Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court Monday deferred till July 16 a clutch of petitions challenging the ten percent reservation to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) of unreserved categories in jobs and admissions to colleges.
A bench headed by Justice SA Bobde will from July 16 start hearing arguments to decide whether an interim order should be passed to stay the implementation of the Constitution Amendment introduced by the BJP-led NDA government before the elections. The bill was cleared in January this year and later approved by President Ram Nath Kovind to become a law.
Seeking to challenge its implementation, the petition has said the bill violates the basic feature of the Constitution as reservation on economic grounds cannot be limited to the general category and the overall 50 per cent ceiling limit cannot be breached. The quota will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation to SCs, STs and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).
The apex court had earlier refused to stay the Centre’s decision to grant the quota in jobs and admissions to poor candidates in the general category. However, the court had agreed to examine the validity of the law and issued a notice to the Centre on the pleas.
