Reservation Quota

The Centre has issued comprehensive guidelines to streamline reservation and identification of posts for persons with at least 40 per cent disabilities, mandating periodic identification of such posts and formation of committees to assess them. The guidelines also state that if a post is deemed suitable for them, all subsequent promotional posts will also be reserved for persons with disabilities. The guidelines are in line with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016. The move comes after the Delhi High Court flagged inconsistencies in implementation of the the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016 and criticised entities like the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) for unauthorised actions in identifying posts. The high court earlier this month observed that KVS had overstepped its authority by independently identifying posts for PwBDs and highlighted inconsistencies in the understanding of the Act among various departments. The court mandated the

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union minister Amit Shah of spreading lies about her brother Rahul Gandhi that he is against reservation. She said these leaders are scared of Rahul Gandhi because he wants a caste census to be conducted in the country. Addressing a poll rally in the temple town of Shirdi in Ahilyanagar district of Maharashtra, she said projects worth Rs 10 lakh crore were snatched away from Maharashtra. "All of us are proud of Maharashtra. But in this land, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is being insulted...you people are being insulted. All these leaders, including Modi ji, take his (Shivaji Maharaj) name, but they do not respect him," Gandhi alleged. PM laid a foundation for Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue but later stopped the work, she said, apparently referring to the warrior king's proposed memorial in the Arabian Sea off Mumbai. "The statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj outside Parliame

PM Modi had accused the party of consistently opposing reservation policies and alleged that Congress has the aim to weaken the rights of these groups

The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has denied claims that it extends reservation on religious grounds to Muslim candidates in admissions and recruitment, asserting that it has no such system in place. The university said this in a statement on Monday, days after the Supreme Court held that the legal question over the AMU's minority status would be decided by a new bench and overruled a 1967 judgment that said the university cannot be considered a minority institution since it was created by a central law. AMU officials have been denying for the last three days claims that a system of reservation of seats for Muslims is being implemented in student admissions and employment of staff at the university. "The Aligarh Muslim University gives no reservation to Muslim candidates either in admissions in different courses offered by the university or in the recruitment, as has been reported by some media outlets, after the recent judgement of the seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court of ..

Dy CM Shukla also highlighted that the Regional Industrial Conclave held in Rewa was quite a successful event and around 4,000 investors and businessmen participated in the conclave

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday accused Congress of making attempts to snatch reservations meant for tribals and hand them over to its "vote bank". Addressing an election rally in Chaibasa in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district, the PM said he worships those who have been rejected by the others. "Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar has ensured the provision of reservation to protect tribal rights but Nehru-ji had opposed it. The Gandhi family opposed reservation till they were in control of power post-Nehru. Now once again they have openly announced that they will scrap reservations for tribals. They will snatch tribal reservations and hand it over to their vote bank," he said. "They (Congress) have devised one more strategy. They are declaring schools, colleges and universities as minority institutions. By this, the reservation of tribals, Dalits and backward is being stopped. Beware of this conspiracy by Congress," he added. He alleged that the JMM-led ruling coalition in the state

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Tuesday accused the BJP and the Congress of attempting to alter reservation policies for Dalits in states governed by them, claiming these changes threaten the unity and rights of marginalised communities. The four-time former Uttar Pradesh chief minister took to social media to express concern over the "new system" of sub-reservation for Dalits implemented by the BJP government in Haryana and the Congress governments in Telangana and Karnataka. "This hurried implementation of sub-reservation is part of a continued conspiracy to render reservation ineffective and inactive," the BSP chief alleged She claimed that both the BJP and the Congress are alike and dubbed them as "casteist" "The active engagement of casteist parties, which oppose reservation and threaten the unity of millions of oppressed and neglected Dalits, proves that the BJP and Congress are two sides of the same coin. Their actions pose a greater threat to society and the ...

The Railway Board has advised all 17 railway zones and its public sector undertakings to properly maintain reservation roasters of SCs, STs and OBCs so that its effective implementation can be ensured. In a written communication dated October 18 to the general managers of all the zones and the heads of the public sector undertakings as well as autonomous bodies, the board's Chairman and CEO Satish Kumar said that during the sitting of the Parliamentary Committee on Backward Classes held on September 9, the issue of proper implementation of reservation rules and maintenance of reservation rosters in the railways, particularly in its PSUs, were raised by various members. "These issues have also been raised earlier by the National Commission for Backward Classes during meetings or hearings held," he wrote. Kumar added that on May 3, the board emphasized all railway zones to ensure the proper implementation of extant reservation policies and the maintenance of reservation rosters both i

The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) has recommended the inclusion of several communities from Maharashtra into the Central List of Other Backward Classes (OBCs). In an advisory to the government issued on Wednesday, the NCBC proposed adding communities such as Lodh, Lodha, Lodhi; Badgujar; Suryavanshi Gujar; Leve Gujar, Reve Gujar, Reva Gujar; Dangari; Bhoyar, Pawar; and Kapewar, among others. The decision followed hearings held by the NCBC's two-member bench, comprising chairperson Hansraj Gangaram Ahir and member Bhuvan Bhushan Kamal, a statement said. These hearings took place in Mumbai on October 17, 2023, and July 26, 2024. After thorough deliberations, the commission submitted its advice to the Union government on October 8, 2024, for the inclusion of these castes under the OBC category for Maharashtra, it said. The inclusion of these groups in the Central List of OBCs would entitle them to benefits, including reservations in educational institutions and ...

