New Delhi: The Supreme Court today upheld 103rd amendment to the Constitution that introduces a 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in admissions to educational institutuions and government jobs.
Justices Dinesh Maheshwari, Bela M Trivedi,and J B Pardiwala agreed that the amendment does not violate the basic structure of Indian constitution, as Chief Justice of India U U Lalit and Justice S Ravindra Bhat dissented.
“The reservation is an instrument of affirmative action by the state to ensure an all-inclusive match towards the goal of an egalitarian society while countering inequalities”, said Justice Maheshwari in his judgement.
The inclusion of EWS is instrumental not only for their inclusion of socially and educationally backward classes to the mainstream of society, but also for the inclusion of any class or section so disadvantaged as to be answering the definition of weaker section.