Apex court strikes down quota for wards of armed forces personnel

A Bench comprising Justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar said such institutions would have to follow government policy of reservation to weaker section of society.

“The inherited social, educational, cultural, political and economic disadvantages of vast swaths of humanity in our country are propagated across generations. A system that predominantly results in giving access to only certain groups would necessarily work towards sustenance of those inequalities,” the Bench said.

It passed the order on petitions filed by the Indian Medical Association and students challenging the Delhi government’s approval to admission process of ACMS for giving admission only to wards of serving and former Army personnel.

The notification issued by the government permitting the ACMS to allocate 100 per cent seats for admission to wards of Army personnel in accordance with the policy followed by the Indian Army is ultra vires and also unconstitutional,” the Bench said.