Maharashtra’s Scrapping Of 5% Muslim Quota Challenged In Court
Maharashtra’s decision to scrap 5% Muslim reservation faces legal challenge in Bombay High Court.
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The Maharashtra government’s recent decision to cancel the 5% reservation for Muslims in education and government jobs has been formally challenged in the Bombay High Court. The petition, filed by a Mumbai-based lawyer, alleges that the move violates constitutional principles and fundamental rights, and seeks an interim stay on the government’s resolution. The state’s action revoked a 2014 order that had enabled nearly 50 identified Muslim communities to access benefits under the Special Backward Category-A framework.
According to Maktoob Media, the petition argues that the government’s decision was arbitrary, discriminatory, and lacked any complaint or adverse finding from the State Backward Class Commission regarding the Muslim SEBC quota. The plea further asserts that the cancellation infringes on the rights of Muslim students and the broader community.
As reported by Scroll, the petitioner has requested the court to direct authorities to produce the quantified data used to justify the policy’s cancellation. The plea also claims that the withdrawal of the reservation is legally unsustainable, especially in light of previous judicial findings that recognised the backwardness of the specified Muslim sub-communities.
As noted in an article by The Indian Express, the Social Justice Department’s resolution on 17 February 2026 formally cancelled the July 2014 government order, which had allowed Muslim communities to obtain caste verification and validity certificates. The petition highlights that no complaints were made to the State Backward Class Commission about the quota, and no party was adversely affected by it.
“The state government allowing more than Rs 350 crore annual budget to madrasa education and withholding the innocent Muslims from mainstream education, is nothing but a racial discrimination to limiting Muslims young minds in the dark Talibani ages,” the plea stated.
Coverage revealed that the 2014 ordinance, introduced by the then Congress–NCP government, had granted 16% reservation to Marathas and 5% to Muslims under the SEBC category. The Bombay High Court later invalidated the Maratha quota but upheld the 5% reservation for Muslims in government and aided educational institutions, citing adequate quantifiable data for the inclusion of nearly 50 Muslim sub-communities as socially and educationally backward.
The legal challenge also points out that the 2014 ordinance was not enacted into permanent law and lapsed on 23 December 2014 after the BJP-led government assumed office. While the government pursued legal remedies for Maratha reservations, no legislative effort was made to preserve the Muslim quota framework.
The petition further contends that the state’s allocation of funds for madrasa education, without equivalent support for mainstream education, restricts opportunities for Muslim youth. The plea alleges that this approach violates the rights of minorities to access modern education.
“The respondent authorities are violating the rights of minorities to get modern education,” the petition added.
In the historical context, the High Court had previously limited the quota’s applicability to government and aided institutions and refused to allow any breach of the Supreme Court-mandated 50% ceiling on reservations in public employment. The current petition seeks to reinstate the reservation and ensure compliance with constitutional protections for minorities.
Note: This article is produced using AI-assisted tools and is based on publicly available information. It has been reviewed by The Quint's editorial team before publishing.