Madhya Pradesh High Court Quashes 2019 Law Raising OBC Quota From 14% to 27%

Key facts

• The Madhya Pradesh High Court struck down the 2019 law that increased OBC reservation in the state from 14% to 27%, holding that the state failed to establish exceptional circumstances to breach the Supreme Court-mandated 50% ceiling on reservations.
• A division bench of Justices Anand Pathak and Vinay Saraf ruled that OBCs are entitled to 14% reservation but the increase to 27% was not justified.
• The court cited a 2023 study by Dr BR Ambedkar University of Social Sciences showing OBCs held 28.16% of government positions and accounted for 33.87% of higher education enrolment, along with AISHE 2021-22 data showing OBC enrolment rose 163%.
• The court noted the state is politically dominated by OBCs, with four Chief Ministers in regular succession and over 25% of Ministers and MLAs from the OBC category.
• OBC candidates appointed between March 2019 and September 29, 2022 under the additional quota will not be removed; appointments after that date are to be made on an 87% basis, with recruitment agencies directed to complete them within three months.
• The 2019 law was enacted by the then Congress government led by Kamal Nath, and the BJP government that came to power in 2020 also supported it.
• Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the government would study the judgment and ensure further legal proceedings, while Congress announced it would challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.