Reservation Policies Under Article 15 & 16: Analysis Of Economically Weaker Section (EWS) Quota
- IJLLR Journal
- 5 minutes ago
- 1 min read
Daksh Kumar Yadav, B.A. LL.B., Symbiosis Law School, Noida
ABSTRACT
The introduction of the 103rd Constitutional Amendment of India that provides a 10% reservation to the beneficiaries of the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in government employment and in educational establishments is an exciting development of India’s affirmative action regime. This paper examines the constitutional and legal background to this amendment, and its effects especially in relation to the interplay between the amendment on the one hand, and existing reservation policies under Article 15 und 16 of the Indian Constitution on the other hand. In writing, manpower reservation in India has been used to apply on caste-based social justice where reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs has been provided under Article 15(4), 16(4) & 46. The paper reviews the legal arguments concerning the EWS quota and the execution of critical judicial precedents. In order to analyse the social significance of EWS quota as well as its implications for India’s mixed reservation structure and its potential to address the issue of unfair socioeconomic inequality without replacing the caste system in India, this paper will compare the EWS quota with other previous type of reservation. This paper also analysis constitutional precepts, historical discourses, and judicial decisions and analyses potential tensions and advantages of incorporating economic category in reservation policies.
