The constitution of India guarantees equality of law to all its citizens and this guarantee applies to all
aspects of national life including social and economic. This provision was meant to be a tool especially for
the upliftment of those sections of the population that had suffered deprivation for long periods in history
owing to pernicious caste system. One such section is that of Scheduled castes (also known as Dalits)
have historically been poor, deprived of basic human rights and treated as social inferiors in India. They
still face economic, social, cultural and political discrimination in the name of caste. Scheduled castes
constitute 16.23% of the total population of the country (2001 census), whereas scheduled tribes constitute
8.2% of the total population of the country.