No change in legal team defending Maratha quota in SC: govt

The Maharashtra government has not removed any of the lawyers who are representing the state in the Supreme Court in the Maratha quota matter, minister Subhash Desai told the Legislative Council here on Thursday.

News about lawyers being changed was going around on social media and published in some newspapers, he said.

"These reports are misleading," he said.

When the state government's decision to give 16 per cent reservation to the Maratha community in education and jobs was under challenge before the Bombay High Court, lawyers Mukul Rohatgi, Paramjitsingh Patwalia, Vijay Singh Thorat and Anil Sakhare had argued for the government, Desai said.

Advocates Nishant Katneswarkar, Vaibhav Sukadeve, Akshay Shinde and Prachi Tatke had assisted them.

In the apex court, in addition to these lawyers, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General Atmaram Nadkarni are putting up the state's case strongly, the minister said.

All these lawyers continue to represent the state government, Desai added.

The high court had upheld the reservations, which has been challenged before the SC.

BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje on Wednesday had written to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, expressing concern over reports about removal of lawyers.