Madras HC warns Centre of contempt for not implementing OBC reservation in State-surrendered medical seats for 2021-22

Read Order: Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam v. Rajesh Bhushan 

LE Staff

Chennai, July 20, 2021: The Madras High Court has observed that apparent attempts by the Central government not to implement OBC reservation in State-surrendered medical seats for the All India Quota in non-central medical colleges in Tamil Nadu appeared to be prima facie contempt of court in view of an earlier order of the High Court.

While noting in its interim order that admissions into medical colleges in the State can now be only upon implementing such reservation quota, the Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy opined that the Centre’s stance to defer the implementation of the OBC reservation until the Saloni Kumari case before the Supreme Court is decided, was prima facie unacceptable.

The High Court observed that in the first place, the matter pertaining to the OBC reservation quota in respect of the All India Quota seats in the State came to be taken up for final decision and was finally decided pursuant to the observation in the previous Supreme Court order of July 13, 2020 to the effect that the issue involved in the Saloni Kumari case would not stand in the way of the matter being decided by the Madras High court. 

“The Union’s attempt to not implement the OBC reservation quota in respect of AIQ seats in the academic year 2021-22 appears to be contumacious, in derogation of the order dated July 27, 2020 passed by this Court and contrary to the representation made before the Supreme Court as recorded in the order dated October 26, 2020,” said the Court.

Accordingly, the High Court permitted the alleged contemnors a week’s time to indicate their considered stand as to the mode and manner of the implementation of OBC reservation quota in terms of the 1993 Act in respect of AIQ seats in the State pertaining to medical and dental colleges from the next academic year of 2021-22. 

The High Court has also noted that the State government has already indicated its proposal for OBC reservation implementation to the Committee by the middle of October, 2020.