The Supreme Court raised doubts about the Calcutta HC decision of stay on OBC list. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Supreme Court on Thursday (July 24, 2025) raised doubts about the Calcutta High Court decision to stay an effort by the West Bengal government to finalise a new list of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the State.
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Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai remarked that judicial precedent, right from the nine-judge Bench historic verdict in the Indira Sawhney case in 1992, dictated that backward classes in the society could be identified through Executive directions.
Orally mentioning the plea for West Bengal, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the State was even facing contempt action from the High Court.
He said a writ petition was filed in the High Court claiming that a new list could be prepared only if the exercise was backed by legislation. The High Court had consequently stayed the State exercise on June 17.
“The High Court orders came on the writ petition saying classification of backward classes should be on the basis of a legislation… That we (State) has to legislate… This morning the case was listed for contempt,” Mr. Sibal submitted.
The CJI responded orally that “it [classification] can be done by Executive instructions… This has been so since the Indira Sawhney judgment”.
The Bench listed the case for hearing on July 28. “The contempt should not go on,” Mr. Sibal urged. The Chief Justice indicated that the court would pass orders on Monday.
In March, West Bengal had opted to withdraw from the Supreme Court its appeal against a High Court judgment of May 2024 which struck down a State policy to include several castes, largely Muslim communities, in the OBC list.
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The High Court had concluded that religion was the “sole criterion for declaring these communities as OBC”. It had found the “selection of 77 classes of Muslims as backwards an affront to the Muslim community as a whole”.
At the time of the withdrawal of the appeal from the top court, Mr. Sibal had informed that the State Backward Classes Commission would prepare a fresh list after identifying socially and educationally backward communities.
The 2024 High Court judgment had impacted five lakh OBC certificates issued in the State since 2010. It had struck down portions of the West Bengal Backward Classes (Other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) (Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Act, 2012.
Among the Sections nullified were Section 16, the second part of Section 2(h), and Section 5(a) of the Act, which distributed reservation percentages of 10% and 7% to the sub-classified categories. Consequently, the sub-classified categories OBC-A and OBC-B were removed from Schedule I of the Act.
Published – July 24, 2025 02:18 pm IST
