Maha forms five-lawyer panel for coordination on Maratha quota

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has set up a coordination committee of five lawyers in connection with the hearing before the five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court regarding lifting of interim stay on the Maratha quota. State PWD Minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan, who heads the cabinet sub-committee on Maratha quota, said this in a statement issued on Saturday.

He said that as per the state's demand for vacation of the interim stay on Maratha reservation, the top court's Constitution bench will hear the government's petition on December 9 at 2 pm. "If members of the Maratha community, historians, researchers wish to give suggestions,they should communicate with this coordination committee of lawyers. It will study the suggestions and forward them to the government lawyers appearing in court," Chavan said.

In September this year, the Supreme Court had stayed the implementation of Maharashtra's 2018 law Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act that granted 16 per cent quota to the Maratha community. The government had filed an application seeking vacation of the apex court's stay amid protests from pro-quota organisations.

The Bombay High Court, while upholding the Act, had earlier said that 16 per cent reservation was not justified and that the quota shouldn't exceed 12 per cent in jobs and 13 per cent in admissions to educational institutions. The Supreme Court had said that appeals challenging the high court order were required to be considered by a larger bench. Accordingly, the hearing will take place before a five-judge Constitution bench.