CONSTITUTION ORDERS BILL 2024 (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – Polity)

Context: Amid ongoing protests in Jammu and Kashmir by the Scheduled Tribe Gujjar-Ba- karwal community, the Rajya Sabha on Friday cleared the way for the addition of the Pahari ethnic group to the Union Territory's ST list.

Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Amendment) Bill, 2024

• About: The Bill amends the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 to modify the list of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Odisha.
• Communities added to the list of Scheduled Tribes:  The Bill adds following communities to the list of Scheduled Tribes in Odisha: (i) Muka Dora, Mooka Dora, Nuka Dora, Nooka Dora (for districts of Koraput, Nowrangapur, Rayagada, and Malkangiri), and (ii) Konda Reddy, Konda Reddi.
• Certain communities moved from list of Scheduled Castes to Scheduled Tribes:  The Bill removes Tamadia and Tamudia communities from the list of Scheduled Castes in Odisha, and instead adds them to the list of Scheduled Tribes.
• Synonyms for certain communities:  The Bill also adds synonyms or phonetic variations for certain communities in the list of Scheduled Tribes in Odisha.

Addition or Removal from SC/ST Lists: 

• Constitutional Basis: The inclusion or exclusion of any community in the Scheduled Tribes or Scheduled Castes list comes into effect only after the President assents to a Bill that amends the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.
• Process to include/exclude tribes in the SC/ST list:

oArticle 342(1): The President may with respect to any State or Union Territory, and where it is a State, after consultation with the Governor thereof, by public notification, specify the tribes or tribal communities or part of or groups within tribes or tribal communities as Scheduled Tribe in relation to that State or Union Territory as the case may be.

oArticle 342(2): Parliament may be law include in or exclude from the list of Scheduled Tribes specified in a notification issued under clause (1) any tribe or tribal community or part of or group within any tribe or tribal community, but save as aforesaid a notification issued under the said clause shall not be varied by any subsequent notification.