16% reservation for Marathas challenged in Bombay High Court

MUMBAI: Maharashtra government’s decision to keep 16% reservation for Maratha community in government jobs and education has been challenged in Bombay High Court.

An activist, Ketan Tirodkar has filed a Public Interest Litigation ( PIL) claiming Marathas cannot get called a backward or deprived caste and therefore reservation for them is illegal.

The PIL argues that Marathas cannot be called a caste because they are a linguistic group.

It further stated that Marathas are a dominant community, not a backward group. The PIL also argued that the state government's decision violated a Supreme Court order that had made it clear that reservations could not cross 50%.

The High Court will take up the matter for hearing on Saturday. The Congress and the NCP decimated in Lok Sabha polls election, announced on June 25 to extend reservation meant for Other Backward Classes ( OBCs ) to Marathas and a five per cent quota was also added for economically backward Muslims.

The move comes as the political parties gear up for assembly elections, which are expected in October. Sharad Pawar, whose Nationalist Congress Party governs the state in alliance with the Congress, accepted on Thursday that his party will surely get benefits from a decision about reservation for the politically vital Maratha community.

Marathas constitute about 32% population in Maharashtra.