Hindu Law for Jains: Supreme Court Sends Notice to Center

R Sedhuraman, The Tribune 26th October 2012

 New Delhi, October 25
The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Centre, seeking its response within six weeks on a plea for a “separate and distinct” identity for Sikhs in laws relating to succession, adoption, divorce and maintenance.

A three-member Bench headed by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir has asked the Law Ministry, Attorney General GE Vahanvati and the Minority Affairs Ministry to give their views on whether Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists could be included in laws meant exclusively for Hindus.

According to petitioners Birendra Kaur and Rohit Garg, the Anand Marriage (Amendment) Act 2012, notified in June had solved only the problem of registration of marriages by Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists. Earlier, they had to register their marriages under the Hindu Marriage Act 1955.

For other matters relating to succession, adoption, divorce and maintenance, people professing these three faiths still had to resort to the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 and the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956, they contended.

The petitioners questioned the wisdom of including Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists under the laws were meant only for the Hindus, if one were to go by the titles. “When all the four religions stand admittedly on an equal footing and are independent of each other, is it right for the legislature” to mention just one religion in the title, they wanted to know.

“Making a law applicable to all religions is one thing. Calling all religions by the name of a single religion for the purpose of law is quite another,” they said, contending that this amounted to discrimination.

According to them, the word “Hindu” in the titles of these laws should be replaced with either “national” or “Indian.”

Further, under the existing laws divorce was allowed on the ground of change of religion by a spouse. However, this was not possible if one of the partners in a Sikh marriage converted either to Hinduism, Jainism or Buddhism.

“This is true of married couples of all the four religions. Thus the word ‘Hindu’ is patently discriminatory. For example, if one of the Hindu partners converts to the Parsi religion, divorce is possible. If the partner converts to Buddhism, divorce is not possible,” the petition explained.

This problem, arising from “linguistic errors in legislative drafting,” was against the Constitution which had accorded equal status and independent identities to Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism, the petitioners said.

“Identity is an innate and powerful emotional feeling and is part of the right to life. That the Sikh identity be preserved as a separate and distinct identity while drafting statutes causes no difficulty for the State at all and it requires only a little sensitivity while drafting statutes to maintain this identity within the statute itself,” they averred.

The petitioners had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court with their plea on September 30, 2011, but the court dismissed it three days later, prompting them to move the SC. The SC Bench, which included Justices SS Nijjar and J Chelameswar, passed the order last week when the appeal came up for hearing.

Jain Minority Issue: Points to be Considered

 -Mahavir Sanglikar

Jain activists working on Jain minority issue should think on following points:

National Minority Status

Getting national minority status is a must thing to get all the benefits offered by Central Government to the religious minority communities. At present, we get the benefits offered by state Governments only, that too only for the community members of the states which have declared Jains as a religious minority.

Remember that minority status has nothing to do with Separate Religious Identity, but it is for upliftment of followers of minority religions, and to safeguard their interests. Minority status issue is about Jain Community, not about Jain religion. Also remember that National Minority Status is our constitutional right.  

Minority Status in States

If we get national minority status, we will get minority status in all the states and territories of India. This means that we will get the status automatically in the states where we yet have not gotten it.  However, as National Minority Status for Jains is a pending issue, we should try our best to get minority status in maximum number of states. This will help us to get National Minority Status, as well as to get benefits offered by state Governments to minority communities.

National Minority benefits in States

As we yet are not considered as religious minority on national level, we do not get any benefits offered by Central Government. We should demand for Central Government benefits to Jain community in the states, where we come under religious minority status.

Minority Certificate

Jain students and other young Jains are facing problems while proving their religious identity to get state Government benefits. We should demand for issue of Jain Minority Certificates from related State Governments. Recently, Uttar Pradesh Government has started to issue such certificates.

