The West Bengal government has decided to conduct a fresh survey to identify Other Backward Classes (OBC) in the state.
The survey will be completed in about three months, the state’s lawyer informed the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court Refuses To Stay High Court Order
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is hearing petitions filed by the West Bengal government challenging the Kolkata High Court’s decision on the inclusion of 77 communities in the OBC list.
A bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Vishwanathan is handling the case.
The court will hear the matter again in July.
Notably, in the last hearing, the Supreme Court refused to stay the High Court’s order. The court remarked that reservation cannot be based on religion.
However, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the West Bengal government, clarified that the reservation was given based on social and economic backwardness, not religion.
He added that the minority population in West Bengal is about 27-28%.
SC Asks For Data on OBC Communities
Furthermore, the court has asked the West Bengal government to submit quantitative data on the social and economic backwardness of the listed castes and their inadequate job representation.
The issue arose after the Ranganath Commission recommended 10% reservation for Muslims.
Additionally, while 66 Hindu communities were classified as backward, questions emerged about reservation for Muslims.
Consequently, the commission classified 77 Muslim communities as backward classes, many of which were already in the central OBC list or included in Mandal Commission recommendations.
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