The Supreme Court Constitution Bench has by 3:2 majority upheld the validity of the 103rd Constitutional Amendment which introduced 10% reservation for the economically weaker sections from upper castes.
The reservation was aimed at Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) – a key vote base of the ruling BJP – and bypasses existing affirmative action which benefits communities that have been traditionally marginalized in Indian society.
A 10 per cent reservation in all colleges and government jobs for the poorer sections of India’s so-called “upper castes”, introduced just before the 2019 general elections, will be at stake as the Supreme Court rules on its validity today.
Hearing the EWS case, the court said its decision would rest on answering three fundamental questions, including whether the amendment changed the basic structure of the constitution by allowing economic status as a factor for reservation.
While most petitioners challenged the validity of the amendment and urged the court to strike it down, the respondent Union Government and some states asked the court to defend the provision for reservations.