Divided We Fall

The Jain activists working on this issue are scattered, many of them have sectarian spirit and they avoid to co-operate and co-ordinate with each other on this issue. We should remember that the minority status is for entire Jain community and it has nothing to do with sects, i.e. Digambars or Shwetambars. If we do not work together, be sure to get setbacks in this mission.

In fact we need to establish two co-ordination committees to handle Minority Issue. First committee of all Jains working on this issue. Second of Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs who are facing the same problems. Further, we should Co-ordinate with the activists from other religious minority communities like Muslims and Christians.

OBCs & STs in Jains

A big number of Jain castes come under Other Backward Castes (OBC). Minority Status and OBC Status are two different things. While minority status is for all Jains, OBC status is only for those who belong to the Other Backward Castes. The same thing is about Tribal Jains. They come under ST (Scheduled Tribe). Another fact is that If People belonging to Schedule Castes (To whom we know as Dalits) become Jains, they get OBC status.

Jain Law

At present, Hindu law is applied to Jains. We should demand for Jain Law for Jains. Sikhs and Buddhists have already demanded for separate laws for them. Take it seriously, or we will have to face problems like we are facing in minority issue right now.

Also read: States where Jains are declared as Religious Minor...

Jains oppose inclusion into Hindu endowment act

The Jain community leaders have opposed the government move to include Jains into the Hindu religious endowment act. According to the president of the Karnataka Jaina Association of Bangalore in a press release here today, the jains were not Hindus or Hindu dissenters but they have origin and history long anterior to the smrithis and commentaries which are recognized authorities on Hindu law and usage. It is well known that Sramana and Vedic traditions differed substantially and sharply. Jain tradition is the original and older Sramana tradition. Various Judgements of High Courts and Apex Courts have clearly enunciated that Jains must be recognized as Religious Minority distinct and separate from Hindus.

The release further stated that the Article 25 of the constitution of India recognizes, Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism as separate religions and even the High power committee constituted by the State has observed: “The committee was of the view that mutts, denominational institutions as well as religious institutions of Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs which are separate religion in strict sense of the term and therefore fall into different category or classes and they have the right to have their own Managing Committee, so far as it relates to administration of their properties and regulation of secular matters by legislation, they are similarly situated. Therefore the Committee was of the view that all of them should be brought within the purview of the Act by making special provisions governing them”.

“Our constitution provides equality for all religions. All religions are safe within the State of Karnataka in particular and within the Republic of India in general. Minority rights are universally accepted as an indivisible form and essential to human rights because almost every state or Nation is multi religious, multi lingual and multi cultural,” release said.

Constitution of India confers on every person the freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion and for such freedom necessarily requires liberty of thought expression, belief, faith and worship the release added. The Sraminic trend covers Jains and Buddhists. Jain religion does not accept or rejects scriptural authority of Vedas, Brahmanas and Upanishads.

In a separate press release the swamiji of the Jain Math HH Charukirti Panditacharyavarya Bhattaraka has said “the statement of the minister for state religious endowments Dr.V.S.Acharya has confused the Jains. There is no need for the Jain maths to be included into the Hindu religious endowments act as we were well protected under the Minority religions act which was adequate for us to protect our shrines and religious places, he said.

(Mangalorean.com)

Demand of Minority Status for Jains Worthy: RSS Chief

Demand of Minority Status for Jains Worthy: RSS Chief

“Jains are demanding minority status on national level. This demand is worth” This statement is not from any Jain leader, but from the RSS supreme Mohan Bhagwat!

In a function held at Godiji Parshwanath Mandir of Pune, Bhagwat said that Jains should get national minority status as soon as possible.

He was speaking on a question raised by Shripal Lalwani, a member of Arihant Jagruti Munch of Pune. The question was, “If Buddhists and Sikhs have got national minority status, why Jain community yet has not gotten it in spite of a long time demand?”

Bhagwat’s statement given in front of public is very important as Hindutwa people, including some so-called Jains have been always opposed to the minority status of Jain community.