Madras HC Dismisses Plea Seeking 50% OBC Reservations in AIQ Seats

The court also ruled that the Centre should not have provided 10 percent reservation for (EWS) in the medical seats.

The Madras High Court on Wednesday, 25 August, dismissed a contempt plea by the DMK, which sought 50 percent reservation for OBCs in the seats surrendered by the state government for the All India Quota (AIQ) medical seats. Image used for representational purpose.

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The Madras High Court on Wednesday, 25 August, dismissed a contempt plea by the DMK, which sought 50 percent reservation for OBCs in the seats surrendered by the state government for the All India Quota (AIQ) medical seats.

The court also ruled that the Centre should not have provided 10 percent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) in the All India Quota (AIQ) medical seats without obtaining the approval of the Supreme Court, since the top court had already held that overall reservations should not exceed 50 percent.

Meanwhile, the court approved the 27 percent OBC reservation in all India quota (AIQ) medical seats for admission to medical colleges.

Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice PD Audikesavalu held that Centre’s 29 July notification was permissible only with respect to 15 percent reservation for Scheduled Castes, 7.5 percent for Scheduled Tribes, and 27 percent for OBCs, The Hindu reported.

The bench added that horizontal reservation provided to the disabled was also in accordance with law. However, the court ordered, “The additional reservation provided for EWS cannot be permitted except with the approval of the Supreme Court in such regard,” The Hindu reported.

Senior Counsel P Wilson, representing DMK, questioned the Centre’s authority to implement EWS reservation when DMK had filed a case and obtained orders only for implementation of OBC reservation.

The First Division Bench agreed with Wilson on the aspect of impermissibility of the EWS reservation.

(With inputs from The Hindu)