Maha Bharat: Episode 35

Anglo Indians – who are they & why do they have 2 seats reserved in the Lok Sabha?

← See all episodes

What is common to: Ruskin Bond, Derek O’Brien, Diana Hayden and Roger Binny? Well, of course they are all famous personalities from India — but there is another more interesting connection – they all belong to the Anglo Indian community.

The story of the Anglo Indian Community is a story of: the marriage of British soldiers to Indian women, the railways and civil services, the education system in India and much more, and even more interesting is how they ended up being the only minority community with 2 nominated seats in the Lok Sabha.

Show Notes

All clips and voices used in this podcast are owned by the original creators

Links to clips used in this episode —

Full Transcript of Episode 35 –

What is common to: Ruskin Bond, Derek O’Brien, Diana Hayden, and Roger Binny? Well, of course they are all famous personalities from India — but there is another more interesting connection – they all belong to the Anglo Indian community.

Doston, the story of the Anglo Indian Community is a story of: the marriage of British soldiers to Indian women, the railways and civil services, the education system in India and much more!

Anglo Indians have existed for more than a century now, and even settled all around the world. But did you know Anglo-Indians actually have a special connection with our parliament? You might have noticed that we have 545 seats in the Lok Sabha, but only 543 seats are up for election every 5 years. What about the 2 seats that remain?

The President nominates 2 Anglo-Indians to these 2 seats of the Lok Sabha. Wait — Anglo-Indians in the Lok Sabha, how did that happen?

Anglo-Indians been a part of the Lok Sabha for decades, until earlier this year:

[We hear the voice of a news anchor announcing an important decision]

That’s right, in the beginning of this year, the government removed the quota for Anglo-Indians which gave them 2 seats in the Lok Sabha and one seat in the Legislative Assembly of a few states. 

How Anglo-Indians become a part of our Lok Sabha — and why did this end? Let’s talk about the Anglo-Indian community in our country and the Lok Sabha — and answer these questions.

The meaning of the word ‘Anglo-Indian’ has evolved with time. Today, we use it to refer to those people who are of mixed Indian and British ancestry. Their descendants were part of families where British officers in India married Indian women. But curiously, these descendants would have been called “Eurasians” at the time. This is because until the early 1900s, Anglo-Indians referred to people of British descent who used to stay in India. 

But let’s not get confused! The article 366 of the Constitution clears it up for us. It says: an Anglo-Indian is a person living or born in India whose father — or any one in the male bloodline (male member of the family) – was of European descent. 

The Anglo-Indian community is spread out across the country. You may find a large section of the community living in Kolkata, because it was home to many British officers and their families for years. And while this community has no home state, there is a secluded (एकांत) town in the hills of Jharkhand called McCluskieganj (मैक कलुस्की गंज), which comes closest. This town was built by Ernest McCluskie (अर्नेस्ट मैक कलुस्की), an Anglo-Indian himself, for his family and other families like his.

The population of Anglo-Indians in India is disputed. The Census of 2011 said that there are only 296 Anglo-Indians in our country! Several members of the community, including Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, have denied this. In the Parliament, he declared that there are nearly 3 and a half lakh Anglo-Indians across our country. This number was nearly 20 million at the time of independence.

But before we get to the question of Anglo-Indians in the Lok Sabha, let’s take a step back. How did this community come about?

Doston, the formation of a community is a curious and interesting thing to study. Every community has a unique story in how it came together, over the years. Ask around in your family…you’ll find that the communities we are a part of find their origins in common languages, religions, geography and even migration. The community that we are talking about today, the Anglo-Indians, do not belong to a specific state or region in India. In fact, the author Robyn Andrews writes that Anglo-Indians identify as the “people of India” (bharat ke nagrik/nivasi), instead of any specific state. 

So, the origin of the Anglo-Indian community does not go back to a state or region. This story involves migration and…a colonial policy! 

In the 1600s, the East India Company had set up a few of its first factories in India. There was one in Surat, one in Andhra Pradesh, one in Madras — as Chennai was called, at that time. I don’t need to tell you about the story of the Company’s prosperity — in a small period of time, the company grew, opening more factories and employing more people. 

