‘Backward communities over 50% of population’: Madhya Pradesh defends OBC quota increase in court

The Madhya Pradesh government has told the Supreme Court that backward communities together comprise more than 85% of the population in the state yet remain severely disadvantaged despite their overwhelming demographic presence, Live Law reported on Thursday.

In its affidavit filed on September 23, the state government relied on the 2011 Census to defend its decision to raise reservations for the Other Backward Classes to 27% from 14% in 2019.

As per the Census, Scheduled Castes constituted 15.6% of the population in the state, Scheduled Tribes 21.1% and OBCs more than 51%.

The affidavit was filed in response to petitions challenging the validity of Section 4 of the 1994 Madhya Pradesh Lok Seva Reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes Act, which was amended in 2019, according to Live Law.

With the amendment, the Scheduled Castes had 16% reservations in Madhya Pradesh, Scheduled Tribes 20% and OBCs 27%, Live Law reported. In addition, Economically Weaker Sections had a 10% quota, taking the total reservations in the state above the 70% mark.

This exceeded the 50% limit on caste-based reservations set by the Supreme Court in 1992.

In 2022, the Madhya Pradesh High Court issued an interim order staying the 2019 amendment. This restrained the state government from providing OBC reservation beyond 14%, Live Law reported.

The petitions were transferred to the Supreme Court in...

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