Will Dalit President break 243-yr-old tradition of appointing "upper caste" Jats, Rajputs as bodyguards?: John Dayal

By Our Representative
Well-known human rights activist John Dayal, who also happens to be president of the All-India Christian Council, has wondered whether President Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit, would break the 243-year-old tradition of only appointing upper caste Jats and Rajputs as his bodyguards.
Wondering why only “upper caste self-styled martial races” are being appointed, Dayal says, he wondered what the second Dalit President, now residing in Rashtrapati Bhawan, has to say of it, if he has been told” about this.

Referring to a Hindi newspaper report, Dayal says, “A recent recruitment advertisement by the government specifically bars ‘mazhabi Sikhs’, converts from the once untouchable caste groups, from the recruitment, limiting it to Jats and Rajputs. If it is just that they sought six feet tall guards for the Rashtrapathi Bhawan ceremonials, they could have said so.”
Pointing out that the next recruitment is due on September 4, Dayal asks, “Remember how the guards used to tower over President Pranab Mukherjee and Pratibha Patil?” He adds, “But this smacks of caste bias and can fall foul of the law if one tries it out in court. It is even worse if this exclusion cause is out in fearing the other soldiers will not like a‘lower’ caste person in the mess with them.”

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