SC upholds EWS quota in 3-2 split verdict, CJI in minority

50% Ceiling For Reservation Not Inviolable: Court

- AmitAnand.Choudhary timesgroup.com

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday, by a 3:2 verdict, upheld validity of the 103rd constitutional amendment carried out to provide legal sanction to the Modi government’s decision to carve out 10% reservation for the economically weaker sections from unreserved classes for admission in educational institutions and government jobs. It held that the 50% cap on quota is not inviolable and affirmative action on economic basis may go a long way in eradicating caste-based reservation.

A five-judge bench of Chief Justice U U Lalit and Justices Dinesh Maheshwari, S Ravindra Bhat, Bela M Trivedi and J B Pardiwala approved the amendment by majority (3:2), which would push the total reservation to 59.50% in central institutions. However, all judges agreed that reservation on the basis of economic status was justified in light of the constitutional amendment, while also approving the quantum of the quota going beyond the 50% ceiling that the apex court had laid down in the Indra Sawhney case.