A petition in the Bombay High Court challenges the Maharashtra government's February 17 resolution scrapping 5% Muslim reservation in education and jobs.
The plea alleges “racial discrimination” and violation of fundamental rights, seeking a stay on the order.
The Government of Maharashtra has cancelled earlier 2014 decisions and stopped issuing SBC certificates to Muslims.
A challenge to the Maharashtra government's decision to eliminate the 5% reservation for Muslims in jobs and education has been filed in the Bombay High Court, citing "racial discrimination" as the grounds.
In his suit, barrister Syed Ejaz Abbas Naqvi contested the February 17 government resolution issued by Maharashtra's Department of Social Justice and Special Aid, claiming it violated the Constitution and went against the wishes of the Muslim community.
"The respondent (Maharashtra government) is practising racial discrimination against the persons of a minority community, i.e. the Muslim community. This is in violation of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution," the plea said, adding there is no rationale behind the government's decision to cancel the quota.
The petition is likely to be taken up for hearing by the HC next week.
Nitin Satpute, the petitioner's attorney, stated that the plea has asked the HC to invalidate the government's February 17 decision and, through an interim injunction, halt its operations while the case is being heard.
According to the argument, the then-Congress-NCP administration declared in July 2014 that the Maratha community would be given a 16 per cent quota in government employment and schools, while Muslims would be given a 5 per cent reservation, placing them in the Socially and Economically Backward Class category.
According to the petition, this ordinance was challenged in the High Court, which invalidated the employment quota but permitted a 5 per cent reservation for the Muslim community in the educational system.
As per the new GR, all previous decisions and the ordinance related to 5 per cent reservation in government, semi-government jobs and educational institutions for the socially and educationally backward Muslim group included under the Special Backward Category (A) have been cancelled.
The government has cancelled the earlier decisions and circulars from 2014 and stopped issuing caste and non-creamy layer certificates to Muslims in the Special Backwards Category, the new order said.
