Anglo-Indian community: The Indian Constitution included a provision to ensure representation from all regions of the country in Parliament. This provision granted the President the authority to nominate two individuals from the Anglo-Indian community to the Lok Sabha to ensure their representation despite a declining population. However, this practice of nominating Anglo-Indian members to the Lok Sabha is now obsolete. The provision existed until January 25, 2020, when it was abolished by the Central Government through the 126th Amendment.The decision to abolish the provision came as part of a larger legislative agenda. In December 2019, a bill was passed in the Lok Sabha to extend the reservation for Scheduled Castes and Tribes for another decade. Alongside this, another bill was passed to remove the nomination of Anglo-Indian members from the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies.What is governments justificationThe government justified this move by arguing that the provision was discriminatory against Scheduled Castes. Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad highlighted the small size of the Anglo-Indian community, stating that it was unjust to prioritize their representation over the larger Scheduled Caste population. However, opposition members contested this claim, arguing that there were significantly more Anglo-Indians in the country than the government suggested. Notably, 296 people of Anglo Indian community are residing in India.Impact on representationPreviously, each Lok Sabha comprised 545 seats, with two reserved for Anglo-Indian members. With the abolition of this provision, these two seats no longer exist. This decision effectively ended the practice of nominating Anglo-Indian members to the Lok Sabha.Who are Anglo-IndiansAccording to Article 366 of the Constitution, Anglo-Indians are individuals with European ancestry who live in India or were born in areas where their parents reside. They constitute a religious, social, and linguistic minority within the country. Under Article 331, the President could nominate two Anglo-Indian members to the Lok Sabha if their representation was deemed inadequate. Similarly, under Article 333, Governors could nominate one member of this community to Legislative Assemblies if they were underrepresented.
