Calcutta HC Cancels All OBC Certificates Issued After 2010 In Bengal, Political War Of Words Erupts

The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday scrapped several classes as Other Backward Classes (OBC) under an Act of 2012 of West Bengal for reservation of vacancies in services and posts in the state, finding them illegal.

The court struck down several classes for reservation as Other Backward Classes (OBC) given under The West Bengal Backward Classes (Other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) (Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Act, 2012.

In a judgment on petitions challenging the provisions of the Act, the court stated that the services of citizens of the struck-down classes, who are already in service or have availed the benefit of reservation or have succeeded in any selection process of the state will not be affected.

According to the new order, the OBC certificate that was issued by the State Government now cannot be used to get any job or any facilities. Almost 5 lakh OBC certificates have been cancelled after this order.

The division bench comprising justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Rajasekhar Mantha clarified that the executive orders of the state government classifying 66 classes of OBC before 2010 were not interfered with, since these were not challenged in the petitions.

The bench directed that the executive orders classifying 42 classes made by the state from March 5, 2010, till May 11, 2012, were also quashed, with prospective effect, given the illegality of the reports recommending such classification.

The bench said that the opinion and advice of the Backward Classes Commission is ordinarily binding on the state legislature under the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.

The bench directed the Backward Classes Welfare Department of the state, in consultation with the Commission, to place a report before the legislature with recommendations for the inclusion of new classes or for the exclusion of remaining classes in the state list of OBCs.

(With PTI inputs)

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