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Calcutta HC Scraps 5 Lakh OBC Certificates: Political Implications Emerge
In a significant development, the Calcutta High Court has cancelled 5 lakh OBC (Other Backward Classes) certificates issued by the West Bengal government since 2010, declaring such reservations in jobs and services illegal.
The court's decision stems from petitions challenging the provisions of the state's reservation Act of 2012 and reservations granted in 2010. The court found that the process of declaring these communities as OBCs was based solely on 'religion', with the inclusion of 77 classes of Muslims being deemed an 'affront' to the entire Muslim community.
The court further alleged that the Muslim community had been treated as a 'commodity for political ends', with the classification of 77 classes as OBCs and their inclusion as a vote bank being a clear indication of this.
The order has immediate political implications, particularly ahead of the sixth phase of the West Bengal Lok Sabha Elections. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has declared that she will not accept the order and has vowed to continue OBC reservations in the state, claiming that the Bill was passed within the framework of the Constitution.
In response, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called the HC order a 'tight slap' to the Opposition, accusing the INDIA bloc of appeasement. He alleged that the West Bengal government had issued unwarranted OBC certificates to Muslims solely for vote bank purposes.
The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) had earlier recommended that West Bengal increase the quota for OBCs by 5% in government employment and educational institutions, citing that the total reservation for SCs/STs and OBCs in the state was only 45%.
The court's order and the ensuing political reactions have sparked a debate on the issue of caste-based reservations and their potential impact on the upcoming elections. The decision is likely to have far-reaching implications for the political landscape of West Bengal and beyond.