india

Updated: Oct 05, 2019 23:42 IST

New Delhi The Chhattisgarh high court has directed the state government to not proceed with an ordinance that hiked the quantum of reservation for other backward classes (OBC) from 14% to 27% and also criticised the Congress-led administration, legal website Bar and Bench reported on Saturday.

A two-judge HC bench of chief justice PP Ramachandra Menon and justice PP Sahu said the state government failed to establish that there was any “inadequacy” in OBC representation in jobs, the website said. The order was passed on Friday.

The bench also berated the Chhattisgarh government for making a “mockery of proceedings” pending in a 2012 move to increase reservation in the state and paying “scant regard” to the orders of the court, Bar and Bench reported.

On August 15, the Chhattisgarh government had announced it will increase reservation for Scheduled Castes (SC) and OBCs in jobs and education. The quantum of quota for OBCs was increased from 14% to 27%, for SCs was hiked from 12% to 13%. The reservation for Scheduled Tribes was kept unchanged at 32%. At the time, experts had said that the increase in reservation was aimed at helping chief minister Bhupesh Baghel create a narrative around regional politics.

After the announcement, an ordinance was brought in to implement the quota increase. Additionally, a 10% reservation was introduced for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), in line with the central government’s decision.

But a number of petitions challenged the move in court. They argued that the increase in reservation violated the Supreme Court-mandated cap of 50% on reservations and also flouted a key directive by the apex court that said the cap could be exceeded only if quantifiable data existed of a particular community’s backwardness, Bar and Bench noted.

The government furnished data from the National Sample Survey Organisation but the court order said the figures did not establish that there was any “inadequacy” in OBC representation, Bar and Bench said. The court also noted that challenges were pending against the state government’s move to reservation from 50% to 58% in 2012, the website added.

The bench did not say anything about the EWS quota and posted the matter for hearing four weeks late