Constitutional bench of Supreme Court to start hearing cases challenging the validity of EWS quota and Muslim SEBC reservation from 13 September

The Constitutional Bench of Supreme Court will start hearing cases challenging the Constitutional Validity of reservation for Economically Weaker Sections and the reservation given for Muslims in Andhra Pradesh as a Socially and Economically Backward Class (SEBC) on September 13 and September 14.

On Tuesday, the 5-judge bench comprising of Chief Justice of India UU Lalit, Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, Justice S Ravindra Bhat, Justice Bela M Trivedi, Justice JB Pardiwala observed and has decided to list these matters next Tuesday -September 6- to set the time line for hearing and completion of other pre-hearing steps. It was stated by the bench that in the matter the hearing will be commenced from September 13.

The present case is related to the Muslim SEBC reservation is a 2005 civil appeal which raises the issue whether Muslims, as a community and can be declared socially and the educationally backward for the purposes of Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution. (Case No. C.A. No.7513/2005).

However, the other case relates to the validity of the constitution 103rd Amendment Act 2019 which introduced provision for reservation to Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) (WP(c) No.55/2019).

It was agreed by the bench that to take up the matters as the issues are being overlapping and firstly, the EWS matter will be taken up by the bench and while following the cases relating to Muslim SEBC quota.

The four lawyers are appointed by the bench namely – Shadan Farasat, Nachiketa Joshi, Mahfooz Nazki and Kanu Agarwal- as the nodal counsel, who would be seeing the common applications in both the filled cases.

Further, the complications should include all the statutory instruments, documents, the case laws and the other materials which the lawyers wish to rely upon.

However, the 5-bench judge listed four matters for pre-hearing directions. Apart from the above two mentioned, the other cases are:

The Minority reservation for the Sikhs in Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) institutions (SLP (C) No.2755/2008)

The Plea seeking reliefs for division of Supreme Court into appellate and Constitutional divisions with regional benches for the former (W.P.(C)No.36/2016).

It was decided by the bench to firstly take upon the reservations related cases as the issues are being overlapped.