10% Quota For Poor (EWS) Cleared By Supreme Court, Big Win For Government

In a significant victory for the government, the Supreme Court today upheld a 10% employment and educational quota for the underprivileged, or EWS (Economically Weaker Sections), which was put in place right before the 2019 general elections. According to the majority opinion of a Supreme Court bench, the EWS quota is neither discriminatory and does not change the fundamental framework of the constitution.

Including Chief Justice UU Lalit, who is retiring tomorrow, two judges dissented. The other dissenting judge, Justice Ravindra Bhat, stated that while the constitution does not permit the exclusion of socially backward groups, he favoured quotas for the economically underprivileged.

“Economic destitution, economic backwardness is backbone of this amendment and on this account, amendment is constitutionally indefeasible. However, excluding the classes such as Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes (OBC) is not constitutionally permissible,” Justice Bhat said. The Chief Justice said: “I have concurred with the view taken by Justice Bhat. The decision stands at 3:2.”

The 103rd constitutional amendment, which the Centre approved in January 2019 shortly after the ruling BJP lost the elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh, included the EWS quota. It was immediately contested in front of the Supreme Court.
The quota disregarded affirmative action, which assists groups like the SC, ST, and OBC who have historically been marginalised in Indian society.

In petitions, it was questioned if the quota altered the “fundamental structure” of the constitution and how it could exceed the national ceiling on reserve of 50% imposed by the Supreme Court in 1992. According to the petitioners, the quota was “a dishonest and covert attempt to destroy the concept of reservation.”

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