The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday issued an interim stay on the West Bengal government’s OBC list notification, putting a hold on all actions and processes based on the new list of Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities.
The court was hearing a series of petitions challenging the state government’s executive order that added 140 subgroups—80 of which are Muslim—to the newly announced OBC list.
The division bench of Justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Rajasekhar Mantha imposed the stay, which affects various key areas, including college and university admissions, government job recruitments, and social welfare benefits.
The court also stayed the implementation of the newly introduced 100-point roster for jobs, which had been designed based on the updated OBC list.
However, the court clarified that the original list of 66 OBC communities recognised before 2010 will remain unaffected by the ruling.
The previous list, which was largely invalidated by the High Court on May 22, 2024, had 113 subgroups, comprising 77 Muslim and 36 non-Muslim communities.
The Bengal Assembly passed the new notification last week in response to the court’s earlier decision, which struck down the categorisation of OBC-A and OBC-B groups introduced after 2011.
Several petitions challenging the new state executive order were submitted to the High Court, with the issue still being under consideration by the Supreme Court.
The petitioners urged the court to stay the order, describing it as a “blatant violation” of the High Court division bench’s ruling issued on May 22.
BJP Hails Ruling
The court order, being viewed as a major setback for the ruling Trinamool, was largely hailed by the BJP today, with Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari calling it a “landmark verdict.”
“I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the Hon’ble High Court at Calcutta for the landmark decision to stay the inclusion of 76 Muslim classes in the new OBC list prepared by the Mamata Banerjee Government. This is a resounding victory of the Judiciary against an arrogant State Government that has repeatedly flouted constitutional norms for its narrow political gains,” he said in an X post.
Adhikari added that the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government’s approach, reflected in the inclusion of nearly 90 per cent of new Muslim groups in the OBC list, represents a “direct affront to the principles of equality and fairness.”
