Supreme Court rejects Maharashtra’s plea on maratha quota in postgraduate medical courses 

The Supreme Court of India.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court, on Thursday, upheld an order of Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court, in which maratha reservation will not come into effect for admissions in postgraduate medical and dental courses in the academic year 2019-2020.

The apex court  dismissed the special leave petition filed by the state against the order of the Bombay high court’s Nagpur bench.

The two-judge Supreme Court bench of Justice Nageswara Rao and Justice MR Shah said since the admission process had already begun last year, the high court order was correct. Section 16(2) of the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act bars the grant of reservation if process of entrance test had already started before the act came into force.

State counsel Mukul Rohatgi said that the students who had been given seats under the SEBC quota were also allotted admissions under the all-India quota. They had left their allotments under the all-India quota and come to Maharashtra, hence they would stand to lose.

However, Dhurv Mehta, the counsel for the students, who were the original petitioners, argued that if the maratha quota is implemented this year, meritorious students who would have otherwise got top colleges may be pushed back and have to pay up to secure seats in private colleges.

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