The Supreme Court of India has ruled that individuals who convert to another religion cannot claim caste-based reservation benefits. The court upheld the Madras High Court’s decision, which invalidated the Tamil Nadu government’s move to grant reservation to persons who had converted to Islam. Rejecting petitions based on the Constitution and principles relating to caste reservations, the court clarified that social backwardness does not automatically transfer with conversion to another religion.
The Supreme Court stated that an individual belonging to a socially backward class or Scheduled Caste under the Hindu social order, upon converting to another religion, is not entitled to reservation benefits based on their previous social status. The Madras High Court had earlier struck down the Tamil Nadu government’s policy of providing reservation to converts to Islam. In line with constitutional provisions and established principles of caste reservation, the Supreme Court dismissed the related petitions.
According to the court, social backwardness based on caste in the Hindu social system does not automatically carry over after adopting another faith. Therefore, individuals from backward classes or Scheduled Castes who convert to a different religion cannot claim reservation on that basis. This verdict offers a significant legal interpretation regarding the connection between religious conversion and caste-based reservation in India.
