OBC quota: SC rejects govt plea

NEW DELHI, INDIA: A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court today rejected the central government plea for the revival of quotas for other backward classes in higher educational institutions.

The central government had not given any new reason for the court to revoke its March 29 interim order suspending the law, the bench headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan observed.

The government was planning to implement 27 per cent reservation for other OBCs in premier educational institutions in India.

The bench also stated that the reservation for OBC students could not be implemented in all centrally funded institutions for the lack of adequate infrastructure. Implementing reservation only to a few institutions would amount to discrimination.

The bench included Justices Arijit Pasayat, R.V. Raveendran, C.K. Thakkar and Dalveer Bhandari, besides the Chief Justice.

The hearing to scrutinize the quota laws was likely to continue for nearly three weeks.