Legislate Bill to extend legal protection, constitutional benefits to Dalit Christians

New Delhi, Nov. 17, 2004 – During the last session of Parliament a memorandum was submitted to the Prime Minister listing some of the grievances of the Christian community. The memorandum called for effective implementation of the Prime Minister's 15–Point Programme for the Welfare of the Minorities. The programme was launched by the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and has been endorsed by all successive governments.

There is a special cell in the Union Home Ministry to oversee the implementation of this programme though it has been quite ineffective in recent years. Seven of the 15 points deal with steps to prevent communal conflicts, for swift punishment to the culprits and for speedy and adequate relief to the victims of communal violence. Events in Gujarat and elsewhere have shown that scant attention is often paid to the observance of these directives.

The 15–Point Programme stipulates that special consideration should be given to recruitment of minorities in areas where they are grossly underrepresented such as the police forces. "In such recruitment", it says, "as well as in the Railways, nationalized banks and the public sector enterprises, the concerned departments should ensure that adequate consideration is given to the recruitment of the minorities". Other clauses provide that in recruitment boards and indeed in all government committees, members from the minorities should participate and be actively involved.