Maratha quota: Ahead of July 15 SC hearing, Chavan chairs meet

Maharashtra PWD Minister Ashok Chavan chaired the subcommittee meeting on Friday on Maratha reservation issue and said that the government will take all sections of the community into confidence while keeping its side before the apex court.

Mumbai: Ahead of the July 15 hearing in the Supreme Court on the Maratha reservation issue, the Maharashtra cabinet subcommittee on the quota held a meeting on Friday with various leaders representing the community.

Maharashtra PWD Minister Ashok Chavan, who heads the subcommittee, said the government will take all sections of the community into confidence while keeping its side before the apex court.

According to a statement issued by his office, Chavan reiterated that the government will make all the efforts to ensure the quota holds its ground before the court.

State ministers Eknath Shinde, Balasaheb Thorat, Dilip Walse-Patil and Vijay Wadettiwar and community leaders MP Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje, Vinayak Mete and others attended the meeting held via video conferencing.

A plea was filed in the SC last year challenging the Bombay High Court order upholding the constitutional validity of the quota for the Maratha community in education (12 per cent) and government jobs (13 per cent) in the state.

"Rumours are being spread about the (government's) preparedness in connection with the court cases relating to the quota. The government, however, has prepared well to ensure reservation passed by the state legislature holds its ground before the court," the statement quoted Chavan as saying.

Shinde said that the government will leave no stone unturned to see that reservation is intact, while Walse-Patil assured the government will take the cooperation of all sections of the community for the purpose.

The legislation to provide the quota was enacted when the BJP was in power in the state.

PTI