The finer details are yet to be worked out.
The Assam government has decided to provide minority certificate to six communities - Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis. The proposal was passed today in a state cabinet meeting at state capital Dispur.
The decision comes within months of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's statement that the definition of a minority needs to be reassessed.
"The cabinet meeting pointed out that unlike scheduled caste certificate or backward caste certificate there is no certificate for minorities.
"By minorities, a particular community is generally identified., now this certificate will help all minorities. We have decided to give the certificate so that these people can benefit from the schemes meant for the minorities initiated by the minorities' welfare department," Assam health minister and government spokesperson Keshab Mahanta said.
The finer details are yet to be worked out.
In March, while speaking in the state assembly, The Chief Minister had said, "Minority definition must change district by district depending upon the geography, population and threat perception. There is no definition as to who are linguistic minorities. How many people need to speak a language to make the same a minority or majority language. From the Supreme court judgments, it is inferred that states are the unit of determining linguistic minority for states that were reorganised on the basis of language."
"In Assam's Barak valley Manipuri, Rengma Naga are minorities. In Brahmaputra valley Bengali speaking people are a linguistic minority however this may not be the case in Dhubri. In South Salmara Hindus are a minority. This whole thing is evolving. There are people in the tea garden that despite having other backward castes (OBC)status are claiming themselves as minority for being Christian and are also demanding scheduled tribe status," the Chief minister said at the time.