A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Monday upheld the validity of the 103rd Amendment Act 2019 of the Constitution, which provides for 10% EWS reservation among the general category. Four judges uphold the act while one judge gives a dissenting judgment. The Center has earlier submitted before the Supreme Court that EWS reservation does not violate infrastructure.
What is the law on EWS reservation?
By making the 103rd amendment to the Indian Constitution, in the year 2019, the government added Articles 15(6) and 16(6). Under this, 10 percent reservation will also be given to backward classes, scheduled castes (SC), scheduled tribes (ST) and upper castes living below the poverty line during initial recruitment in higher educational institutions. The government’s motive behind this was that the economically backward people would also be able to get the benefit of reservation. Economically backward people will be identified on the basis of their land and annual income.
It is to be noted that Article 15 prohibits discrimination of any kind on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex and place of birth. At the same time, under Article 16, it has been said to give equal opportunities of employment to all. In addition, the clauses gave the government the power to legislate for reservations for economically backward people, in the same way that laws were made for SCs, STs and OBCs. Retired Major General S.R. On the basis of the recommendation of a commission constituted under the chairmanship of Singho, the government made the law of EWS reservation. Let us tell you that this commission was constituted by the then UPA government at the Center in March 2005 and the commission submitted its report to the government in July 2010.
The Sinho Commission recommended that all the Below Poverty Line (BPL) families of the General Category notified from time to time and the families whose family income from all sources is below the taxable limit should be considered as economically backward. Must be marked as class (EBC).
Why is EWS reservation a challenge?
Those challenging the constitutional amendment giving EWS reservation, it is an attack on the spirit of social justice of the constitution. He called it a fraud with the Constitution. Those challenging the EWS reservation believe that if it is upheld, it will violate the assurance of equal opportunities as per the Constitution. They also say that EWS reservation violates the basic structure of the Constitution and the 50 per cent ceiling of reservation as per the Supreme Court’s decision in the Mandal Commission case.