Gujarat moves SC against HC order quashing quota

New Delhi: The Gujarat government on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court challenging a high court order that had quashed its ordinance providing 10 per cent quota for the economically backward among the unreserved category, including the agitating Patel community.

The appeal has been filed in the apex court registry and is likely to come up for hearing shortly, advocate Hemantika Wahi, who represent the state government, said.

While quashing the ordinance, the high court had stayed the operation of its order by two weeks on the request of the state government to enable it to file an appeal in the apex court.

Terming the ordinance issued on May 1 as "inappropriate and unconstitutional", the high court had rejected the state government's argument that it is a classification under the general category and not the reserved category and held that it will breach the 50 per cent quota cap set up by the Supreme Court.

The court had observed that 10 per cent reservation for poor among the unreserved category takes the total quota beyond 50 per cent, which is not permitted as per the apex court's earlier decision.

The high court had also said that the government took the decision without any study or scientific data.

Petitioners Dayaram Verma, Ravjibhai Manani, Dulari Basarge and Gujarat Parents' Association had separately challenged the ordinance declaring reservation of 10 per cent seats to candidates belonging to the unreserved category with family income cap of Rs 6 lakh annually in government jobs and educational institutions. Their petitions were heard together.

The state government had said that the reservation is actually "a further classification in the general, open, unreserved category" and does not violate either the Supreme Court order or the constitutional provisions.

The state government, in its affidavit, said the ordinance does not violate provisions of the Constitution nor does it go against the apex court orders.