Maharashtra Forms Panel To Review Scheduled Tribes Benefits After Religious Conversion

Published 19 July 2026 · india

Maharashtra Forms Panel To Review Scheduled Tribes Benefits After Religious Conversion Published By, Last Updated: July 19, 2026, 08:36 IST Unlike Scheduled Castes (SCs), whose

Maharashtra Forms Panel To Review Scheduled Tribes Benefits After Religious Conversion Published By, Last Updated: July 19, 2026, 08:36 IST Unlike Scheduled Castes (SCs), whose reservation is linked to religion under the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, there is no such restriction for Scheduled Tribes. Rapid Read Representative Image. (AI Generated) The Maharashtra government has set up a 27-member committee to examine whether members of the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community who convert to another religion should continue to receive reservation and other government benefits, reviving a long-standing and politically sensitive issue. A Government Resolution (GR) issued by the Tribal Development Department on July 16 said the panel will be headed by Tribal Development Minister Ashok Uike. It has been tasked with examining the constitutional and legal framework governing reservation and welfare benefits for STs after religious conversion, studying the policies adopted by the Centre and other states, and recommending a policy for Maharashtra. The GR does not mention a timeline for the committee to submit its report. Uike did not respond to phone calls or text messages. Unlike Scheduled Castes (SCs), whose reservation is linked to religion under the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, there is no such restriction for Scheduled Tribes. Under Article 342 of the Constitution, a person’s ST status is not affected by the religion they profess. The issue has remained part of the Sangh Parivar’s tribal outreach. In May, the Janjatiya Suraksha Manch (JSM), backed by the RSS-affiliated Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, submitted memoranda to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the “delisting" of ST members who convert to another religion.

The organisation argued that those who abandon traditional tribal faith, customs and culture after conversion should no longer receive ST benefits. It also sought amendments or clarifications to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, a statutory definition of “Scheduled Tribe", and stronger anti-conversion laws. The demand gained momentum the same month after a Sangh-affiliated Adivasi gathering in New Delhi, attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, called for the “delisting" of STs who convert to Christianity or Islam. Reflecting the Sangh Parivar’s position, Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Tokhan Sahu (BJP) had told The Indian Express in an interview in August 2024: “The Hindu religion never talks of anyone’s religious conversion. We are believers of Sanatan Sanskriti. We respect all religions. We have never told anyone to convert. But the Congress has always pushed religious conversion in the interest of vote-bank politics. Why should those who have converted get the benefit of that (ST) community? Those who are in a particular community should reap the benefits of that community, as per the Constitution framed by Dr B R Ambedkar, so that all sections get the benefits." The issue carries particular significance in Maharashtra, where Scheduled Tribes account for 9.35% of the population. According to the 2011 Census, the state’s ST population increased from 85.77 lakh in 2001 to more than 1.05 crore in 2011. While 97.2% identified as Hindus, the Census also recorded 1.13 lakh Muslims, over 20,000 Christians, nearly 21,000 Buddhists, and smaller numbers of Sikhs and Jains within the ST population.