'While humans have the right to follow the religion of their choice, they cannot do it in the case of caste. Caste is not just about the identity of two different persons. On the other hand, it treats one as higher and the other as lower. It is not horizontal, but vertical,' said chief minister M.K. Stalin.
On March 24, the Cabinet led by Jagan Mohan Reddy passed a resolution in the Assembly asking the Union government to provide Scheduled Caste (SC) status to Dalit Christians.
The high court held that A. Raja was a Christian and thus not qualified to have been elected from a seat reserved for Scheduled Caste Hindus. Raja had disputed the claim that he was a Christian.