New Delhi, Jan 11: The Supreme Court has declined to issue directives to exclude the children of IAS, IPS, and similar officers from the reservation benefits for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) in Madhya Pradesh.
A Bench led by Justice BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih ruled that decisions regarding whether individuals from the "creamy layer"—those who have already benefited from reservations—should be excluded from the reservation system fall under the domain of the executive and legislature.
The Court stated, “It is for the executive and the legislature to decide whether to provide reservation or not. It is an enabling provision. We have expressed our view that, after seventy-five years, those who have availed of the benefit and are now in a position to compete with others should be excluded from reservation. However, it is ultimately for the executive and legislature to make this decision.”
The petitioner's counsel had urged the Court to direct the state to formulate a policy on reservation, noting that recruitment processes in 21 departments were continuing without excluding the creamy layer. The counsel also pointed to the reluctance of the High Court to entertain the petition and referenced the case Vishakha and Others v. State of Rajasthan, where the Court had framed interim policies in the absence of state action.
Despite these arguments, the Supreme Court reiterated that reservation is an enabling provision, and policymaking in this regard is the prerogative of the legislature and the executive.
