'Prima facie erroneous': SC stays Calcutta HC order on West Bengal OBC list

NEW DELHI: In a relief to the West Bengal government, the Supreme Court on Monday stayed the June 17 Calcutta High Court decision that stalled the implementation of a revised list of Other Backward Classes (OBCs). “Prima facie, the high court order seems to be erroneous,” said a bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria while hearing the state's appeal.

The CJI suggested if parties were willing, he would request the high court chief justice to set up a fresh bench to decide the issue in a stipulated time frame like within a six weeks time. The bench earlier took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the state government, and said, “This is surprising. How can the high court pass such an order? Reservation is part of the executive function." Referring to certain parts of the impugned judgment, the CJI pointed out that the directions issued needed to be interpreted in totality.

The CJI said, "We will issue notice in this. This is surprising. How can the high court stay like this? Reservation is part of the executive functions. This is the settled law right from the Indira Sawhney (Mandal judgement), the position is that the executive can do it.” The bench said executive instructions were enough to provide reservations and a legislation was not necessary. “We are surprised… What is the high court's reasoning?" the CJI asked.

State says hiring affected due to high court stay

Sibal sought a stay on the high court order, saying it had stalled appointments of teachers and others. Senior advocates Ranjit Kumar and Guru Krishnakumar, appearing for respondents, opposed the plea for a stay of the high court order. Krishnakumar said the state was free to provide reservation by an executive order but there were judgements, which say if there is a legislative framework governing it, rigours of the law have to be followed. He said the new OBC list was prepared without any data.

Sibal, however, submitted the new list was prepared on the basis of a fresh survey and report by the State Backward Classes Commission. "Issue notice. In the meantime, there shall be a stay to the impugned order," the top court held. A division bench of the high court on June 17 ordered an interim stay on notifications issued by the state government with regard to reservations to 140 subsections under OBC-A and OBC-B categories made by it.

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140 groups added to revised OBC list

The high court, in an interim stay till July 31, directed that executive notifications between May 8 and June 13 with regard to OBC categories made by the state government will not be given effect to till that date. All the parties were then directed to file their affidavits in the meantime on their contentions with regard to the challenge over new benchmark surveys for the purpose of inclusion under OBC categories in a PIL and the notifications.

The state government included 49 subsections under the OBC-A and 91 under the OBC-B categories by executive notifications. It was stated that while more backward sections of people were included under OBC-A, less backward persons come under OBC-B. The high court had in May 2024 struck down the OBC status of several classes in West Bengal granted since 2010, finding such reservations to vacancies in services and posts in the state to be illegal. The court struck down 77 classes of reservation given between April 2010 and September 2010, and 37 classes were created based on the state's Reservation Act of 2012.