STATES AND MINORITIES 431
Appendix III
DISADVANTAGES OF THE POONA PACT
The Poona Pact was intended to devise a method whereby the Scheduled Castes would be able to return to the Legislature representatives of their choice. This intention has been completely nullified as will be seen from the following series of statistics. The series have been constructed from the results of the last elections which took place in February 1946.
The statistical data is arranged in four series of tables :
First series show the votes secured by the successful Caste Hindu candidate and the successful Scheduled Caste candidate in the Final election.
Second series show in how many cases did reliance on reservation clause become necessary for the success of the Scheduled Caste candidate in the Final election and in how many he succeeded without the benefit of reservation.
Third series show the relative voting strength of the Caste Hindus and the Scheduled Castes in constituencies in which seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes.
Fourth series show the position in the Primary election of the Scheduled Caste Candidates who became successful in the Final elections.
- The conclusions that follow from these figures will not escape those who care to examine them. The figures prove the following propositions :
(i) That every of the Scheduled Caste candidate who became successful in the Final election owed his success to the votes of the caste Hindus and not of the Scheduled Castes. A great many of them came to the top of the poll and secured votes equal to and in some cases larger than those obtained by Caste Hindu candidates ( See Tables in the First Series). Secondly, in very few constituencies was the successful Scheduled Caste candidate required to rely on reservation ( See Tables in the Second Series). This is a most unexpected phenomenon. Anyone who compares the voting strength of the Scheduled Castes with the voting strength of the Caste Hindus in the different constituencies ( See Tables in the Third Series) would realize that the voting strength of the Scheduled Castes is so small that such a phenomenon could never have occurred if only the Scheduled Castes voters had voted for the Scheduled Caste candidates. That they have occurred is proof positive that the success of the Scheduled Caste candidate in the Final election is conditioned by the Caste Hindu votes.
(ii) That comparing the results of the Primary election with those of the Final election ( See Tables in the Fourth series) the Scheduled Caste candidate who was elected in the Final election was one