Why Jains Not Recognized As A Minority Community In India

Since Jains are declared as the minority, are they eligible for any reservation as OBC?

Minority and OBC are two different issues. Minority status is religion based and OBC status is caste based. Jain is a religion and so all Jains are eligible for the benefits of minority status.Most mainstream Jains do not know that there are many ‘Other Backward Caste’s in Jain community. In Maharashtra, there are more than 15 OBC Jain castes. There are Jain OBCs in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka and many other states. As they are OBC, they are eligible to get benefits (Reservations etc) of OBC status. And as they are Jains, they are eligible to get benefits of minority status.Remember that all Jain castes are not forward castes. Forward castes Jains can get minority benefits, but not the OBC benefits, while OBC Jains can get minority benefits+ OBC benefits.If you are not aware about the strucure of Jain community is, please read following article:The Structure of Jain Community

What do you think about the Jain community getting minority status in India?

Yes, definitely.Jains are less than 1% of Indian population.If Musims,Christians,Sikhs and the rich Parsis can be minorities;why not Jains???It is their constitutional right.Also,without this recognition, the identity of Jainism as a distinct religion was being put a question mark on.Most of the people and unfortunately,many ignorant Jains themselves started considering Jain a sub-sect or caste of Hinduism.Had Jains not been recognized as a minority officially,it would have been engulfed by Hinduism and the world would have lost a great,ancient religion.There are innumerable examples where Jain temples and idols have been desecrated into Hindu ones.This recognition must have come decades earlier but still, better late than never.

Who is the minority community in India?

As per The Ministry of Minority Affairs of the Government of India the apex body for the central government's regulatory and developmental programmes for the minority religious communities in India, following are in rowMuslimsSikhs,Christians,Buddhists,Zoroastrians (Parsis)as minority communities as notified by GOI in Gazette under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992.

What are the benefits that Jains can get through recent minority status?

The most important benefit that Jains got because of the minority status was being recognized as a distinct religion and not a sect of the Hindu religion. This was the primary motive. But besides this, there areother benefits that the Jains will get:government interference in institutions and trusts of the community will cease to existthere will be 50 per cent reservation for Jain students in colleges run by the communitythe community’s institutions will be exempt from rent control lawsJains can teach culture and religion in their institutions and seek government funding for landBesides these, Jains will also be able to avail the schemes for the minorities likeMulti-sectoral development programScholarship schemePost-matric scholarship schemeMerit-cum-means based scholarshipFree coaching and allied schemeMaulana azad national fellowshipEven though Jains form only ~0.4% of the Indian population and most of them are financially sound this was more a strategic statement by the community which wanted itself to be seen as different from Hindus and restrict government interference in its institutions.

Is the minority status for Jains really needed?

I oppose it. This tag carries a lot of burden. Last census our family decided to mark Indian instead of choosing to indicate our religion. Government can continue to please Jain leaders, but for people like myself, I am a part of Majority. I feel that I won't enjoy listening to audio gita or going to Shiva temple, if I take and live with that minority tag. Many of those protesting Jains might say – we don't want benefits, so why in the world do you want that tag? They give some theories based on conceptual difference, but look, we believe in Karma, Dharma, and Moksha – To hell with subtualities! I favor protesting against minority and reservation tags based on religion than blindly supporting these religious leaders. Because by asking for such provisions, we are overlooking hundreds of millions of poor people who are in need.It is the time that government abolished tags like Minority based on religion – they do more bad than good!

Is Rahul Gandhi justified in asking for minority status for Jains in India?

1) Jains are less than 1% of Indian population.If Musims,Christians,Sikhs and the rich Parsis can be minorities;why not Jains???It is their Constitutional Right.Moreover,unlike popular belief,there are many really poor Jains out there who actually need this.2) Also,without this recognition, the identity of Jainism as a distinct religion was being put a question mark on.Most of the people and unfortunately,many ignorant Jains themselves started considering Jain a sub-sect or a caste of Hinduism.Had Jains not been recognized as a minority officially,it would have been engulfed by Hinduism and the world would have lost a great,ancient religion.Jain temple,teerths and other institutions need protection. There are innumerable examples where Jain temples and idols have been desecrated into Hindu ones.This recognition must have come decades before but still, better late than never.

How can I get Jain minority certificate?

If you are referring to Minority Certificate which DOESNOT give you anykind of reservation in Government Colleges or Jobs but Conservation to the religion and its places (as a separate independent entity) and some benefits in Government schemes (especially to poor people of that minority), this can be done by collecting the form from SDM office, which is then signed and stamped by Municipality officer, Tehsildar and SDM herself/himself. All these details are given on the form itself.

I am Jain and I don't want minority tag. Why we people are demanding minority status?

There is wrong impression that minority status is being asked by Jains for some reservation or benefits. It is not SC/ ST/ OBC quota. In fact, being minority will rule Jains out of reservation as religion based reservation cannot be given in India. It is being sought by Jains as this will give them distinct identity to religiously different group like sikhs, parsis, muslims etc.It will take a long time to discuss the essence of Jainism. But the main differences between Jainism and Hinduism are:1) Jain don't consider some one has created or can destroy Universe.2) There is no concept of Brahma, vishnu, shiva (the three main gods) in Jainism. 3) Jains consider 24 "Tirthankars" as their supreme gods. They have taken birth as human being and then attain "Moksha" by virtue of their leaving worldly possession and "tap" , and not by worshiping any dietary. 4) The scared books of Hindus (like Gita, Puran etc) are totally different from that of Jain sacred books (Jinvani etc).5) The main teachings of Jainism are vastly different from other religion. 6) The "Dev" in Hindus or angels in Muslims and Christianity, who lives in heaven, are immortals. While in Jainism all of them are mortal and die like any living being and take rebirth as human or any other living being.7) The philosophy of worship i.e. is also different. Worshiping in Hinduismbelieves in surrender to some higher entity, while Worshiping in Jainism ismerely instrumental in self-realization. Emphasis is more on securing samyaktvai.e. rationality rather than ritualistic worship.There are hundred of more differences between Jains and other religions. Andthat's why, even Osho has said that Jainism is Unique and different than anyother religion.