The Bombay High Court on Friday stayed an Ordinance promulgated by the previous Congress-led DF Government ahead of the Assembly polls extending 16 per cent reservations to Marathas and five per cent to Muslims, saying that they were not in conformity with the law laid down by the Supreme Court in three cases.
While it stayed 16 per cent reservations granted to Marathas through an Ordinance dated July 9, 2014 and Government Resolution dated July 15, 2014, the high court also stayed the State Government’s decision to provide five per cent reservation to Muslims in Government jobs.
However, the HC Bench, headed by Chief Justice Mohit Shah, allowed reservations to Muslims in educational institutions, on the ground at that their educational achievements were “abysmally low” and that there was a need to draw them into the “mainstream of secular education”.
The court ruled that admissions given to Muslims on the basis of such reservations this year would not be disturbed and students
would be allowed to continue their courses.
Reacting swiftly to the high court’s order staying the reservations to Marathas and Muslims, the new BJP Government announced on Friday afternoon that it would move the SC to challenge the stay on the 16 per cent reservations granted to Marathas.
Announcing the State Government’s plans to move the apex court against the stay on 16 per cent reservations to Marathas in Government jobs and educational institutions, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “The State Government is fully supportive of Maratha quota. We will appeal in SC on the HC ruling. We will take measures to ensure that the quota remains”.
Talking to mediapersons on the sideline of a function at Vile Parle in north-west Mumbai, Fadnavis said, “If the court has pointed out any discrepancy in law, we will remove any lacunae in law during the winter session of the State legislature in Nagpur... Our commitment to extending reservations for Maratha community remains”.
While admitting a bunch of Public Interest litigations (PIls) challenging reservations extended to Maratha and Muslim communities in July this year, the HC Bench also rejected the plea of Government pleader Geeta Shastri to stay for four weeks its order so that an appeal could be filed. The Bench said that the Supreme Court had already laid down the law on reservations that it cannot exceed 50 per cent except in extra-ordinary situations.
The winter of session of Maharashtra legislature will begin in Nagpur on December 8. Earlier, while staying the 16 per cent reservations to Marathas in Government jobs and educational institutions and five reservations to Muslims in Government jobs, the HC Bench said that the Supreme Court had already laid down the law for reservation which cannot exceed 50 per cent of the total seats except in extra ordinary circumstances for which justification has to be made.
The previous DF government had in June this year extended 16 per cent reservations to Maratha community and five per cent reservations to Muslims in Government jobs and educational institutions, taking the total reservations in Maharashtra from the current 52 per cent to 73 per cent.
The court observed that the Narayan Rane committee recommendations — based on which the State Government announced reservations — suffered from infirmities and held the Maratha community — to which 16 per cent reservations have been extended — could in no way be construed as the “backward class”.
“In the light of clear and cogent findings recorded in ‘Second Backward Class Commission Report (Mandal Report 1990), ‘National Commission for Backward Class’ Report dated February 25, 2000 and ‘Maharashtra State Backward Class’ Report (Bapat Report) dated July 25, 2008, we hold that the Maratha Community cannot be regarded as ‘Backward Class’,” the Judges observed.
“Rather, National Commission for Backward Class and Mandal Commission have concluded that Maratha Community is socially advanced and a prestigious community,” the Bench said.
The judges, however, held that the State Government had, through the comparative data, justified its decision to introduce reservation for Muslims in government educational institutions. It, however, excluded private educational bodies from the purview of reservations for the minority community.
“Material placed on record suggests a case of extreme backwardness and the consequent dire necessity to draw the Muslim youths belonging to socially and educationally backward classes into the mainstream of secular education in the State,” the Bench said. Maintaining that the records suggest “abysmally low levels of educational achievements” in the community and point out high level of educational drop-outs among Muslims, the HC bench observed: “We hold that imposing restrictions on private unaided institutions constitutes an unreasonable restriction upon fundamental right guaranteed under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution to run educational institutions”.
On its part, the Maharashtra Government defended its decision on reservations to Marathas and Muslims contending that the two communities were socially and educationally backward and also economically poor. The State Government informed the court that its decision was based on the report of a committee headed by former minister Narayan Rane set up to look into the issue. It said that it had considered the recommendations of Rajinder Sachar Committee and Mahmoodur Rahman Committee, both of which had recommended reservation for Muslims, while arriving at the decision to provide quotas for them.
The PIls challenging reservations extended to Maratha and Muslim committies were filed by social activist Ketan Tirodkar, an NGO Youth for Equality, Anil Thanekar, I S Gilada of People’s Health Organisation and others.