In response to the Supreme Court’s probing query about the “material” to support the 4.5 per cent sub-quota for backward Muslims in Central institutions of higher learning, the Centre on Tuesday placed before the apex court at least half-a-dozen documents it considered as “relevant” to justify its decision.
Additional solicitor-general Gaurav Banerjee without specifying the nature of the documents handed over a bunch of papers to a bench comprising Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and J.S. Khehar while making a special mention about it.
Since the apex court is to take up on Wednesday the government’s interim plea for permitting the IITs to have the counselling of nearly 325 students from the “minority” community, Centre’s law officer was particular to submit the documents as soon as the bench assembled for the day’s hearing.
Sources said that the government has relied heavily on 2006 report of Justice Rajinder Sachar Committee projecting overall social and educational status of Muslims as “very low” on the national index and Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission’s 2007 report recommending “scheduled caste” status to “dalit” muslims and christians and the same had been included in the bunch of papers placed on record. Justice Mishra commission had recommended 15 per cent quota for minorities in the government job as well as in educational institutions and 8.4 per cent reservation for them in the 27 per cent OBC block.
The Sachar Committee had recommended that a way could be found to “lift a significant segment” of the muslim community if social “stratification” was defined and officially accepted within the community.
It further had stated that a via media has to be found for a clearly defined “backward class” like OBC among the minorities.
“A total of six-to-seven documents, including reports of Sachar Committee and Mishra Commission, are filed before the Supreme Court as the relevant supportive material,” the sources further added.