'Creamy Layer' Must Be Excluded from Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes for Reservations :::::: Supreme CourtJustice Mithal calls for a re-look on reservation system and says other methods are needed to help downtrodden among SC/ST/OBC categories

“Why should not be there an exclusion? According to you, amongst a particular category, some of the sub-castes have done better. They are the forward in that category. They should come out of that and compete with the general. Why stay there?" Justice Vikram Nath said. 

Reservation Policy Requires Re-Look, Other Methods Needed To Uplift Downtrodden Among SC/ST/OBCs : Supreme Court Judge

"Putting the children of the parents from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who on account of benefit of reservation have reached a high position and ceased to be socially, economically and educationally backward and the children of parents doing manual work in the villages in the same category would defeat the constitutional mandate" - Justice Gavai.

In what could come as a significant development in the field of affirmative action, the Supreme Court on Thursday called for identification of creamy layer among the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/STs) to take them out of the fold of affirmative action (reservation).

Currently the principle of creamy layer applies only to Other Backwards Classes (OBCs) and not SC/STs.

This is not the first time that the apex court has opined on which generation of backward classes should avail the benefits of reservation.

In February 2024, the court, during the hearing of the same case, said that it was time to review the quota policy and exclude those who have already benefitted from reservation among the backward classes.

Justice Pankaj Mithal said that reservation is one of the modes to uplift the downtrodden; however, its execution "revives casteism."  

"There was no caste system in primitive India. Slowly the varna system prevalent was misconstrued to be a caste system... 

With the adoption of the Constitution, we again tried to move into a casteless society but in the name of social welfare to uplift the depressed and the backward classes, we again fell into the trap of caste system"- 

- Supreme Court judge Justice Pankaj Mithal in his judgment allowing sub-classification of SCs.  

Justice Mithal calls for a re-look on the reservation system and says other methods are needed to uplift the downtrodden among the SC/ST/OBC categories.

It is common understanding that what is conceded once to appease any class cannot be taken back. So are the benefits extended to the reserved category of persons under the constitution. Each concession once made, just goes on swelling like a raisin/balloon. This actually happened with the policy of reservation also : Justice Mithal.  

Anyone who suggests another or a better way of helping the so-called depressed classes or the downtrodden or the marginalised persons of the society is immediately pounced upon as ‘Anti Dalit : Justice Pankaj Mithal.

While allowing sub-classification of Scheduled Castes, four #SupremeCourt judges of the 7-judge bench, expressly hold that the 'creamy layer' among the Scheduled Caste must be excluded from reservations.

Justice Gavai : "State must evolve a policy to identify the creamy layer among the SC ST category and take them out of the fold of affirmative action. This is the only way to gain true equality."

Justice Vikram Nath endorses this view, saying, that the creamy layer principle as applicable to OBCs also applies to the SCs.

Justice Pankaj Mithal states that reservation has to be only limited to the first generation. If any member of the first generation has reached a higher status through reservation, then the 2nd generation should not be entitled to reservation, Justice Mithal adds.

Justice Satish Chandra Sharma agrees with the view of Justice Gavai that the issue of identification of creamy layer qua SC/STs ought to become a constitutional imperative for the State.

"The question that will have to be posed is, whether equal treatment to unequals in the category of Scheduled Castes would advance the constitutional objective of equality or would thwart it? Can a child of IAS/IPS or Civil Service Officers be equated with a child of a disadvantaged member belonging to Scheduled Castes, studying in a Gram Panchayat/Zilla Parishad school in a village?" - Justice Gavai.

"The education facilities and the other facilities that would be available to a child of a parent of the first category would be much higher, maybe the facilities for additional coaching would also be available; the atmosphere in the house will be far superior and conducive for educational upliftment"

"Per contra, the child of parent of the second category would be having only the bare minimum education; the facilities of coaching, etc., would be totally unavailable to him. He will be living in the company of his parents who do not have education and have not even been in a position to guide such a child" - Justice Gavai.   

"The State must evolve a policy for identifying the creamy layer even from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes so as exclude them from the benefit of affirmative action. In my view, only this and this alone can achieve the real equality as enshrined under the Constitution"- Justice Gavai.  

"The reservation, if any, has to be limited only for the first generation or one generation and if any generation in the family has taken advantage of the reservation and have achieved higher status, the benefit of reservation would not be logically available to the second generation," Justice Pankaj Mithal.

"It is reiterated that periodical exercise has to be undertaken to exclude the class of person who after taking advantage of reservation has come to march, shoulder to shoulder with the general category"- Justice Pankaj Mithal.