A two-judge Bench of the Supreme Court led by Justice L. Nageswara Rao on Wednesday decided not to refer to a larger Bench a slew of petitions, including multiple ones by Tamil Nadu, regarding the validity of a State law granting reservation to Vanniyars, a most backward community.
The Bench, also comprising Justice B.R. Gavai, said it has referred to several precedents on the point of reference and has resolved to go ahead and hear the case on merits.
The two-judge Bench is hearing a challenge to a Madras High Court decision in November 2021, declaring ultra vires the law which provided 10.5% special reservation to Vanniyars.
