Sharad Pawar hints at ordinance route to override SC's stay on Maratha reservation

In a massive development on Friday, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar hinted that the Maharashtra government might bring in an ordinance to override the Supreme Court order on Maratha reservation. On September 9, the apex court bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao, Hemant Gupta and S Ravindra Bhat directed a stay on the Maratha reservation in public employment and educational institutions. The appeals against the Bombay High Court's verdict upholding the constitutional validity of the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act, 2018 have been referred to a larger bench.

While acknowledging that he had not studied the issue through a legal prism, Pawar asserted that ordinance was a feasible option. He also disputed the notion that the Centre had a different stand on the issue, citing the Parliament's passage of 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Sections in the general category. This quota is above the 50% reservation ceiling. The NCP chief contended that the SC should have taken a decision based on this latest precedent set by the Parliament. 

On the stay on Maratha reservation, NCP chief Sharad Pawar remarked, "I think that the state government has decided to come up with an ordinance. I have not examined it through the legal prism. In my understanding of the law, an ordinance can be an option." 

He added, "I don’t think there is any difference between the Centre and the state on this issue. In Parliament, we have enacted a law mandating a 10% reservation for EWS above the 50% reservation ceiling. The expectation was that the court would take a different decision taking into account the Parliament’s action." 

Read: Maratha Quota: Remove Chavan As Subcommittee Chief, Says Mete

SC's prima facie observations

In the SEBC Act which came into force on November 30, 2018, the Maratha community has been declared as a 'Socially and Educational Backward Class'. The Bombay HC judgment reduced the quantum of Maratha reservation to 12% in educational institutions and 13% in public employment. On Wednesday, the SC has prima facie held that the Maharashtra government has not shown any "extraordinary situation" for providing reservation to the Marathas. Maintaining that the 50% reservation ceiling could be relaxed only in extraordinary situations, it added that the Maratha community comprising 30% of Maharashtra's population could not be compared to the marginalized sections of society living in remote areas of the state.

Moreover, the SC prima facie observed that the Bombay HC had committed an error in treating certain circumstances as "extraordinary", justifying the relaxation of the reservation ceiling. The bench also said that the implementation of the SEBC Act for admissions and appointments during the pendency of the appeals will cause "irreparable loss" to the candidates belonging to the open category. In view of this, it ruled that admission to educational institutions for the academic year 2020-21 and appointments to posts under the government will be made without references to the reservations provided in the Act. 

Read: Maratha Reservation: Fadnavis Blames Thackeray Govt's 'carelessness' For SC's Quota Stay