Attorney-general G.E. Vahanvati stressed that Monday’s hearing was on a “limited” plea for permitting counselling of nearly 325 students from the “minority” community by the IITs as an interim measure as the admission process will be over by June 30, but the top court was not impressed and questioned the logic behind making such a plea without examining the issue in detail.
“Why to tinker with the process that had gone for decades?” the bench asked.
“We must have some documents before us,” the bench told the AG while giving him time till Wednesday to produce the same to justify the government’s action when he said he would place the required “material”. Earlier, he argued that the whole exercise was done as per top court’s 1993 verdict in Indira Sahani case, which dealt with the Mandal Commission’s recommendation on OBC reservation.
While assailing the HC order, the AG said the 1993 SC verdict permitted the “carving out” a “sub-quota” within 27 per cent reservation to the OBCs, for those who still were socially, economically and educationally most backward.
“The 4.5 per cent reservation (for backward Muslims) is not based on any new facts. It is based on the position that prevailed in 1993,” he said while defending government’s December 22, 2011 OM.
In a bid to ally the impression that the 4.5 per cent sub-quota was being provided on the “religious” lines, AG read out entire text of the OM. On the question of referring the issue to the minority commission or the backward classes commission, Mr Vahanvati said “Indira Sahani verdict does not require the government to do so.”
The AG wanted interim stay on HC’s May 28 verdict and permitting IITs to have the counselling of 325 Muslim students till a final decision on the Centre’s appeal.