Union of India v. Rohith Nathan 2026 INSC 230 - UPSC -Reservation - Creamy Layer- Income

Constitution of India - Article 15 - DoPT OM No. 36012/22/93-Estt.(SCT) -Determination of creamy layer status solely on the basis of income brackets, without reference to the categories of posts and status parameters enunciated in the 1993 OM is clearly unsustainable in law - income from salaries alone cannot be the sole criterion to decide whether a candidate falls within the creamy layer. The status as well as the category of post to which a candidate’s parent or parents belong is essential. The exclusion under Categories I to III of the Schedule is status-based rather than purely income-based, reflecting the policy understanding that advancement within the governmental service hierarchy denotes social progression independent of fluctuating salary levels. Mere determination of the status of a candidate as to whether he/she falls within the creamy layer or the non-creamy layer of the OBCs cannot be decided solely on the basis of the income. (Para 26,31) Any interpretation of the 1993 OM or the 2004 Letter that results in unequal treatment of similarly placed OBC candidates would not only be legally erroneous but constitutionally impermissible. [Context: Supreme Court upheld that the reasoning adopted by the High Court that treating similarly placed employees of private entities and PSUs differently from Government employees and their wards, while deciding their entitlement to reservation, would amount to hostile discrimination]

Constitution of India - Article 14,15 - Caste - Creamy Layer - While caste may be an indicator of historical disadvantage, it cannot be treated as the sole determinant of backwardness. The exclusion of the creamy layer among the backward classes is not a matter of mere policy preference but a constitutional imperative intended to ensure that the benefits of reservation reach those who are socially and educationally backward in the true sense of the phrase. The principle seeks to prevent relatively advanced segments within the backward classes from 58 siphoning off the advantages of affirmative action, so that the objective and purpose of the constitutional scheme of affirmative action, of which reservation is a reflection, are adhered to. (Para 33) The object of excluding the creamy layer is to ensure that socially advanced sections within the OBCs do not appropriate benefits meant for the genuinely backward; it is not to create artificial distinctions between equally placed members of the same social class. (Para 36)

Constitution of India - Article 14 - Adopting an interpretation that disadvantages one segment of the same backward class without rational justification would amount to treating equals as unequals and would thus become the antithesis of equality. (Para 40) To withstand scrutiny under Article 14, must satisfy the twin requirements of (i) intelligible differentia 59 distinguishing persons grouped together from others left out, and (ii) a rational nexus with the object sought to be achieved. If similarly situated persons are subjected to differential treatment without a constitutionally sustainable basis, such action would fall foul of Article 14. (Para 35)

Constitution of India - Article 162 - Instructions - A mere government letter cannot have the effect of overriding, overruling or superseding any proceeding in the nature of an executive instruction or an Office Memorandum issued in exercise of executive power under Article 162 of the Constitution. Clarificatory instruction cannot introduce a substantive condition that does not exist in the parent policy. If it travels beyond explanation and alters rights or liabilities, it ceases to be clarificatory and assumes the character of an amendment. (Para 24)

Constitution of India - Article 14,15 - 1. Caste may serve as an initial identifying marker but cannot be the exclusive determinant. 2. Economic condition is a relevant and rational refining criterion. 3. Reservation policy must balance social justice with broader societal interests.  (Para 21.5)