The Andhra Pradesh high court verdict quashing the provision of 4.5 per cent reservation to socially and educationally backward Muslims made by the Centre has once again brought to the focus two orders of the Supreme Court laying down clear parameters about collection of “quantified data” for such quota to sustain its judicial scrutiny. The orders were passed by a three-Judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India S.H. Kapadia on July 13, 2011 laying down guidelines to the states as what they should do before deciding to extend quota benefits to a “class of people” considered socially and educationally backward.
The two orders were passed on the petitions of in cases of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which had extended the quota benefits beyond 50 per cent limit fixed by the top court in its verdict in the Mandal Commission case, also known as Indira Sahani case.
The CJI had made it plain that Supreme Court would not be “rigid” in sticking to 50 per cent cap on reservation and would even allow the states to “revisit” their reservation policy provided they have collected “solid scientific data” on the social and educational backwardness of a class of people to whom the benefit is to be given. According to the SC orders, the “quantified data” so collected by a state has to be placed before the Backward Class Commission for processing and if the panel finds it as correct, a follow up action by the state government to “revisit” its reservation policy would follow.
Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had passed laws in 1993 and 1994 respectively increasing the reservation to 69 and 73 per cent in a bid to “overreach” the Mandal Commission verdict fixing a cap of 50 per cent on total reservation.