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Centre Opposes Creamy Layer Extension to SC/ST Amid Supreme Court’s 2024 Sub‑Classification Ruling For Rajasthan Government Exam Preparation and Practice Download Tayari24 Official App from Play Store - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=education.ai.tayari24
Key Highlights * The Union Government maintains that the creamy‑layer doctrine, applied to OBCs, should not be extended to Scheduled Castes and Tribes. * Reservation for SCs/STs is premised on historical discrimination, social backwardness, caste/tribal status and inadequate representation, not solely on economic criteria. * The 2024 Supreme Court judgment permits evidence‑based sub‑classification within SC/ST categories to target the most disadvantaged groups. * The distinction between sub‑categorisation and creamy‑layer exclusion is crucial: the former divides the quota, the latter removes the affluent from benefits. * Current central reservation percentages: SC 15 %, ST 7.5 %, OBC 27 %, EWS 10 %. Detailed Insights The Centre’s position is rooted in the understanding that the creamy‑layer principle, which was originally articulated in the landmark Indra Sawhney case, is designed to filter out the relatively better‑off members of a backward class. Extending this filter to Scheduled Castes and Tribes would, according to the government, undermine the very purpose of reservation, which is to redress centuries of social and economic exclusion. In its submission to the Supreme Court, the Union highlighted that reservation for SCs and STs is justified on multiple grounds: past discrimination, persistent social disadvantage, caste and tribal status, and inadequate representation in public services. An income‑based test, the government argued, would require a comprehensive empirical review and could dilute the protective intent of the policy. The 2024 ruling, delivered by a 6:1 majority, upheld the constitutional validity of sub‑classification within the SC community and overturned the earlier 2004 decision that had barred such division. The Court emphasized that any sub‑category must be grounded in quantitative data, evidence of greater disadvantage, and a rational justification that avoids arbitrariness. While sub‑categorisation seeks to allocate a larger share of the quota to the most vulnerable sub‑groups, the creamy‑layer doctrine remains a mechanism to exclude the relatively affluent members of a reserved category. The distinction is important because the former is a positive allocation strategy, whereas the latter is a negative exclusionary measure. Constitutional provisions such as Articles 14, 15(4), 16, 16(4), 16(4A), 335 and 341 form the legal scaffold for reservation. Article 341, in particular, empowers the President to notify the castes that constitute Scheduled Castes in a state, while Parliament can later amend the list. The 2024 judgment clarified that the state may still create evidence‑based sub‑quotas without altering the presidential list. Key Concepts * Creamy Layer: A subset of a backward class whose economic and social standing is comparatively better, thereby rendering them ineligible for reservation benefits. * Sub‑Classification: The division of a reserved category into smaller sub‑groups based on empirical evidence to ensure that the most disadvantaged receive a larger share of the quota. * Reservation: A constitutional mechanism that sets aside a fixed percentage of seats or posts for historically disadvantaged communities. * Scheduled Castes (SC): Communities identified by the Constitution as socially and educationally backward, historically subjected to untouchability and discrimination. * Scheduled Tribes (ST): Indigenous communities recognized by the Constitution as socially and economically backward, often living in remote areas. * Economically Weaker Sections (EWS): A category defined by the 103rd Amendment that allows a 10 % reservation for families below a specified income threshold.