Maratha community celebrates after HC nod for reservation

Hours after the Bombay High Court on Thursday upheld the state government's decision to provide quota to Maratha community students in government jobs and educational institutions, the celebration erupted on the city streets here marked by the distribution of sweets and bursting of crackers.

A bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre directed the State government to cap the reservation at 12 per cent for admission in educational institutions and 13 per cent in government jobs instead of 16 per cent, which had been passed by the State legislature.

A supporter of Maratha reservation, Virendra Pawar told ANI: "The 40-year fight has come to a meaningful conclusion. The court accepted that the Maratha community should get a reservation. Many petitions were filed against the reservation but all were dismissed. New opportunities are now created for Maratha people."

The Maharashtra Assembly had on November 30, 2018, passed the Maratha Reservation Bill, which extended 16 per cent reservation in educational institutions and government jobs to the students of the community.

Following the decision of the state legislature, several petitions were filed contending that the reservation to the community will raise the reservation ceiling in the state from 52 per cent to 68 per cent, which is 18 per cent higher than the ceiling set by the Supreme Court.

The High Court, however, observed that 50 per cent cap on the reservation can be "extended in exceptional situations."

The high court also upheld the recommendations made by the Maharashtra Backward Class Commission about the "backwardness" of the community, which the government had considered while extending the quota.

The Maratha community, which has been declared as a socially and educationally backward class (SEBC) by the state government, makes up a total of 33 per cent of the total population in the state.

On February 6 this year, a division bench of Justices More and Dangre had heard a clutch of petitions, which were for and against the reservation given to the Maratha Community.

After a detailed hearing for over two months, the high court had reserved the order on March 26 on these petitions.

The state Legislative Council had on June 21 passed an amendment in the SEBC Act, providing 16 per cent reservation to the students of Maratha community in admissions to the post-graduate (PG) courses in medical colleges.