Constitutional Amendments for Social Justice — Landmark Judgments

Landmark Judgments

State of Madras v. Smt. Champakam Dorairajan

1951

This landmark judgment was pivotal in shaping the early jurisprudence of affirmative action in India. The Madras government's communal G.O. (Government Order) providing…

M.R. Balaji v. State of Mysore

1963

This case dealt with the extent of reservations under Article 15(4) and 16(4). The Mysore government's order reserving 68% of seats in engineering and medical colleges (28% for…

Indra Sawhney v. Union of India

1992

Also known as the 'Mandal Commission case', this is arguably the most significant judgment on reservation policy in India. A nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court largely upheld…

T.M.A. Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka

2002

This eleven-judge bench judgment dealt with the rights of minority and non-minority unaided private educational institutions. The Court held that while the state can regulate…

Ashoka Kumar Thakur v. Union of India

2008

This judgment specifically upheld the constitutional validity of the 93rd Amendment Act, 2005, which introduced Article 15(5) enabling the state to make special provisions for the…

Jarnail Singh v. Lachhmi Narain Gupta

2018

This judgment revisited the M. Nagaraj (2006) verdict regarding reservations in promotions for SC/STs. The Supreme Court held that the requirement for the state to collect…

I.R. Coelho (Dead) by LRs v. State of Tamil Nadu

2007

This nine-judge bench judgment definitively clarified the scope of judicial review over laws placed in the Ninth Schedule. Overruling earlier interpretations, the Supreme Court…