Caste Discrimination — Legal Framework

6.1 Constitutional Safeguards

• Article 15: Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth.
• Article 15(4): State may make special provisions for socially and educationally backward classes (enables reservation).
• Article 16(4): Reservation in public employment for backward classes.
• Article 17: Abolition of untouchability (practice is a punishable offence).
• Article 46 (DPSP): State to promote education and economic interests of SC/ST.

6.2 Key Legislation

• Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 (formerly Untouchability Offences Act): Penalises practice of untouchability.
• SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (amended 2018): Stricter provisions against caste crimes; no anticipatory bail for accused; special courts.
• Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976: Ends caste-linked debt bondage.
• Manual Scavenging (Prohibition) Act, 2013: Bans employment as manual scavengers; provides rehabilitation.

6.3 Judicial Milestones

Case	Year	Significance
State of Madras v. Champakam Dorairajan	1951	First reservation case; led to 1st Constitutional Amendment
Indra Sawhney v. Union of India	1992	Upheld 27% OBC quota; imposed 50% cap; excluded creamy layer
M. Nagaraj v. Union of India	2006	ST reservation in promotions — requires data on backwardness
Jarnail Singh v. Lachhmi Narain Gupta	2018	Confirmed creamy layer applicable to SC/ST in promotions
Janhit Abhiyan v. Union of India	2022	Upheld 10% EWS reservation (103rd Amendment)

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