SC stays proceedings before Calcutta HC on striking down of OBC status of several castes

New Delhi, Nov 6 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Thursday directed that no further proceedings will take place before the Calcutta High Court in the matter concerning the striking down of OBC status of several castes in West Bengal.

The top court was hearing as many as 10 petitions, including one filed by the West Bengal government, which have challenged the Calcutta High Court's May 22, 2024 verdict that struck down the OBC status of several castes in West Bengal granted since 2010.

The high court had struck down 77 classes of reservation given between April, 2010 and September, 2010 aside from 37 classes for reservation as OBC given under the West Bengal Backward Classes (Other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) (Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Act, 2012.

On Thursday, a bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and justices K Vinod Chandran and Vipul M Pancholi took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the state government, that the high court has fixed the pleas for hearing on November 18.

"When the Supreme Court is seized of the matter then how can the high court proceed with the matter," the CJI said.

"We clarify that until further orders are passed, there will be no further proceedings in the Calcutta High Court," the CJI said and fixed the petitions for further hearing after four weeks.

Earlier, on March 18, the West Bengal government had informed the top court that the State Commission for Backward Classes was re-examining the issue of backwardness afresh, and the exercise was expected to be completed within three months.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the state, had then requested the bench to list the case after three months, following which the court scheduled the next hearing in July.

The proceedings arise out of challenges to the Calcutta High Court's May 22, 2024 verdict, which struck down the OBC status of several castes in the state, observing that religion appeared to have been the sole criterion for granting the classification.

The Supreme Court had earlier, on August 5, 2024, asked the state to furnish quantifiable data on the social and economic backwardness of the newly included communities and details of the consultations held before their inclusion in the OBC list.

While striking down the OBC status of several castes in West Bengal granted since 2010, the high court had held as illegal their reservation in public sector jobs and state-run educational institutions.

"Religion indeed appears to have been the sole criterion for declaring these communities as OBCs," it said.

The high court also said the "selection of 77 classes of Muslims as backwards is an affront to the Muslim community as a whole".

It was dealing with petitions challenging the provisions of the state's 2012 reservation law and reservations granted in 2010.

The high court, however, had clarified that the services of citizens of the struck-down classes, who were already in service or had availed the benefit of reservation, or succeeded in any selection process of the state, would not be affected by the judgment.

On August 5 last year, the apex court asked the state government to provide quantifiable data on social and economic backwardness of fresh castes it had included in the OBC list and on their inadequate representation in public sector jobs.

It also asked the state to file an affidavit giving details of the consultations, if any, conducted by it and the state's backward classes panel before including 37 castes, mostly Muslim groups, in the OBC list. PTI MDB SJK ZMN