What do you understand by minorities? Explain.

Minority is a term which is difficult to define with any degree of precision. It may refer to a relatively small group of people either dominated by or capable of being dominated by a preponderant majority.

The International Encyclopedia of social Sciences defines minority as a group of people differentiated from others in the same society by race, nationality, religion or language who think of themselves as differentiated group and are thought so by others as differentiated group with negative connotations.

The Constitution of India recognises two types of ministers : (a) Minorities based on language and (b) Minorities based on religion.