What is Reservation?
Reservation is the system of affirmative action in India that provides some percentage of seats reserved for historically disadvantaged groups in education, employment, jibs by central and state government, all private education institutions and politics, Except in religious and linguistic educational institution. There are 4 types of categories that are in the list of reserved lists and are as follow:
- Schedule Tribe.
- Schedule Caste.
- Other Backward Classes (with creamy layer)
- Economically weaker section (after 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act,2019)
Reservation derived its roots from Article 15 reservation in education institutions, Article 16 reservation in government jobs and also allows the state to make special reservation for backward community, Article 334 reservation in parliament for adequate representation.
Article 15 provides reservation for women and children, for Schedule Tribes, for Schedule Caste, for Economic Backward Classes in any education institution aid or unaided by the state except in Religious and Minority Educational Institutions (Under Article 30)
Article 16 provides reservation for women and children, for Schedule Tribes, for Schedule Caste, for Economic Backward Classes in government jobs as well as in promotion by union/state public commission. The state has the right to make a special reservation for any minority backward committee but has to present adequate data for such reservation.
Article 334 provides reservation in parliament representation to Schedule Caste, Schedule Tribe and Anglo Indians.
Reservation for Economic Backward Classes is given after the 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2019 in Education & Government jobs.
Cases on Reservation
- Indra Sawhney Vs Union of India & others
Judgement: 1) Caste System is to considered while deciding the backwardness of classes under Article 16 (4).
2) Creamy Layer should be excluded while identifying the backward class.
3) Under Article 16(4) no further classification is allow in backward class to divide into more backward class & backward class.
4) States are not allowed to exceed reservation of more than 50%.
5) no reservation in promotion.
And after this case, the parliament added Article 16(4A) by 77th Amendment Act which gives power to the state to reserve the seats for ST, SC in promotion, if their representation is not adequate in public sector employment.
- M. Nagaraj Vs Union of India
Judgement; SC laid down certain grounds for the reservation in promotion and they are as follow;
1) SC & ST should be socially and educationally backwards.
2) Not having adequate representation for SC and ST in public sector employment.
3) Overall efficiency of the administration should not get affected.
The supreme court held that there is no fundamental right that inheres in an individual to claim reservation in promotions, in the recent judgment of Mukesh Kumar V State of Uttarakhand which was pronounced in February 2020.
Maratha Quota Reservation
Since the 1980s there was a demand for reservation for the Maratha community in Maharashtra. And serval protest was held by the community in large scale and it compelled the government to pass an Act which gives reservation to Maratha Community in 2017-2018. In 2018 Maharashtra state legislative assembly passed a bill that provides 16% reservation to the Maratha community in education and jobs in Maharashtra. Later, this Act was challenged in the High Court of Maharashtra and struck down by the bench. However, in 2017 a committee was set up to investigate the specification and the committee includes nine-member of the Maharashtra State Backward class Commission supervised by Justice(retired) M.G. Gaikwad. It tracked down that 76.86 % of Maratha families were occupied with horticulture and ranch work, around half lived in mud houses, just 35.39% had individual faucet water associations, 13.42% of Marathas were not proficient with just 35.31% having essential schooling, 43.79 % having cleared HSC and SSC. And they are educationally backwards especially women of the Maratha community.
Judgement of Supreme Court
1) There is no need to review Indra Sawhney Case.
2) Maratha Community are not in Extraordinary circumstances.
3) After 102nd Amendment President have the power to identify the backward class with the suggestion of the committee/commission set up under Article 338B.
Aishwarya Says:
I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.
If you are interested in participating in the same, do let me know.
Do follow me on Facebook, Twitter Youtube and Instagram.
The copyright of this Article belongs exclusively to Ms. Aishwarya Sandeep. Reproduction of the same, without permission will amount to Copyright Infringement. Appropriate Legal Action under the Indian Laws will be taken.
If you would also like to contribute to my website, then do share your articles or poems at adv.aishwaryasandeep@gmail.com
We also have a Facebook Group Restarter Moms for Mothers or Women who would like to rejoin their careers post a career break or women who are enterpreneurs.
You may also like to read:
Distractive Feeding – Yay or Nay – Aishwarya Sandeep