CHENNAI: The Anglo-Indian community in Chennai has demanded a revival of the one per cent reservation that the community enjoyed in professional courses before a GO in 2003 took away the benefit. At the first ever national convention of the community, a representative from Chennai, Augustine Roy Rozario, Founder of the Ango-Indian Suburban Front, made the demand.He said that in course of a hearing for a Special Leave Petition (SLP) at the Supreme Court, the Tamil Nadu government had in 2003 declared that they would remove community-based reservation in professional courses and instead, would provide reservations for the physically handicapped, wards of ex-servicemen and war widows. Subsequently, a GO was passed to the effect. “We had only one seat reserved in professional colleges. The SC is yet to give its verdict in the case. We hope that the Tamil Nadu government considers our demand and restores the one-seat reservation pending the verdict of the SLP,” Rozario told Express over phone from New Delhi.The Chennai representatives also put forth their longstanding demand of honouring Leslie Fernandes, a member of the Indian Hockey team that won the 1975 World Cup. “The government is yet to honour him and four others of the team with a complimentary rail pass,” he said at the convention. A demand was also made for the inclusion of English in the Schedule VIII of the Constitution. Chennai has a population of about 1.5 lakh Anglo-Indians who are represented by 10 members of different associations. Later in the eveing, the event saw an elaborate food festival showcasing Anglo-Indian cuisine including several items brought from Portugal.
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