The issue of OBC reservation has now become a national issue in West Bengal. In an important decision, Kolkata High Court has canceled more than five lakh OBC certificates issued after 2010. This has once again sparked a debate on reservation in the politics of not only the state but the entire country. The High Court has declared the law passed by the Mamata Banerjee government of the state in 2012 to include 77 castes in the backward class as illegal.
what is the whole matter
Actually, in West Bengal obc reservation The whole story is based on the report of the Sachar Committee constituted during the tenure of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. In that report, detailed information was given about the condition of the Muslim community in the country. The report said that only 3.5 percent of the employees of the West Bengal government were Muslims. On this basis, in 2010, the Left Front government of West Bengal put 53 castes in the OBC category and increased the OBC reservation from seven percent to 17 percent. In this way, about 87.1 percent of the Muslim population at that time came under the purview of reservation. But, in 2011, the Left Front government was out of power and its decision could not become a law.
Trinamool government
Then Trinamool Congress government came to power in the state and Mamata Banerjee Became the Chief Minister. Mamata’s government increased this list to 77. 35 new castes were added to this list, out of which 33 were castes of Muslim community. Besides, the Trinamool government also increased the OBC reservation in the state from seven percent to 17 percent. Due to this law of Mamata government, 92 percent of the Muslim population of the state started getting the benefit of reservation.
Division in OBC reservation also
The other way, obc reservation Was also divided into two categories. 10 percent reservation was given to one class, most of which belonged to the Muslim community. The second category got seven percent reservation, which included castes from both Hindu and Muslim communities.
This formula is applicable in many states
obc reservation The formula of dividing people into two categories has been implemented in many states. There are two categories in Bihar, backward class and extremely backward class. Here OBC reservation has been increased to 37 percent. In the Central Government and many other states, OBC reservation is divided into creamy layer and non-creamy layer categories. On this basis, an attempt was made to make OBC reservation more logical. The basis of cream and non-creamy layer is the income of the family. Despite belonging to the OBC community, if the income of a couple exceeds a certain level, their children do not get the benefit of reservation.
allegations of arbitrariness
Mamata Banerjee But it is alleged that in the state obc The law to include 77 castes in the list was based on vote bank politics. In this, the standard of inclusion of castes in the OBC list at the national level was not taken into account.
Improvement in the condition of Muslims
However, there is another aspect to this picture. According to the Sachar Committee, before 2010, there were only 3.5 percent Muslims in state government jobs. That situation has improved a lot today. According to a report by Telegraph India, the condition of the Muslim community saw a lot of improvement in 2015. Bengal government In the report of the Minority Department of West Bengal, it was said that between 2011 and 2015, 9.01 percent minorities were selected in the recruitments of West Bengal Service Commission. During this period, 15 percent minorities were selected in the recruitments of West Bengal Staff Selection Commission. Similarly, 12.5 percent minorities were selected in the recruitment of West Bengal Municipal Service Commission. The population of Muslim community in the state is around 2.47 crore i.e. 27 percent.
Tags: Lok Sabha Election 2024, Loksabha Elections, muslim reservation, OBC Reservation
FIRST PUBLISHED: May 23, 2024, 12:31 IST