Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed a constitutional amendment bill to restore the powers of the states to make their own OBC lists, with 385 members voting in its favour and no member opposing it.

Some amendments moved by opposition members were rejected by the House.

A constitutional amendment bill requires a special majority for passage in both Houses of Parliament.

There should be a majority of the total membership of the House and a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of that House present and voting.

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2021, was brought in by the Union Cabinet to undo a categorical Supreme Court ruling in May that only the Central government can prepare an OBC list. The court's stricture came during a hearing on the Maratha quota issue and cited a law passed in August 2018 to give constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes.

"States have no power to add any caste to socially economically backward caste list due to the amendment made by Parliament," the Supreme Court had observed back then.

Moving the bill today, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Virendra Kumar described it as a historic legislation as 671 castes in the country would benefit from it.

The Shiv Sena today brought in an amendment to the bill in the Lok Sabha but it was defeated, with 305 voting against and only 71 for it.

The bill received support from the Opposition, despite the rivals targeting the Centre over a range of issues, including the farmers' protest and the alleged Pegasus spyware scandal. The protests over these other matters were suspended for the bill to be passed.