Narhari Sitaram Zirwal's drastic action came amidst ongoing protests by the Dhangar community in Maharashtra, who are demanding Scheduled Tribe reservations

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Monday appealed to the people, including the poor and needy, to converge in a show of unity at the Dussehra rally to be held at Narayangad in Maharashtra's Beed district. Dussehra will be celebrated on October 12 this year. Jarange also said he will speak at the rally, which would be attended by the Maratha community people and farmers, but there will no politics at the event. He was speaking to reporters at a private hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar where he is currently undergoing treatment after ending his fast over the demand for OBC quota for the Maratha community. Jarange sat on a hunger strike on September 17, his sixth in a year, to demand reservation to the Maratha community under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. He called it off on September 25, citing pleas from members of the Maratha community to withdraw his protest. In February this year, the Maharashtra legislature unanimously passed a bill providing 10 per cen

The Supreme Court is scheduled to consider in-chambers on Tuesday a batch of pleas seeking review of its judgement which held that states are constitutionally empowered to make sub-classifications within the Scheduled Castes, which form a socially heterogeneous class, for granting reservation. As per the cause list, a seven-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices B R Gavai, Vikram Nath, Bela Trivedi, Pankaj Mithal, Manoj Misra and Satish Chandra Sharma is likely to take up the matter at 1.35 pm. On August 1, the top court had held that states are constitutionally empowered to make sub-classifications within the Scheduled Castes, which form a socially heterogeneous class, for granting reservation for the uplift of castes that are socially and educationally more backward. The apex court, however, made it clear that states have to make sub-classification on the basis of "quantifiable and demonstrable data" of backwardness and representation in ...

This decision follows persistent advocacy from SC/ST activists and a PIL submitted by the Global IIM Alumni Network to the Gujarat High Court in 2021

Terming the remarks as attributed to Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi as "untrue", Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said that reservation would continue until there is untouchability and a lack of social justice for various sections of the society in the country. Kharge sidestepped a direct reply about the National Conference's (NC) resolve to restore Article 370 and said their agenda is to restore "statehood". "Reservation cannot be scrapped until there is casteism in the Hindu religion. Until there is untouchability and lack of social justice, reservation will continue. It will continue till my death. I will tell my children to fight for it," Kharge told a press conference here. Responding to a question about Gandhi's remarks on reservation, Kharge clarified, "He has not said so. He will not even say so. We will not even allow him to say (anything like this)". The Congress president emphasized that his party fully supports reservation. "It will not go. We w

Hitting back at Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar for his apparent attack at Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on reservation, the Congress on Sunday asked Dhankhar if he supports the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha's demand of removal of 50 per cent cap on reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs. The opposition party's jibe came after Dhankhar said, "A person from a constitutional post saying on a foreign land that reservation should be ended underscores the same anti-constitutional mindset. The baton of prejudices against reservation has been handed over. It is the same old anti-constitutional mindset." "Reservation is not against meritocracy, but it is the soul of the country and the Constitution. It is an affirmative action and not negative. It is not depriving someone of opportunity but hand holding those who are pillars of strength of the society," the vice president said addressing a public event in Mumbai. Reacting to the remarks, Congress' media and publicity department head Paw

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the Women's Reservation Act is an opportunity for the Congress to nurture and support both established and aspiring women leaders. In his message on the 40th anniversary of the All India Mahila Congress (AIMC), Gandhi said that during the Bharat Jodo Yatra and Bharat Jodo Nyaya Yatra, he met remarkable women across India determined to make a difference. "Many had the passion, perseverance and commitment to drive far reaching changes in society. Some of the fiercest and most fearless voices against injustice were of women," the former Congress chief said. In this day and age, there is no reason whatsoever to deny women meaningful opportunities in public life, he asserted. Gandhi congratulated Mahila Congress leaders and members, both past and present, who built this organisation brick by brick. AIMC has come a long way since the 1984 Bangalore Convention, he said, adding that over the last four decades, the AIMC has

The Congress Party will think of scrapping reservations when India is a fair place, which is not the case right now, Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition has said. Gandhi made these remarks while talking to students at the prestigious Georgetown University. We will think of scrapping reservations when India is a fair place. And India is not a fair place, Gandhi told students at the university here in response to a question on reservation and how long it would continue. When you look at the financial numbers, then tribals get 10 paise out of 100 rupees; Dalits get 5 rupees out of 100 rupees, and OBCs get a similar number. The fact of the matter is that they're not getting participation," Gandhi said. "The problem is that 90 per cent of India is not able to play. Go through the list of every single business leader in India. I've done it. Show me the tribal name. Show me the Dalit name. Show me the OBC name. Out of the top 200, I think there's one OBC. They're 50 per cent of India. But

Navigating government corridors as a lateral entrant to the position of CEO of the Punjab CSR Authority, I quickly learned that fresh ideas often wither without the right groundwork

Supreme Court overrules Madhya Pradesh High Court on MBBS admissions for meritorious reserved category candidates

BSP chief Mayawati on Friday attacked the BJP and the INDIA bloc, alleging that while the ruling party has adopted an anti-SC/ST stance over the issue of sub-classification and identifying creamy layer for reservation within the communities, the opposition coalition's silence on the matter is proving to be "fatal". Earlier this month, a seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud ruled in a 6:1 majority judgement that state governments were permitted to sub-classify communities within the SC list based on empirical data. Supreme Court judge Justice B R Gavai had also said states must evolve a policy for identifying the creamy layer, even among the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Schedule Tribes (ST), and deny it the benefit of reservation. In posts on X in Hindi, BSahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president Mayawati said, "It is very sad and worrying that the (BJP-led) Centre has not yet taken any concrete steps to restore the old system as per public expectations