Doctor moves SC, wants govt. to recognize people who want to be ‘casteless Hindus’

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court by a doctor asserting his right to be officially certified as a “casteless Hindu”.

The petition wants the court to direct the government to devise a mechanism by which more like him, who choose to shed the yoke of caste hierarchy, can be issued certificates identifying them as Hindus “who have no caste”.

Deepak Dnyaneshwar Halwar, represented by advocates Sophia Bhambri and Anil Chadda, blamed the government for its “apathy” for the lack of a mechanism by which people can forgo their caste status even while “retaining their religion as Hinduism”.
“Such a policy or mechanism would bring positive changes in the society and equality for people who wish to forgo their caste but retain their status as a Hindu… The petitioner belongs to the Other Backward Class and is aware of the very fact that caste shackles a person and he as well as others wish to break free from such shackles and set an example for those who want to follow the same path of progress,” the petition said.

The petitioner said he, an educated person and a doctor, did not need a caste certificate to “define” him.
“There is no bar whereby he (petitioner) may declare himself casteless and remain a Hindu,” the petition said.