NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the reservation to economically weaker sections (EWS) among forward castes or general category. Justice Bela Trivedi and Justice KB Pardiwala, two judges of a five-member constitutional bench, made observations in their judgments regarding the need for a time-limit for reservations.

“Caste system in India should not be the only basis for reservation. The government has the right to uplift the economically backward sections. Forward caste reservation is not discriminatory. EWS can be considered as a special category,” said Justice Bela Trivedi. Justice JB Pardiwala said that reservation cannot go on for an indefinite period so as to become a "vested interest".

The Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court considered 39 petitions filed against EWS reservation. Parliament passed the 103rd Constitutional Amendment in January 2019, which provides 10 per cent reservation for the economically backward. By amending Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution, ten per cent reservation was introduced for the economically backward classes in government jobs and admission to educational institutions.

The central government's stance in the Supreme Court was that EWS reservation was granted without affecting the existing reservation of the reserved categories.