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12. The above discussion, therefore, makes it clear that though Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes are privileged Classes and Articles 15(4) and 16(4) confer upon them a privileged status but still in the matter of privileges, they are not comparable and are distinct. In Article 15(4) Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have been mentioned along with the express "Backward Classes of the citizen" which means that the backward class persons are other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are specially protected classes while Other Backward Classes are not. There is a Constitutional presumption in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes regarding their social, economic and educational backwardness while there is no such presumption in favour of the Other Backward Classes. These privileges have been given to the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes looking to the past social disparities and restricted opportunities. Despite the Constitutional inducement to awaken these utterly deprived and pathetically neglected social categories they have a long social distance to travel for becoming a part of the main stream of the National Life. For the redressal of the past injustice, a National Policy has been framed to provide representation to these Schelduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes people in economy, polity and administration commensurating with their ratio in the population. There is a firm Constitutional commitment for the economic betterment of the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes who are Constitutionally defined and carefully designated. The Other Backward Classes, on the other hand, have nowhere been defined in the Constitution and are left at the determination of the State Government (s). The Other Backward Classes are widely perceived to be numerous, populous and indefinitely expandable categories and are not comparable to those of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Backward Classes other than the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes can be called as the "Other Backward Classes" and it is not necessary for a caste to be designated as a Backward Class as it is situated equally to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes categories. It has been classified as a separate category under the Constitution and as such Other Backward Classes cannot be equated with the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. The difference between the "Backward Classes of the Citizens" and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has been accepted even by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Indra Sawhney v. Union of India and Ors. AIR 1993 SC 447 in para 92-A of the judgment in the following words:

It seems fairly clear that the backward classes of citizens for whom special provision is authorised to be made are, by Article 15(4) itself, treated as being similar to the Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes which have been defined were known to be backward and the Constitution-makers felt no doubt that special provision had to be made for their advancement. It was realised that in the Indian society there were other classes of citizens who were equally, or may be somewhat less backward than the Scheduled Castes and Tribes and it was though that some special provision ought to be made even for them. Article 341 provides for the issue of public notification specifying the castes, races; or tribes which shall, for the purposes of this Constitution, be deemed to be Scheduled Castes either in the State or the Union Territory as the case may be. Similarly Art, 342 makes a provision for the issue of public notification in respect of Scheduled Tribes. Under Article 338(3), it is provided that references to the SC and ST shall be construed as including reference to such other backward classes as the Resident may, on receipt of the report of a commission appointed under Article 340(1), by order, specify and also to the Anglo Indian Community. It would thus be seen that this provision contemplates that some Backward Classes may by the Presidential order be included in SC and ST. That helps to bring out the point that the backward Classes for whose improvement special provision is contemplated by Article 15(4) are in the matter of their backwardness comparable to SC and ST.