In a landmark ruling on Monday, the Supreme Court approved the Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act of 2019, which established a 10% reservation for the economically weaker sections (EWS) among the unreserved categories in admissions and government positions.
The majority view, as enunciated by one of the five judges of the Constitution Bench, described reservation as “an instrument not only for inclusion of socially and educationally backward classes to the mainstream of society, but also for the inclusion of any class or section so disadvantaged”.
While Justices Dinesh Maheshwari, Bela M Trivedi, and J. B. Pardiwala concurred that the amendment does not violate the Constitution’s fundamental principles, Chief Justice of India U. U. Lalit, who is retiring on Tuesday, and Justice S. Ravindra Bhat disagreed, stating that the EWS quota is “contradictory to the essence of equal opportunity” and “strikes at the heart of the equality code”.
The dissenting judges held the view that “while the ‘economic criteria’ per se is permissible in relation to access of public goods (under Article 15), the same is not true for Article 16, the goal of which is empowerment, through representation of the community”.
The five justices concurred that the provision grants the State the authority to enact special rules for admissions to private unaided institutions.
Source: Indian Express
