Supreme Court permits sub-classification of SCs/STs, overturning 2004 decision, enabling separate quotas for marginalized groups.
In a significant pronouncement, the apex court passed a 6:1 judgment on Thursday endorsing sub-classification of SCs and STs to form individual quotas for the most backward among these communities. The five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud set aside a 2004 decision that had held states have no power to create sub-categories within the SCs or STs for providing reservation). In dissent, Justice Bela Trivedi wrote that the majority opinion ‘runs afoul of sound tenets of public law and violates elementary maxims governing interpretation’.
