Rather Than Caste System Being Wiped Away, Reservation System Perpetuates It Endlessly: Madras High Court

The Madras High Court opined on Wednesday that the Constituent Assembly had envisioned the reservation system to be in force only during the infancy period of Independent India, however it is now being endlessly extended through repeated amendments thereby perpetuating the caste system in the process. The Court made the observation as a footnote while dismissing the contempt of court plea filed by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party against the Central government on the issue of implementing reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) in All India Quota (AIQ) medical college seats.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice PD Audikesavalu observed,

"Rather than the caste system being wiped away, the present trend seems to perpetuate it by endlessly extending a measure that was to remain only for a short duration to cover the infancy and, possibly, the adolescence of the Republic. Though the life of a nation state may not be relatable to the human process of aging, but at over-70, it ought, probably, to be more mature"

The Court also remarked that it is high time that citizens are empowered so that 'merit may ultimately decide matters as to admission, appointment and promotion' instead of the reservation system.

It added further,

"The entire concept of reservation that appears to have been addressed by the Constituent Assembly while framing the Constitution may have been turned on its head by repeated amendments and the veritable reinvigoration of the caste system and even extending it to denominations where it does not exist"

The Court on Wednesday held that Centre's notification dated July 29, 2021 implementing 27 percent reservation for Other backward Classes (OBC) candidates in All India Quota (AIQ) seats of medical colleges in Tamil Nadu may be permissible subject to the Supreme Court's formal approval of the same. 

However, the Court expressed its reservations regarding the validity of extending a 10 percent reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in AIQ seats and thus observed that the same is not permissible without the Supreme Court's approval. The Bench also held that there had been no 'wilful or deliberate' violation on the part of the Central government in implementing the High Court's earlier decision dated July 27, 2020 on this issue.

Case Title: DMK v. Rajesh Bhushan and ors

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