The Supreme Court on Wednesday put some searching questions to the pro-quota petitioners for propagating reservations without excluding the 'creamy layer' saying this will not allow the disadvantageous class to come up and may lead to clashes in society.
"Will the creamy layer ever allow the disadvantageous class to come up? They are enjoying the cream. In short, creamy layer is like a higher caste who will not allow the really backward to come up," a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan observed.
"This will lead to a clash in the society. That is not the intent of reservation. This (reservation) is meant to bring up the most disadvantageous," the bench, which is examining the validity of the law providing 27 per cent quota to OBC in the Central Educational Institutions, said.
The remarks came when Pattali Makkal Katchi, a constituent of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu, pressed for providing reservations to the backward castes without excluding the creamy layer within it.
The bench allayed the apprehension that seats reserved for the OBCs in educational institutes may remain vacant if the 'creamy layer' was excluded from enjoying benefits of reservation.