But people matlab…not local citizens. The East India Company started bringing in more and more officers and clerks from England to work for them. One of the most important trading centres for the Company was in Madras. So, there were a good number of British officers living here. These officers began to look for women to get married to — but very few British women were willing to travel all the way to India! So, the officers started getting married to the Portugese and French women who were living in settlements in South India. Of course, before the British, it is these two colonies that had already established a base in India. 

But there was a problem here. The Portugese and French women belonged to Roman Catholic sect (सेक्ट – संप्रदाय) of Christianity, whereas the British officers were protestants (प्रोटेस्टैंट)– a different sect (संप्रदाय) of the same religion. To get married, these officers would often convert and become Roman Catholics. What you should know here is that at this time, there had been a conflict between the churches of these two sects in England — jisko English Reformation kaha jaat hai — so the East India Company obviously did not favour these marriages. So, when some of the officers started marrying the local Indian women, the Company realized that this is a much better alternative. In fact, the directors of the Company introduced a new policy in 1687 – when any such marriages between a British officer and an Indian woman happened and the couple had a child, the woman would be offered a prize of around five rupees!

The children born out of these marriages were, at that time, called “Eurasians” – which is a mix of European + Asian. And the future generations of these families formed a community — what we call, today, as the Anglo-Indian community. 

As the East India company rule expanded in India, similar communities began to form in different parts of the country. In parts of West Bengal, British officers were brought in from England to work in the Railways as drivers and engineers in large numbers. Further generations of Anglo-Indian families continued to work in the Railways — and this is why a lot of Anglo-Indian families in the country are associated with the railways. For example, you might have heard of the Railway chicken curry, which has its origins in this community.

Just like the community, this dish too was born out of the union of Indian and British cultures. As the story goes, a British officer once came into the Railway kitchen, demanding to be fed. But the railway chefs only had a very spicy curry available — this would not suit the British officer. One of the chefs had an idea – he added yogurt to the curry to mellow it down and served it to the officer. The officer liked it so much that the dish became regular on the menu — the Railway Curry! This was also a favourite among the chefs and Railway staff, a major part of which was the Anglo-Indian community. The community passed down recipes like the Railway Curry, Dak Bangla Chicken (डाक बंगला) and ball curry from generation to generation. 

The story of any community is similar, am I right? We develop and preserve our language, recipes, traditions and pass them on. These are cultural and often personal practices that I’m talking about. But does this mean that they can be separated from the politics of a country? 

Instead of answering this question myself, let me tell you the journey of the community into the 19th and 20th century — which finally led to their representation in the Lok Sabha. 

In the course of the history of the Anglo-Indian community, there are two major instances when the community found itself in difficult situations — which led it to get directly involved with the government at the time. 

One of these is when we got independence from the British in 1947. This was a turning point for the Anglo-Indian community — a lot of them migrated to other countries, while so many other families faced a dilemma. But doston, do you know what the good part was? In 1947, the Anglo-Indian community already had a few associations, leaders and political representation. 

And that’s because of another instance that happened a hundred years ago!  

Let’s go back to the early 1800s, when the Anglo-Indian community in the country was flourishing (unnati kar rahi thi). A large number of anglo-Indian men were fighting for the British in the Army and the Navy. Often, the Company would send the children of this community to England to study. The Anglo-Indians were well-off and prosperous. They had wealth and respect in the society. In fact, by the end of the 1800s, there were more Anglo-Indians in the country than the British. 

But there was worry brewing in the English quarters. The Anglo-Indian community was large and influential. What if they take over the East-India Company? The Anglo-Indian sons of British officers who came back from an education in England were given preference in the Company — but what if they get too much power? The company wanted to avoid a situation like this at any cost. 

And the result? The Anglo-Indian community — a large one, at that time — suffered. 

Sabse pehle, in 1786, the children of the community were prohibited from going to England to study. This rule was for the Anglo-Indian children whose fathers had died — but this angered the whole community. 

And then, another harsh policy: the company announced that “No son of a Native Indian would be appointed in the civil, military or marine services of the East India company”. This included the Anglo-Indian men. Even the Anglo-Indian men already appointed in the company or in the troops were removed. 

