5-judge SC bench to hear from Sept 13 pleas on 10% quota to EWS candidates

Constitution amendment in 2019 allows people from Economically Weaker Sections to avail themselves of reservation in jobs and educational institutions

A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday heard a petition challenging a constitutional amendment giving reservation to Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).

A bench of Chief Justice of India U U Lalit, Justices Dinesh Maheshwari, S Ravindra Bhat, Bela M Trivedi and JB Pardiwala will hear the matter for five days from September 13 before passing an order. Parliament, In January 2019, inserted a clause in Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution to allow people from the EWS to avail themselves of reservation in jobs and educational institutions. The clause empowered states to give reservation in aided and non-aided private and government educational institutions. Minority educational institutions were exempted from the reservation. The reservation ceiling was 10 per cent and it adds to other existing reservations.

After the EWS reservation was implemented, a batch of petitions was filed in the apex court to decide whether the grant of 10 per cent reservation violated the 50 per cent ceiling cap on quota and if economic backwardness alone could be the sole criterion for granting quota in government jobs and educational institutions for those who were under general quota.

Chief Justice Lalit observed the issues in the case prepared by Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan has been placed before the court. “The crystallised version will be placed before us on Thursday,” he said.

"Any state seeking to appear will be provided adequate opportunity for hearing,” he said.