The 5% reservation was granted to specific Muslim communities, not to the entire Muslim population of Maharashtra.
The recent move shuts the chapter on a policy
that once triggered a legal battle in the Bombay High Court. It was partly upheld by the High Court in 2014 but later lapsed after a change in government. Now, with the framework scrapped, a political row between the Congress and the BJP has erupted.
DID THE HIGH COURT ACCEPT THAT MUSLIM COMMUNITIES WERE BACKWARD?
Yes, the court accepted the fact that there was sufficient prima facie material to classify the 50 specified Muslim sub-castes as socially and educationally backward. But that was just for the interim stage.
"In so far as reservations for specified Muslim Communities are concerned, there exists sufficient material or quantifiable data to sustain their classification as a special backward class. This material is in the form of the Sachar Committee Report, Justice Ranganath Mishra Committee Report, Report of the Maharashtra State Minority Commission and Dr Mehmood-ur-Rehman Study Group Report," the bench said,
The policy goes back to 2014. Months before the Assembly elections, the Congress-NCP government issued ordinances granting 16% reservation to Marathas and 5% to 50 specified Muslim sub-castes.
The Muslim quota was placed under a newly created "Special Backward Category A". It did not apply to all Muslims. Only those identified as socially and educationally backward groups were covered.
The Congress government cited the data from the 2006 Sachar Committee report. The Committee found that Muslims lagged on key education and economic indicators. In Maharashtra, a 2008 study group headed by civil servant Mehmood-ur-Rehman reported severe educational backwardness and low representation of Muslims in public services.
With the 5% Muslim quota, total reservations rose from 52% to 57%. Including the 16% Maratha quota, it climbed to 68%. That breached the 50% reservation ceiling, mandated by the Supreme Court.
That breach became the core legal flashpoint.
WHAT WAS THE 2014 MUSLIM QUOTA, AND WHY WAS IT INTRODUCED?
The policy goes back to 2014. Months before the Assembly elections, the Congress-NCP government issued ordinances granting 16% reservation to Marathas and 5% to 50 specified Muslim sub-castes.
The Muslim quota was placed under a newly created "Special Backward Category A". It did not apply to all Muslims. Only those identified as socially and educationally backward groups were covered.
The Congress government cited the data from the 2006 Sachar Committee report. The Committee found that Muslims lagged on key education and economic indicators. In Maharashtra, a 2008 study group headed by civil servant Mehmood-ur-Rehman reported severe educational backwardness and low representation of Muslims in public services.
With the 5% Muslim quota, total reservations rose from 52% to 57%. Including the 16% Maratha quota, it climbed to 68%. That breached the 50% reservation ceiling, mandated by the Supreme Court in the 1992 Indra Sawhney judgment. That breach became the core legal flashpoint.
WHO CHALLENGED MAHARASHTRA MUSLIM QUOTA ORDINANCE AND WHAT DID THEY ARGUE?
Soon after the ordinance was promulgated, it was challenged before the Bombay High Court. The lead case was Shri Sanjeet Shukla vs State of Maharashtra.
Petitioners argued that the new reservations breached the 50% ceiling laid down by the Supreme Court. They said the 5% Muslim quota amounted to religion-based discrimination. They also questioned whether the state had adequate quantifiable data.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Mohit S Shah and Justice M S Sonak heard the matter. In November 2014, the court delivered a detailed interim order. It examined the Maratha and Muslim quotas separately.
An interim order is a temporary order passed by a court before the final judgment. It is meant to manage the situation while the case is still being heard.
DID THE HIGH COURT ACCEPT THAT MUSLIM COMMUNITIES WERE BACKWARD?
Yes, the court accepted the fact that there was sufficient prima facie material to classify the 50 specified Muslim sub-castes as socially and educationally backward. But that was just for the interim stage.
"In so far as reservations for specified Muslim Communities are concerned, there exists sufficient material or quantifiable data to sustain their classification as a special backward class. This material is in the form of the Sachar Committee Report, Justice Ranganath Mishra Committee Report, Report of the Maharashtra State Minority Commission and Dr Mehmood-ur-Rehman Study Group Report," the bench said, according to case details listed in India Kanoon, a repository of Indian legal information.
Ends
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