The story so far: On November 17, the Governor of Bihar approved two laws increasing the quantum of reservations in jobs and education in the State to 75%, including 20% for Scheduled Castes, 2% for Scheduled Tribes, 18% for Other Backward Classes, and 25% for Extremely Backward Classes, and 10% for economically weaker sections (EWS). The two laws have once again sparked debate around the permissible limits of reservations in India, particularly in view of the “50%” limit prescribed by the Supreme Court of India in the Mandal Commission case (Indra Sawhney, 1992), as well as the court’s emphasis on “adequate” representation of the oppressed classes as opposed to “proportionate representation”.
What is the 50% rule?
The Supreme Court has historically maintained that reservations, whether in jobs or education, should not exceed 50% of the total seats/posts. In 1963, a seven judge bench in M.R. Balaji explained that reservations were in the nature of an “exception“ or “special provision“ under our constitutional scheme. Therefore, they cannot be provided for more than 50% of the posts or seats. Though this understanding of reservations changed in 1976 — with it being recognised that reservations are a facet of equality rather than an exception to it — the 50% limit has remained unaltered.