The British completely removed the threat of competition, and the Anglo-Indian Community was left without a livelihood and opportunities for an honorable career. 

This was the first adversity that brought the Anglo-Indians into the political picture. And their response to it was heard all the way in England!

Many years later, in 1825, a few members of the community got together to draw up a petition demanding equal rights and opportunities for Anglo-Indians. J.W. Ricketts (रिकेट्स) was one of them. In the same year, he set sail for England. In 1830, he presented this petition in the British Parliament. I’ll keep it short for you here — Ricketts put forward the demands of the Anglo-Indians, who were the children of British officers and workers and mentioned the many achievements of the community. 

Finally, this petition was accepted by the British Parliament, and a new clause was added in the Charter Act of 1833. This clause said that all persons, regardless of birth of colour, were entitled to jobs in civil and military services in India. 

And that’s how, long before we got independence from the British, the Anglo-Indians fought for and won their rights!

Doston, let’s take a break from history. What’s happening to the Anglo-Indian community now — and why are we talking about it?

In the beginning of this episode, I told you that the government has removed the two seats reserved for Anglo-Indians from the Lok Sabha, out of the 545 seats. This was done by the 104th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2019.

When the constitution was written, the article 331 said that the President can nominate two Anglo-Indian members to the Lok Sabha — if two such members had not already been elected. After being nominated, these two members were free to join any political party of their choice.

So this means that these two seats — out of the 545 seats of the Lok Sabha — do not come up for election, but nomination. 

Another article, article 334, says that this provision will be removed 40 years after it was written. However, our governments in power have been making amendments and extending this time period. 

It is this extension that came to a halt in January 2020. While the government chose to extend the quota for the SC & ST community for ten more years, it put an end to reservation for the Anglo-Indian community. 

Why?

Well, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad noted that there are only 296 members of the Anglo-Indian community based on the 2011 census, and therefore such a small group doesn’t require representation.

But let’s go back to a very basic question: no other community based on their race has a quota for reserved seats in the Lok Sabha. So why did the Anglo-Indian community get this reservation? 

This is where we’re going to go back in time, again.

The Anglo-Indian community has contributed to the India we know today in many ways. Over time, the community worked in several sectors, and also found itself a place in the government. 

For instance, did you know that Council for Indian School Certificate Examination — jisko hum ICSE board kehte hai, was founded by Frank Anthony, a leader of the Anglo-Indian community? This was in 1958 — but the contributions of the community to education go way back, to the 1700s.

As the story goes, the Anglo-Indian families in India wanted their children to be educated in English-medium schools, with the discipline and manner of British schools. For this, various private schools opened up in Madras and Kolkata. If you’ve heard of the prestigious Gaynard (गेनार्ड) school, La Martiniere (ला मार्टिनयेर), St. Xaviers — these were all schools founded by the Anglo-Indian community, for their children. Initially, it was only for the children of this community, but with time it opened up for everyone. 

We’ve already discussed the role of the community in the Railways. This continued in the 1900s too. 

The Anglo Indian community was a prosperous community before Independence, with lots to contribute. But we can’t forget that it was a small community with little representation in the government. 

According to the All-India Association for Anglo-Indians, there were 11,000 Anglo-Indians in the Railway in 1921. This meant that Railways ensured major employment for the community. Retaining this employment was a primary concern for Henry Gidney (हेनरी गिड़नी), a leader of the Anglo-Indian community.

This is what led to the representation of the Anglo-Indians in the government for the first time. The Viceroy nominated Henry Gidney into the Central Legislative Assembly in 1921. And let me tell you, he was nominated 5 times, to represent the community in the government! The Central Legislative Assembly was the lower house of the British government in India at the time — think of it like the Lok Sabha. 

So, this is when the community started getting involved in the government. What next? They realized that they need to come together as one voice. In 1926, Sir Henry Gidney formed the All-India Anglo-Indian association, a group that exists even today. 

In 1942, Frank Anthony became the next president of this association. You must be familiar with his name. He represented the Anglo-Indian community in the Central Legislative Assembly, the Constituent Assembly and finally the Lok Sabha, too. And he was nominated to the Lok Sabha seven times — that means, he was a member of parliament for 35 years!

