Maharashtra Government Scraps 5% Reservation for Muslims Under OBC Category

Mumbai:The Maharashtra government's decision to scrap the 5% reservation for Muslims under the c category—after the 2014 ordinance lapsed without being tabled in the state assembly—has evoked mixed reactions within the Muslim community. Quota was for backward Muslims The reservation was originally provided for socially and educationally backward Muslim groups in government and semi-government direct service recruitment, as well as admissions to educational institutions. The ordinance was challenged in the Bombay High Court that same year via writ petitions, including one filed by Sanjit Shukla against the Government of Maharashtra. On 14 November 2014, the court quashed the provisions of the ordinance. Following the government's announcement to scrap the ordinance on 17 February, new certificates will no longer be issued and earlier orders will become void. Groups representing Muslim communities listed as Other Backward Classes (OBC) argued that the ordinance was not tenable. Shabbir Ansari, President of the All India Muslim Organisation, argued that since many Muslims are already entitled to reservations under the OBC category, the creation of an additional reservation was flawed. “It violated the Constitution, which does not recognise reservations on a religious basis. When the government issued the ordinance, we told them it would be difficult to defend,” said Ansari. Currently, 87 Muslim communities listed in the OBC schedule can claim reservations within the 27% quota. While there has been a call for a 4% sub-quota within the OBC share, this demand has been rejected. Congress: BJP govt anti-minority, anti-backward class Opposition parties have criticised the government's decision. Congress Working Committee member Naseem Khan stated that the announcement demonstrates that the BJP government is "anti-backward class and anti-minority." Khan noted that the Congress-led alliance government issued the ordinance in 2014 and accused the Devendra Fadnavis government of failing to act upon it. “We kept raising this issue consistently; at the time, the BJP government gave assurances, but those were not fulfilled,” Khan said. Advocate Syed Jalaluddin, National General Secretary of the Nationalist Congress Party, said the BJP government allowed the ordinance to lapse by failing to enact it into law within six months (by 23 December 2014). “I am not surprised by the government. When the BJP is in power, one understands they will not grant Muslims any privileges. This is not the ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ claimed by the government. Are Muslims not part of this country?” asked Syed. Conversely, Hindu organisations welcomed the decision. Shriraj Nair, spokesperson for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, stated that reservations based on religion are unconstitutional. “Despite that, so-called secular parties engaged in minority appeasement have made laws that go against the Constitution. This is a lesson for parties that have enacted similar laws in other states,” said Nair. Minority status certificates for educational institutions "wrong": Naseem Khan Congress Working Committee member Naseem Khan stated that granting minority status certificates to certain schools on the day of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s father's death is condemnable. “The minority department has become a hub of corruption; there is information that Rs 5–10 lakh was taken for each certificate. About 70–75 schools have been granted minority status, including some large educational institutions. Such certificates are obtained to escape the Right to Education (RTE) Act provisions for free education for the poor, which were introduced by the UPA government. The government should cancel these certificates, conduct an inquiry through the CID or an SIT, and suspend the officials concerned,” Khan said. Khan also alleged that the BJP government has shut down all schemes started by the Congress-led alliance for minorities. "Scholarships for students were established, but the BJP government is not providing them. Around Rs 90 crore is required annually for this, but the government has allocated only ₹20 crore. Minorities do not include only Muslims; communities such as Jains, Sikhs, and Parsis are also included," he added. Samajwadi Party leader and MLA, Abu Asim Azmi, blamed both the Congress and BJP for letting the ordinance lapse. “The Congress-NCP government announced this quota for Muslims below the poverty line. The condition of Muslims is worse than Dalits and tribals. The courts had said that while reservation can be allowed in education but not in jobs. The Congress could have enacted a law but didn't. The BJP is looking for issues to polarise the country. They allowed the ordinance to lapse to appease their vote bank,” said Azmi. MP and president of the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee, Varsha Gaikwad said that by citing the High Court's interim stay and the expiration of the ordinance, the government has encroached upon the rights of the Muslim community. 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' has proven to be a complete sham. Even though the Bombay High Court upheld 5% reservation for Muslims in education, the 'Manuvadi' BJP government has failed to implement it to date. The Shiv Sena and NCP factions currently in power must clarify their stance on this," Gaikwad said, adding that the reservation given to the Muslim community was not based on religion. 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