The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Muslim quota case hearing on September 24

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Saturday, Sep 15, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Muslim quota case hearing on September 24

J. Venkatesan

SLP filed in Supreme Court against interim order

New Delhi: The Supreme Court will hear on September 24 a special leave petition against an interim order of the Andhra Pradesh High Court refusing to stay the implementation of the law enacted by the State providing for four per cent quota exclusively for Muslims in educational institutions and public employment.

The High Court in its order dated July 24 said that the implementation of the law would be subject to the final adjudication of the batch of petitions and this fact should be incorporated in the letters of admission or otherwise made under the provisions of the law.

Subsequently, by an order dated August 29, the High Court deferred the hearing till the apex court decided the 27 per cent OBC quota law. The SLP is directed against these interim orders.

Appearing for the petitioner, T. Muralidhar Rao, senior counsel Arun Jaitley and K. Ramakrishna Reddy told a Bench of the Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Justice R.V. Raveendran that the matter required to be heard urgently as admissions in professional colleges would be finalised by September 30. Senior counsel K. Parasaran appeared for the State. The Bench posted the SLP for hearing on September 24.

The SLP said it raised important questions of law for consideration by the apex court, viz. whether the High Court was justified in not considering that 4 per cent reservation of seats and posts exclusively for Muslims was violative of Articles 14, 15 (1) and 16 (2) of the Constitution.

Whether the High Court was justified in not considering that the legislature had no power to overrule the judgment in B. Archana Reddy’s case (in which the earlier law was struck down) while enacting the law to provide for 4 per cent quota for Muslims.

Whether the High Court was justified in overlooking the claims of other several backward communities pending before the Backward Classes Commission for a number of years and thus the said action was discriminatory.

The SLP contended that the State Government had continued the constitutionally reprehensible religion-centric policy and “the impugned Act only reflects such policy”.

This preference given to the Muslim community at the expense of other religions violates the constitutional mandate of equality.

‘Act vitiated’

It said the impugned Act was vitiated because the BC Commission failed to do a comparative analysis with other Forward and Backward Classes in the State. It sought quashing of the High Court judgment and an interim stay of the operation of the four per cent Muslim quota law.

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