SC quashes Bihar govt's resolution extending SC benefits to 'Tanti-Tantwa' caste
Justices Vikram Nath & PK Mishra [15-07-2024]

Read Order: DR. BHIM RAO AMBEDKAR VICHAR MANCH BIHAR, PATNA & ORS v. THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS [SC- CIVIL APPEAL NO. 18802 OF 2017]

LE Correspondent

New Delhi, July 16, 2024: The Supreme Court has quashed a resolution passed by the Bihar government in 2015 that extended Scheduled Caste (SC) benefits to the 'Tanti-Tantwa' caste by merging it with the 'Pan-Sawasi' caste listed as SC in the state.

A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra held that the Bihar government had no authority or power to tinker with the SC lists published under Article 341 of the Constitution. Any inclusion or exclusion from the SC lists can only be done by the Parliament through a law, the court emphasized.

The top court was hearing appeals filed against a Patna High Court judgment that had upheld the Bihar government's resolution dated July 1, 2015. The resolution had deleted 'Tanti-Tantwa' from the state's list of Extremely Backward Classes (EBC) and merged it with the SC caste 'Pan-Sawasi' at serial number 20 in the SC list for Bihar, extending all SC benefits to 'Tanti-Tantwa'.

The Supreme Court noted that the Bihar government was aware it lacked the authority to amend the SC list, as it had earlier written to the Centre in 2011 requesting the inclusion of 'Tanti-Tantwa' as a synonym of 'Pan-Sawasi'. However, this proposal was not accepted by the Registrar General of India. Despite this, the Bihar government went ahead and issued the 2015 resolution extending SC status to 'Tanti-Tantwa'. The top court termed this a "mala fide exercise" to illegally extend benefits, depriving genuine SC members.

While setting aside the resolution, the Supreme Court refrained from quashing appointments or withdrawing benefits already given to 'Tanti-Tantwa' members under the resolution. However, it directed that all such SC quota posts filled by 'Tanti-Tantwa' members after the 2015 resolution be returned to the SC category. The state should accommodate such 'Tanti-Tantwa' members under their original EBC category, the apex court said.