Constitutional Framework of Social Justice — Amendments

Amendment	Year	Description	Impact
1st Amendment	1951	Inserted Article 15(4), enabling the State to make special provisions for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.	Provided the constitutional basis for affirmative action and reservation policies, overcoming the initial judicial interpretation that prioritized formal equality over substantive social justice.
77th Amendment	1995	Inserted Article 16(4A), enabling the State to provide for reservation in matters of promotion to any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of SCs/STs.	Overcame the Indra Sawhney judgment's prohibition on reservation in promotions for SCs/STs, allowing for their continued representation in higher posts.
81st Amendment	2000	Inserted Article 16(4B), allowing the State to treat unfilled reserved vacancies of a year as a separate class of vacancies to be filled in any succeeding year, thus exempting them from the 50% reservation ceiling.	Enabled the 'carry forward' rule for reserved vacancies, preventing the lapse of quotas and ensuring better representation for SCs/STs.
85th Amendment	2001	Provided for 'consequential seniority' in case of promotion by virtue of rule of reservation for the government servants belonging to SCs/STs.	Ensured that SC/ST employees promoted through reservation maintain their seniority, addressing a key grievance and enhancing their career progression.
93rd Amendment	2005	Inserted Article 15(5), enabling the State to make special provisions for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes in admission to educational institutions, including private unaided institutions (except minority educational institutions).	Extended reservation benefits to private educational institutions, significantly broadening the scope of affirmative action in education.
102nd Amendment	2018	Granted constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) and inserted Articles 338B and 342A. Article 342A specifies that the President, in consultation with the Governor, would notify the list of socially and educationally backward classes for a State/UT.	Strengthened the institutional mechanism for OBC welfare and centralized the power to identify OBCs, impacting states' autonomy in this regard (later partially restored by 105th Amendment).
103rd Amendment	2019	Inserted Articles 15(6) and 16(6), providing for 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in admissions to educational institutions and appointments in government jobs.	Introduced economic criteria for reservation, creating a new category for affirmative action and potentially breaching the 50% reservation ceiling, significantly altering the reservation landscape.
105th Amendment	2021	Restored the power of state governments to identify 'socially and educationally backward classes' (SEBCs) for the purpose of granting reservations, clarifying the ambiguity created by the 102nd Amendment.	Reaffirmed the federal structure by allowing states to maintain their own lists of OBCs, crucial for tailoring social justice policies to local contexts.