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SC gives half-nod to quota for ‘backward’ Muslims
Constitutional Bench To Study Legality Of Law
Dhananjay Mahapatra | TNN
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday restored the Andhra Pradesh law providing 4% exclusive quota in jobs and educational institutions for ‘‘backward’’ groups among Muslims.
The interim order passed by SC revived the law which was struck down as unconstitutional by a seven-judge bench of the Andhra high court on the ground that it violated the constitutional provision forbidding faith-based quota.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and comprising Justices J M Panchal and B S Chauhan has left it for a five-judge Constitution Bench to decide the legality of the law which takes overall quota in the state to 49%. The Constitution Bench is to start scrutiny mid-August.
The court, however, stayed implementation of a provision of the law seen as aimed at putting the entire Muslim community, except 10 groups, under the “backward” bracket, entitled to reservations in jobs and school and college seats.
Arguing for the law, attorney general Goolam Vahanvati and senior counsel K Parasaran said that denying quota benefits to Muslim backwards when such benefits are available to their socially equivalent groups among Hindus would be discrimination — an argument that undergirds the recommendation of Ranganath Misra Commission that dalits among Muslims and Christians are also entitled to reservation.
BACK AND FORTH OVER 6 YRS
2004:
YSR govt issues order in July for 5% quota for Muslims in education, jobs. HC strikes it down in Sept
2005:
AP categorizes all Muslims as backward, issues ordinance for 5% quota, becomes an Act in Oct. HC strikes it down in Nov, calling
quota on basis of religion unconstitutional
2007:
State enacts Act for 4% quota to 15 backward Muslim groups in August. Month later, SC stays admissions under quota
2008:
Supreme Court vacates stay, sends case back to Andhra HC
2010:
HC strikes down quota in Feb. On March 25, SC upholds quota; constitutional bench to examine issue in August
SC order a boost for Bengal’s quota
New Delhi: The Supreme Court order okaying Andhra Pradesh’s move to extend reservation to backward Muslims is no endorsement of the advocacy for religion-based reservation for Muslims. It only allowed the government to increase the number of “backward” groups among Muslims by making additions to the state’s OBC list. The effect of the order is to extend quota benefits to 14 “backward” groups among Muslims not recognized as such in the state list of OBCs before the law was enacted.
As an immediate fallout, the SC order could muffle criticism of the Buddhadeb Bahattacharjee government’s recent decision to provide 10% quota to Muslims in jobs and admissions in West Bengal.
What found favour with the Bench was the impassioned argument of Vahanvati and Parasaran who defended AP Reservation for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes of Muslims Act, 2007, saying that it was not meant to benefit all Muslims in the state, but only the “socially and educationally backwards” among them who have been so identified on the basis of their occupation.
When barbers and washermen belonging to Hindus were included in the OBC list, why should similar groups among Muslims be not included in the list of backward classes amd reservation provided to them, they asked.
The reasoning seemed to appeal to the Bench as it allowed operation of the quota law. “If the HC judgment is allowed to be continued, then these backward class groups will be denied the social affirmative action which they need,” the court said.
BJP reiterates opposition to religion-based quota:
BJP made its opposition to religionbased quotas clear while commenting on the Supreme Court’s interim order on 4% reservation offered by Andhra Pradesh to Muslims while maintaining that it has not contested the OBC quotas offered to the community.
TOI feed dated 26th March 2010
