Legal experts unsure quota will clear judicial test

NEW DELHI: After the Union cabinet cleared the bill to provide reservation for economically weaker sections from upper castes, some constitutional and legal experts were not sure whether the legislation would pass the judicial test as quota exceeding 50% would be in violation of the apex court verdict that had placed the cap.

Some experts said the Constitution does not recognise economically weaker sections as a separate class for providing preferential treatment. They said the issue will have to be finally adjudicated by the Supreme Court after the bill is passed by Parliament.

“No such class is recognised by the Constitution. The government has to amend Article 15 and 16 to provide quota on the basis of economic status. It may not pass the legal test when the issue will be examined by court, which had repeatedly said that reservation cannot go beyond 50%,” senior advocate Amrendra Sharan said.

Sharan said the Constitution provides reservation for only three social classes—Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Socially and Educationally Backward Classes.

Former Lok Sabha Secretary-General Subhash C Kashyap said the bill had to be passed by both Houses of Parliament and only then it could be challenged in court. He said he had not seen the bill and would comment only after examining its provisions but the issue would have to pass through the judicial scanner before implementation.

Former HC judge and senior advocate Ajit Sinha said the bill was not discriminatory as the benefit of reservation would be extended to people irrespective of their religious affiliation and only on the basis of economic status but if the overall reservation goes beyond 50%, it could be struck down by the court.