Protective Discrimination in Post-Independent India: An Analysis

The concept of “equality” and “inequality” has been a theoretical conundrum since time immemorial; two people of different classes can never be treated in the same manner. At the time of the drafting of the Indian constitution, one of the major challenges faced by the founding fathers of the constitution was to design a system where the social and economic divide existing between the various groups of the country could be bridged. The agenda was to create a society where there is equality of status and opportunity, which is why the virtue of justice and equality has also been included in the Preamble of the Constitution. But it was not easy due to the evident position of a certain class of people suffering from the economic and social affliction. This was the primary reason for establishing a system of “class-based” reservation in areas where people belonging to the “vulnerable class” needed upliftment. This came to be known as Protective Discrimination in the Indian Jurisprudence; initially, when this concept was introduced into our constitution, it was intended for a short span of time, but fortunately or unfortunately, it is still very much prevalent in our country. This research is aimed at analysing the concept of protective discrimination, its correlation with the virtue of social justice mentioned in the Preamble and understanding its current standing in Indian Jurisprudence.