The Lok Sabha unanimously passed the Constitution (123rd Amendment) Bill, 2017 on Thursday, making the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) a constitutional body and granting it complete powers to safeguard the rights and interests of Other Backward Classes (OBC).
The bill, which was passed with all 406 members presented in the House voting in favour of it, brings the NCBC on par with the National Commision for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST).
After a debate that lasted for nearly five hours, the Bill which was pitched as an “alternative amendment” was passed with two-third majority, superceding the amendments adopted by the Rajya Sabha. RSP’s NK Premachandran pointed out that this was the first time that an alternative amendment was brought in the Lower House.
During the debate, several members demanded a census to ascertain the population of OBCs while some others pressed for making public the socio-economic survey of 2014.
