Uddhav's Maharashtra govt working to defend Maratha quota in SC; Ashok Chavan chairs meet

In the fifth meeting of the subcommittee on Maratha reservation quota, state PWD minister Ashok Chavan asserted that the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government under Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will defend its quota decision in the Supreme Court. He added that the government is committed to providing reservations in jobs and education to Marathas and was working towards it. 

On Tuesday, Chavan who heads the cabinet subcommittee on Maratha quota chaired a meeting on the issue, which was attended by Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat, Labour Minister Dilip Walse Patil, Public Undertakings minister Eknath Shinde and Bahujan Kalyan Minister Vijay Wadettiwar. Chavan said that he is waiting for July 7 as the petitions might come up for hearing.

The top court is hearing pleas on the decision by the state government to grant reservations to the Maratha community in jobs and education. The state government has filed its affidavit in SC while the petitioners are yet to file their rejoinders.

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SC refuses to stay Bombay HC order

Earlier in February, the Supreme Court had refused to stay the Bombay High Court order upholding a Maratha reservation law. A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta said the matter has been pending for long and required detailed hearing. 

The apex court had on July 12, 2019, decided to examine the constitutional validity of a Maharashtra law granting reservation for Marathas in education and jobs, but refused to stay the Bombay High Court order upholding the statute with some modifications. The apex court said, however, that the aspect of the HC verdict allowing the quota with a retrospective effect, from 2014, would not be made operational. The bench was hearing five petitions including those filed by J Laxman Rao Patil and lawyer Sanjeet Shukla challenging the high court order which upheld the constitutional validity of the quota. 

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Bombay HC upholds Maratha reservation

In June 2019, after a year of Maratha agitation, the Maharashtra Legislative State Assembly passed the amendment in the Socially Economically Backward Class Act including 16% reservation in universities and government jobs. The Bombay High Court upheld the decision but reduced the quantum to of the reservation to 12% and 13% for social (jobs) and educational purposes.

The Bombay High Court, in its June 27, 2019 order, had said the 50-per cent cap on total reservations imposed by the Supreme Court could be exceeded in exceptional circumstances. However, it had accepted the Maharashtra government's argument that the Maratha community was socially and educationally backward, and it was duty-bound to take steps for its progress.

This brought the total reservation in Maharashtra up to 72% along with the Economically weaker section (in general category) reservation of 10%, passed by the Modi government. The Maratha community accounts for roughly a third of Maharashtra's population, and is politically dominant.

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