JANHIT ABHIYAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this batch of writ petitions, petitioners have challenged the constitutional validity of, The Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019 [for short, 'the Amendment Act']. By the aforesaid amendment, Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution of India were amended by inserting clause (6), after clause (5), in Article 15 and by inserting clause (6) after clause (5), in Article 16. The newly inserted Articles 15(6) and 16(6) read as under:

(2.) By virtue of Article 15(6) of the Constitution, States are empowered to make a special provision for the advancement of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clauses (4) and (5) and to make a special provision relating to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions, whether aided or unaided by the State, other than the minority educational institutions referred to in clause (1) of Article 30, in addition to existing reservations and subject to a maximum of ten per cent of the total seats in each category. Similarly, Article 16(6) empowers the State to make any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clause (4), in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of ten per cent of the posts in each category.

(3.) The above said impugned constitutional amendments are questioned in this batch of cases mainly on the ground that the impugned amendments are ultra vires as they alter the basic structure ofthe Constitution of India. Further, it is also the case of the petitioners that the impugned amendments run contrary to the dictum in the majority judgment, in the case of Indra Sawhney and Ors. vs. Union of India and Ors, (1992) Supp.(3) SCC 217. It is the case of the petitioners that a backward class cannot be determined only and exclusively with reference to economic criterion. Petitioners have also pleaded that the reservation of ten per cent of vacancies, in available vacancies/posts, in open competition on the basis of economic criterion will exclude all other classes of those above the demarcating line of such ten per cent seats. It is further pleaded that reservation in unaided institutions violates the fundamental right under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution. It is their case that the State cannot insist on private educational institutions which receive no aid from the State to implement the State policy on reservation for granting admission on lesser percentage of marks, i.e., on any criterion except merit.