Need to eliminate social handicaps but unclear whether reservation will bring in equality: Justice Sujata Manohar

There is a need to eliminate social handicaps of backward communities but it is still unclear whether the quota system or reservation will help bring about equality, former Supreme Court judge Justice Sujata Manohar recently said..While quotas and affirmative action have been used in India, it remains unclear whether this will make the present situation more equal, she stated.These are issues that are difficult to resolve and what needs to be done is to come up with research and schemes that eliminate social handicaps, she said."There are no cut-and-dry solutions," she added.The former judge was delivering the first Shiv Kumar Suri memorial lecture held on September 7 at the India International Center, New Delhi.Also present at the event were Attorney-General (AG) for India R Venkataramani, former apex court judge Justice Anil R Dave, the President of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Adish C Aggarwala, and the son of advocate Shiv Kumar Suri, advocate Shikhil Suri..Pertinently, Justice Manohar highlighted that sometimes, rights have inherent contradictions. She highlighted that there is a basic problem with interpreting the right to equality as no two humans are equal"They (humans) all share, of course, essential humanity and they have a right to lead a life with dignity. But what about other qualities? One may be a poet, one may be a scientist. How do you compare their qualities and treat such people equally? The most difficult such right is the right to equality. Educational institutions have long struggled with criteria for admission," she added..Justice Manohar referred to the United States (US) Supreme Court's 2023 ruling in Students for Fair Admissions vs Harvard College, wherein it was held that an admission system that uses race as a criterion for admission violated the equal protection clause in the US Constitution."But it also made an observation that a diversity of student population is a good thing, and this could be an element that can be considered while framing admission policy. So, the line is very thin," she observed..Justice Manohar also touched upon the difficulties in enforcing laws to tackle gender discrimination, particularly when they are linked to religious practices. In this regard, she referred to the Sabarimala case and the Shayara Bano case (triple talaq case).The current debate on a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) indicates how difficult it is to change such laws or equalise the rights of men and women in family law, she added. .Justice Manohar further remarked that the challenge to a woman's human rights often comes from the society's own culture, traditions, and customs, which is 'often glorified as a clash of civilisations'.She pointed out that because of old traditions and customs, there are new denials of human rights such as technology that can detect the sex of the foetus."Female foeticides are a new application of the old traditional bias against the female sex," she observed. .The former apex court judge expressed concerns about the huge workload in courts, particularly when it comes to criminal matters. "Justice UU Lalit, former Chief Justice of India, in a recent talk said prisoners in jails consist of 20% convicts and 80% undertrials. What is worse, given the conviction rate of 27% out of 80 undertrials in jails, 56 are going to be acquitted. Should not there be a better scrutiny for 56 innocent persons who are kept in jail for years at a time?" she asked. .Hence, she opined that both the text and procedure of criminal law need re-examination to ensure a fair and speedy trial. She urged Bar Associations to come forward to suggest changes to the law.