Gujjars perform the last rites for those who were killed during the agitation on Monday. Picture by Rajesh Kumar

June 2: The Union law ministry today said it was up to the Rajasthan government to decide whether to grant Gujjars Scheduled Tribe status, lobbing the ball back to the state.

Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia had sent a letter to the home ministry asking the Centre to provide 4 to 6 per cent reservation for Gujjars as a nomadic tribe.

The community now comes under Other Backward Classes but has been agitating for ST status for economic benefits.

The home ministry sent Raje’s letter to the law ministry for its inputs. The law ministry, in its opinion forwarded to the home department, said there was a constitutional provision for extending quotas to particular communities but it was state governments that should take the decision.

Under Article 342 of the Constitution, the President may specify tribes or tribal communities in a state or Union territory after consultations with the governor, after which the tribes or tribal communities would be deemed STs.

But this has to be preceded by an elaborate exercise — a survey by the state government concerned to determine a community’s social and educational backwardness.

The state’s recommendation would then have to be forwarded to the National Commission for SCs and STs. The Centre decides only after this elaborate exercise is complete.