The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court struck down a Tamil Nadu Government Order granting Backward Class (Muslim) reservation benefits to certain Hindu converts to Islam, declaring it unconstitutional. The Court held, “A convert to Islam cannot claim the status of Backward Class Muslim. He is only a Muslim and that’s all there is to it.”
A PIL has been filed in the Madras High Court seeking strict scrutiny of nomination papers to ensure only Hindus, Sikhs, or Buddhists can contest from SC-reserved constituencies. The plea relies on the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and a recent Supreme Court ruling calling such disqualification “categorical and absolute.”
The Calcutta High Court has directed the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer to pass a reasoned order on a plea opposing the acceptance of invalid OBC certificates in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The Court said the issue does not challenge the SIR process itself and must be decided within one week.
The Supreme Court will urgently hear a petition from Madhya Pradesh’s OBC community, seeking full implementation of the 27% reservation law passed in 2019, which has not been enforced due to a legal stay. Petitioners argue the government is unjustly limiting OBC reservations to 14%, despite the law’s validity.
Justice BV Nagarathna, born on 30-10-1962, assumed office in the Supreme Court of India on 31-08-2021. With 68 authored judgments, notable cases include Bilkis Yakub Rasool v Union of India and Vivek Narayan Sharma v Union of India. She is celebrated for pioneering women’s representation in the judiciary.
