The Supreme Court on Thursday told the BJP-led Karnataka government that a reading of its order scrapping the 4 per cent quota for Muslims in the state “appears to suggest that prima facie…the foundation of its decision-making process is highly shaky and flawed”, reported The Indian Express.
This was observed by Justice K M Joseph, who was leading the two-judge bench, while hearing a writ petition challenging the Government Order (GO). The state asserted that the Constitution of India does not allow reservation based on religion.
Justice B V Nagarathna said that the state could have waited for the final report, instead of the GO, and sought to know the “great urgency”.
The state’s BJP government headed by Basavaraj Bommai decided to scrap the four per cent reservation for Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions weeks ahead of the Karnataka Assembly elections which will be on May 10. The state government announced two new categories of reservation and divided the four per cent Muslim quota between the Vokkaligas and Lingayats, the two numerically dominant and politically influential communities of the state.
Muslims eligible for quotas were categorised under the economically weaker sections.
The government told the apex court that it put on hold its March 24 order by which it had given quotas to Vokkaligas and Lingayats, till April 18, the next date of hearing.
The bench, which gave time till April 17 to the state government and counsel representing members of Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities to file their response to a batch of petitions challenging the government order, recorded that no admissions or appointments will be made till April 18 on the basis of the impugned order.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Karnataka, sought some time to file replies to the petitions and assured the bench that nothing irreversible will happen till Tuesday.
Mehta told the court, “Nowhere quota can be granted on the basis of religion and if it has been granted then it is a mistake. It is not that the entire Muslim community has been denied quota in Karnataka. They have been granted a 10 per cent quota in the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category. There are certain other Muslims communities like Pinjara, Mansoori etc., who fall under OBC category and they are still getting the quota.”
The top court told Mehta during the hearing, “On the basis of the documents and materials produced before us it appears that Muslims were backward and then suddenly it has changed. As a student of law, it prima facie seems that the government order is based on absolutely fallacious presumptions.”
Justice Joseph told Mehta, “We are just saying that prima facie the order you have passed appears to suggest that the foundation of your decision is on highly shaky ground and flawed.”
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Dushyant Dave and Gopal Sankarnarayanan, appearing for members of the Muslim community from Karnataka said no study was conducted and there was no empirical data available with the government to scrap the quota for Muslims.
Dave, appearing for petitioner L Ghulam Rasool, said two days before the elections were announced in the state, the government removed four per cent quota for Muslims, calling the move “unconstitutional and arbitrary”.
“This was done on the eve of the election being announced. I am shocked as to how the government can do this without any empirical data or some concrete study. This is against a series of judgements of this court. It is against the 1995 statute of the state,” he said.