not scheduled, the benefits which he will get through reservation will sustain in such cases.[5]

To read more about reservation visit https://blog.ipleaders.in/reservation-policy-india/

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[1] State of Uttaranchal v. Sandeep Kumar Singh, (2010) 12 SCC 794.

[2]Marri Chandra Shekhar Rao (1990) 3 SCC 130

[3] (2009) 15 SCC 458

[4] Dsssb vs. Vikas Kumar, as taken from https://indiankanoon.org/doc/32574045/

[5]http://www.gconnect.in/orders-in-brief/reservation/frequently-asked-questions-on-scstobc-reservation-policy.html

Reservation benefits to OBC, STs, and SCs who have migrated to other states