A few years after Frank Anthony became the president of the All India Anglo Indian Association, The British left our country — in 1947, India gained independence.

India’s independence was the second challenge that the Anglo-Indian community had to face. Many young members of this community migrated to countries like the U.K, Australia, New Zealand. Many had to stay back, but they often felt a sense of conflict about their identity. And that makes sense, right? The British — whether it was the East India Company or the British government — had supported this community, and gave it a sense of belonging. Without them, there was insecurity in the community. And this is not my own opinion — but that of members of the community! So, this was a sensitive time, when the community needed to put their faith into leaders. 

And Frank Anthony was one of those leaders. 

When he fought for reservation for the Anglo-Indian community, an important argument took place in the constituent assembly: should minorities have reservation? Why do Anglo-Indians, so small in number, need reservation? This is an argument that we have even today. 

In the assembly, Frank Anthony spoke in favour of reservations not only for the Anglo-Indian community, but for all minority communities. He said that while majority groups might view reservations as an impediment (darar), for minorities it is actually a question of survival. He said that this reservation can be removed in 10 years — but at the time of independence, we needed to give the community this opportunity. 

There’s another factor here. In this episode, has the question of language occurred to you? Our constitution recognizes 22 languages in the Eighth Schedule. But English is not one of them! 

This, too, was a concern to the community, because English was the primary language that many Anglo-Indian families spoke in. It still is! So, without a state or an officially recognized language, the representation for the Anglo-Indian community in the government was nominal (bahut kam). The need for a reservation was clear.

Frank Anthony’s constant hard work paid off. The Constituent Assembly added Article 331 into the Constitution — which, as we already know — allowed the President to nominate two Anglo-Indians to the Lok Sabha.

Frank Anthony is respected greatly in the community. In 1947, when the Anglo-Indians needed support, he said: “the more we love and are loyal to India, the more India will be loyal to us.”

That was more than 70 years ago. For so many years, the Lok Sabha, as well as some State Assemblies, always had Anglo-Indian members. But after the Parliament passed the 104th Amendment, things have changed.

But, this Amendment to the Constitution was not passed without opposition. 

For instance, Derek O’Brien, a member of the All-India Trinamool Congress, argued against the Amendment in the Parliament. He talked about the achievements of the community – from railways, to education to civil services — and denied that there were only 296 members of the community in the country. He had one more thing to say:

[We hear the voice of MP Derek O’Brien speaking in the parliament]

We know that the bill was passed based on the census information. But what are the other arguments against the bill here? Let me list it out for you:

Shane Calvert, an MLA from the All-India Trinamool Congress pointed this out: the government did not consult any of the Anglo-Indian MPs or MLAs, or the state governments where there is a large concentration of this community! He suggested that a proper committee should be formed before coming to a decision like this.  

But isn’t the community doing well enough now? Why do they need representation after so many years? Actually, this is what the government panel concluded as well. However, a report in The Hindu will tell you that surveys conducted in 2013 in the Anglo-Indian communities show that the economic and social status of many families is poor. 

Hibi Eden, jo ek Member of Parliament from Congress hai, also points out an interesting thing: the reservation of the Lok Sabha seats were not only to improve the economic status of the community, but to give them a sense of belonging and protection in India — which the community needs, even today! 

So, what now?

The Anglo-India community, recently, has urged the centre to give it a minority status. This will mean that the community will get the benefit of government schemes and scholarships — to protect their economic and social status.

The journey of a community — from its origin to its struggles, is our answer to today’s question. I’ll leave you to decide whether the decision taken by the government was right or wrong, but we can agree on one thing: no community, no culture can be separated from the question of politics and representation.

That’s it from me today, folks! I hope I compelled you to understand and think about today’s question. See you next week, on a brand new episode of Maha Bharat!

Credits

Narrated by – Dhruv Rathee
Producer – Gaurav Vaz
Written by – Anushka Mukherjee and Gaurav Vaz
Edited by – Medha V
Title Track Design – Abhijith Nath
Audio Production – Madhav Ayachit