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SUMMARY
1. Various Petitions were filed by the Petitioners before the Supreme Court
challenging the orders passed by the State of Mysore under Article 15(4) of the
Constitution to make special provision for the socially and educationally
backward citizens of the State of Mysore. Under this order, the Backward Classes
were divided into two categories (1) Backward Classes and (2) More Backward
Classes and 50% quota was reserved for them (28% - Backward Classes and
22%- More backward classes). In addition to this, 15% continued to remain
reserved for the Scheduled Castes and 3% for the Scheduled Tribes. The result
of the order was that 68% of the seats available for admission to the Engineering
and Medical Colleges was reserved and only 32% was available to the merit pool.
2. The writ petitions were allowed and the order set aside.
3. Petitioners’ Contention
i. The grievance of the Petitioners was that but for the reservation made by the
impugned order, they would have been entitled to the admission in the
respective colleges (Medical and Engineering Colleges) for which they had
applied. The contention was the impugned order passed under Art. 15 (4) is
not valid because of the following reasons:-
a. the basis adopted by the order in specifying and enumerating the socially
and educationally backward classes of citizens in the State is unintelligible
and irrational;
b. the classification made on the said basis is inconsistent with and outside
the provisions of Art. 15 (4).
c. The extent of reservation prescribed by the said order is so unreasonable
and extravagant that the order, in law, is not justified by Art. 15 (4) and,
in substance, is a fraud on the power conferred by the said Article on the
State.
ii. The Petitioners submitted that the order is bad as the State is not competent
to make an order under Art. 15(4) unless a Commission has been appointed
to investigate the conditions of Backward Classes under Art. 340 (1) and a
copy of the report is tabled in the Parliament under Art. 340(3) as Article
15(4) has to be read with Article 340 of the Constitution. It is the
President who is to take action on the Report and then lay it before the
House of Parliament and it is only the President who can, therefore,
make special provision for the advancement of the Backward Classes.
[This argument was rejected. The Court held that appointment of Commission
and subsequent report is not a condition precedent to issuing order by the
State under Article 15(4)]
iii. Even if special provision can be made by the State under Art. 15(4), the said
provision must be made not by an executive order but by legislation.
[This argument was rejected. Under Art. 12, the State includes the Government
and the Legislature. Besides, where the Constitution intended that a certain
action should be taken by legislation and not by executive action, it has
adopted suitable phraseology in that behalf, which is not the case in Article
15(4)].
4. Government’s Contention
The contention of the State of Mysore was that the classification made is both
rational and intelligible and the reservation prescribed by the order is fully
justified by Art. 15 (4).
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