Shiv Sena credits Maratha reservation protests for passage of OBC amendment in Parliament

As Parliament passed the OBC reservation amendment, Shiv Sena on Friday, credited the Maratha reservation protestors for making it happen. Claiming that the Maratha youth's fire in seeking reservation in jobs had set fire to Delhi, Sena via its mouthpiece Saamana, asked what would be the fate of the Maratha reservation. Highlighting top Maharashtra leaders' efforts seeking Centre's intervention, Sena argued that the 50% ceiling breach was not agreed to by the government.

Sena: 'What is the fate of Maratha reservation?'

Claiming that the Marathas were economically backward in Maharashtra owing to farmers' distress, Sena lauded the success of the protests for reservation. Slamming the BJP for blaming the Thackeray government for the SC stay on reservation, Sena pointed out that the 2018 reservation amendment had robbed the states' powers to determine who was backward. Stating that the Maratha community knows everything, Sena questioned the silence of BJP's Maratha leaders on the reservation stay.

On Tuesday, the Lok Sabha passed a bill to restore the power of states and Union Territories (UTs) to prepare and maintain their own list of socially and educationally backward classes (SEBCs). The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2021, was passed by the House with 385 members voting in its favour and none against the final division as the Opposition decided to 'cooperate' with the government in passing the bill. The opposition parties suspend their protest in the House for the passing of the bill.

This bill allows the state government and Union territories to prepare and maintain their own list of SEBCs. Refuting claims of crossing the 50% ceiling, Centre argued that the courts have repeatedly emphasised the demands that there is the need to give attention to the constitutional aspects. This bill was a course correction move. The Parliament had passed a constitutional amendment in 2018 empowering the National Commission for Backward Classes, handicapping the State commissions.

SC stays Maratha reservation

On May 5, the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled that neither the Gaikwad Commission nor the Bombay High Court made out any grounds for exceeding the ceiling of 50% reservation for Marathas. Moreover, the apex court observed that there was no question of revisiting the verdict in the 1992 Indra Sawhney vs Union of India case. To assuage the hurt feelings of the community, the MVA government issued an order on May 31 extending the benefits of the Economically Weaker Sections quota to eligible Marathas.