15.Prohibition of discrimination on basis of religion, caste, race, sex or place of birth:

(1) The State shall not discrimination against any citizen on grounds only of race, religion, caste, sex, place or birth or any of them.

(2) No citizen shall, on ground only of religion, race, sex, caste, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, inequity or condition with regard to.

(a) Access to hotels, public restaurants, shops and places of public entertainment; or

(b) The use of tanks, wells, roads, bathing Ghats and places of public resorts maintained wholly or partly out of state funds or devoted to the use of the general public.

(3) Nothing in this Article shall stop the state from making any special provision for women and children.

(4) Nothing in this Article or in clause (2) of Article 29 shall prevent the State from making any special supply for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizen or for the scheduled Tribes and the scheduled castes.

(5) Nothing in this Article or in sub-clause (g) of clause (1) of Article 19 shall prevent that State from making any special provision, by law, for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizen or for the scheduled castes or the Scheduled Tribes insofar as such special provisions relate to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institution referred to in clause (1) of Article 30.

(6) Nothing in this Article or sub-clause (g) of clause (1) of Article 19 or clause (2) of article 29 shall stop the State from making,

(a) Any special provision for the advancement of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clauses (4) and (5); and

(b) any special provision for the advancement of any economically weaker section of citizen other than the classes mentioned in clauses(4) and (5) in so far as such special provisions relate to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions, whether aided or unaided by the State, other than the minority educational institutions related to in clause (1) of article 30,which in the case of reservation would be in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of ten percent. of the total seats in each category.

C0MMENTS

Clause (4) of Article 15 may emerge to be blanket provision, protecting any kind of beneficial discrimination for the welfare of the backward classes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Scheduled Castes. But reservation of an excessively high percentage of seats in technical institutions for each class would be null. Ordinarily, reservation in surplus of 50 percent of available seats may not be upheld.

This is justified because chance cannot be taken in highly technical fields like medical, space

If reservation cannot be so enormous that the institution itself may lose relevance or place in the modern-day world of competition. More meritorious and competent institution from other countries will occupy the vacuum created by them specially in this stage age of globalization and information technology.

The Article allows the state to make special provision for the following:

Socially and educationally backward classes of citizens.

Scheduled castes, and Scheduled tribes

“Children born to inter-caste marriage of which either father or mother belongs to SC-ST category can request reservation benefits only on proof that he is subjected to some handicap and disadvantage having been born as member of SC-ST.

‘Reservation on the basis of domicile is not impermissible in terms of clause (i) of Article 15’

A person reason of marriage alone cannot ipso facto become a member of scheduled caste or scheduled tribe.

Similarly, university-wise preference is valid, if it is reasonable. Domicile-wise preference is valid, if it does not exceed reasonable limits. College-wise preference is bad.

Reservation of 50% of posts in favour of female candidates not arbitrary” in particular, provisions in the criminal law, in favour of women, or in the procedural laws discriminatory in favour of women have been upheld.

Sexual harassment of working women amounts to violation of the rights guaranteed by Articles 14, 15 and 23(equality and dignity).The Supreme Court issued detailed direction on the subject which are being followed in public as well as in private sectors.

16.Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment:

(1) there shall be justice of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the state.

(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, decent, place of birth, residence or any of them, be not eligible for ,or discriminated against in respect of ,any employment or office under the State.

(3) Nothing in this Article shall prevent parliament from making any law prescribing ,in regard to a class or classes of employment or appointment to an office under the government of, or any local or other authority within, a state or Union territory ,any requirement as to residence within that state or Union territory prior to such employment or appointment.

(4) Nothing in this Article shall prevent the state from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or pots in favour of any backward class of citizen which, in the opinion of the State, is not adequately represented in the service under the State.

(4A) Nothing in this Article shall prevent the state from making any provision for reservation in matters of promotion of any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of Scheduled Tribes which, in the opinion of state, are not adequately represented in the services under the State.

(5) Nothing in this Article shall affect the operation of any law which provides that the incumbent of an office in connection with the affairs of any religious or denominational institution or any member of the governing body there of shall be a person professing a particular religion or belonging to a particular denomination.

(6) Nothing in this article shall prevent the state from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clause (4), in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of ten per cent of the posts in each category.

COMMENTS

The words ‘employment or appointments ‘are wide enough to include duration, tenure, emoluments and duties and obligation, whether employment is temporary or permanent. These cover not merely the initial appointment, but also salary, increments, revision of pay, promotion , gratuity, leave, pension and age of superannuation.

Appointment/recruitment of temporary, contractual casual, daily-wager or adhoc employment dehors the Constitutional scheme cannot be regulated such opportunities cannot claim to be made permanent and are not covered under Article16.

The policy of the state regarding reservation should be compatible with the maintenance of efficiency of administration.

The Mandal commission had in its report recommended 27 percent reservation for backward classes in view of the limit of 50 percent imposed by the Supreme Court.

In its judgment in the Mandal case, the Supreme Court held that 27 per cent reservation for the socially and educationally backward classes was in order.