National Commission of Minorities

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) was established under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 by the Union Government.

Who are the minority community?

There were initially five religious communities in India – Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) as initially notified by the Union Government. The Union Government further declared Jains as a minority community.

Where does the NCM work from?

Apart from a head office, the NCM also has state head offices in the capitals of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

Functions of the NCM

• The functions of this Commission is to safeguard and protect the interests of minorities provided in the Constitution and in any laws enacted by Parliament and the State Legislatures.
• The role of the minorities commission is not to declare any community as a minority.
• It works to ensure the progress and development of minorities and helps protect their religious, cultural and educational rights.

Why is it in the news?

The NCM has stated that it has no jurisdiction to declare as a community as a minority. The sole authority to declare such a community as a minority likes with the Central government.

Why is it such?

As per Section 2(c) of the NCM Act, it is clearly stated that a community can be notified as ?minority? only by the central government.