The Calcutta High Court has struck down reservations provided by the West Bengal government to several communities, including Muslims, under the OBC category.The judgment invalidates the reservations provided under the 2012 Act, which included 77 communities in the list of OBCs.The court found that religion was made the “sole” basis for granting reservation, which is prohibited under Article 16 of the Constitution and earlier orders of the court. Further, the court cited the judgment in Indra Sawhney vs Union of India (1992), which established that the identification of OBC categories for reservation cannot be based on religious affiliation.The result of this judgment is that the certificates of persons who were listed under OBCs after 2010 will no longer be valid. The certificates of persons classified as OBCs before 2010 will continue to be valid. This decision is estimated to affect about five lakh persons in the state.
Current Status of Religion-Based Reservation in Other States of India
The current status of religion-based reservation by different states in India is as follows:
- Kerala: This state reserves 8% of its 30% OBC quota for the Muslim community.
- Tamil Nadu and Bihar: These states also provide a place for Muslim caste groups under the OBC quota.
- Karnataka: It has a 4% sub-quota for Muslims out of the 32% OBC quota.
- Andhra Pradesh: This state provides a 5% reservation quota for backward Muslim communities.
Various Legal Provisions Related to Reservation in India
Provisions of Reservation as per Constitution
- Article 16(4): This article empowers the states to make reservation arrangements for “backward classes of citizens”. Under this, states can decide which communities fall under the backward classes.
- Article 15: For reservation in educational institutions, a group must provide evidence of its social and educational backwardness. For reservation in public employment, under Article 16(4), the backwardness of the group and its inadequate representation in public employment must also be assessed.
Important Supreme Court Judgments
- Champakam Dorairajan v State of Madras (1951): This case rejected reservation on the basis of caste in educational institutions, setting the tone for the First Amendment of the Constitution.
- Indra Sawhney and others v Union of India (1992): This judgment defined the limits of reservation, including exclusion of the creamy layer, a 50% quota limit, and no reservation in promotions (except for SCs/STs).
- M. Nagaraj v. Union of India (2006): This case upheld Article 16(4A), which allows reservation in promotions for SC/STs, and established three conditions for it: social and educational backwardness, inadequate representation, and maintaining efficiency.
- Jarnail Singh v. Laxmi Narayan Gupta (2018): This decision allowed reservation in promotions for SCs and STs, and did not require the state to collect quantitative data for it.
- Janhit Abhiyan v. Union of India (2022): In this case, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the 103rd Constitutional Amendment, which provides 10% reservation in government jobs and colleges for EWS.