Today (13th September), the Supreme Court will consider advancing the hearing date for West Bengal’s plea against a Calcutta High Court verdict that revoked the OBC status of several castes. The appeal is scheduled for September 30, with concerns that the verdict is affecting admissions for 77 communities.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India today(13th Sept), announced that it will consider advancing the date of hearing for a plea by the West Bengal government. The plea challenges a Calcutta High Court ruling that nullified the Other Backward Classes (OBC) status of several castes, predominantly Muslim communities, thereby affecting their reservation in public sector jobs and state-run educational institutions.
Currently, the apex court is scheduled to hear the case on September 30. However, the West Bengal government, led by the Trinamool Congress (TMC), is urging for an earlier date due to the pressing nature of the issue. The plea comes in light of the fact that the High Court’s verdict is already impacting the admission process for those affected communities.
Senior advocate N K Kaul, representing the West Bengal government, emphasized the urgency of the matter before the Supreme Court. Kaul highlighted that 77 communities have been “de-reserved” due to the Calcutta High Court’s ruling, which has directly affected their rights and the ongoing admission process in educational institutions.
Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, presided over the session.
In response to Kaul’s request, the CJI remarked-
“I will pass an order (on advancing the date of hearing) in the afternoon. Please circulate an e-mail.”
Background:
The dispute originated from a May 22 ruling by the Calcutta High Court, which struck down the OBC status granted to multiple castes since 2010. These castes, mostly Muslim groups, were included in the OBC list, thereby making them eligible for reservations in public sector jobs and educational institutions. The High Court deemed these inclusions as illegal, stating that they violated legal standards for such classifications.
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The crux of the ruling was the High Court’s conclusion that –
“Religion indeed appears to have been the sole criterion”
for granting OBC status to these Muslim communities.
The court further elaborated that the –
“Classifying 77 Muslim groups as backward is an affront to the entire Muslim community.”
The High Court underscored that the decision to classify these communities as OBCs was based on “political ends”, and that the Muslim community had been treated as a “commodity” in the process.
“This is evident from the series of events that led to the classification of 77 groups as OBCs and their inclusion as a vote bank.”
-the High Court stated in its ruling.
In an earlier hearing on August 5, the Supreme Court had directed the West Bengal government to submit quantifiable data to substantiate the inclusion of the newly added castes in the OBC list. The court asked for specific evidence of their social and economic backwardness and sought clarification on their inadequate representation in public sector jobs.
Additionally, the Supreme Court ordered the state government to file an affidavit detailing the process followed for including these communities in the OBC list. This affidavit was to cover several aspects, including the consultations held, if any, with the West Bengal Backward Classes Commission, before the inclusion of these predominantly Muslim groups. The court had also raised concerns about whether any consultation was undertaken before the sub-classification of OBCs.
“Issue notice, including on the stay application filed by the state government. The state of West Bengal must file an affidavit before this court detailing the process used to classify 77 communities as OBCs, including: (1) the nature of the survey conducted; and (2) whether there was insufficient consultation with the state backward commission regarding any of the 77 communities designated as OBCs.”
-the Supreme Court bench had stated.
The High Court’s judgment, which nullified the OBC status of 77 communities and an additional 37 communities, has significant repercussions for thousands of individuals who had benefitted from reservations since 2010. However, the High Court clarified that its ruling would not affect those individuals who are already employed or who have already availed benefits under the reservation system.
The court specified that-
“The services of citizens from the classes whose OBC status has been revoked, who are already in service, have benefited from reservation, or have succeeded in any state selection process, will not be affected by the order.”
In total, the High Court struck down reservations granted to 77 communities between April 2010 and September 2010 and another 37 classes under the West Bengal Backward Classes (Other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) (Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Act, 2012.
