Chennai, November 12
An all-legislative party meeting, chaired by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Saturday, said it rejected the 103rd Constitutional Amendment providing 10 per cent EWS quota by the Centre, saying it created caste-discrimination among the poor.
“Reservation based on economic status is contrary to social justice, contrary to the Constitution,” Stalin said.
justice will wither away
If this amendment is accepted, the very social-justice concept will wither away with time. They will remove the ‘socially and economically backward’ (clause) and bring ‘economically’ everywhere. —MK Stalin, Tamil Nadu CM
The ruling party, DMK had announced it would file a review petition against the November 8 Supreme Court upholding of the 10 per cent reservation for the economically weaker sections (EWS). The quota was upheld 3-2 by the Bench.
DMK’s allies — Congress, Left parties, MDMK, and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi — besides NDA constituent Pattali Makkal Katchi participated in the meeting.
Stalin said the Constitution had mandated social and educational backwardness as the measure for reservation. Taking on critics of reservation, he said those who had complained of compromise in merit were now welcoming the 10 per cent quota.
In fact, when demands were made to include the word ‘Economically’ over the first amendment for reservation, the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the then Law Minister BR Ambedkar were not in favour, he said.
