The BJP government of Madhya Pradesh is caught in a dispute after filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court on the Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation. The screenshots went viral accusing the BJP of being ‘anti -Hindu’. The government’s affidavit claimed in a viral post is also resorting to the 1983 Ramji Mahajan Commission report. However, the government has dismissed such allegations outright. Historical reference was mentioned in the viral post.
The viral post claimed that the Madhya Pradesh government’s affidavit in the Supreme Court is a warning for all general caste people. The party, which always claims to unite Hindus, is now calling Hinduism a symbol of injustice, exploitation and evil in the court. It was alleged that about 80 percent of the alleged parts of the affidavit were convicted for the backwardness of Hindus and Hindu scriptures like Manusmriti were convicted.
Not only this, the viral screenshot on Twitter shows that many other strange claims were also involved in it. A screenshot showed that the murder of sage Shambuk in the Ramayana was introduced as an example of caste oppression. Another screenshot claimed that Manusmriti compare Shudras to animals and makes them inhuman. At the same time, Hindu society was deliberately divided for centuries to maintain the dominance of the upper caste. The government issued an explanation regarding these claims and described itself as completely different from the controversial parts.
What did MP government say after the dispute?
The government of the state said that it has come to the notice that some content is being made viral on social media by mischievous elements that the comments are part of the affidavit of the OBC reservation of the Madhya Pradesh government presented before the Supreme Court. The government has seriously tested the content. These comments are completely untrue, false and misleading. This has been done in a sense of propaganda. It is clarified that viral material is not mentioned in the affidavit of the Madhya Pradesh government nor is there any part of any declared or sanctioned policy or decision of the state.
He said that the material is part of the final report (Part-1) submitted by Ramji Mahajan, chairman of the Madhya Pradesh State Backward Classes Commission. The commission was formed on 17 November 1980. The Commission sent its final report to the then state government on 22 December 1983. The government has presented the report of the State Backward Classes Commission in the Supreme Court in the case related to OBC reservation. Along with the report of Mahajan Commission in these reports, the annual report from 1994 to 2011 and the State Backward Classes Welfare Commission report of the year 2022 are also included.
What did MP government give arguments in the affidavit?
The Madhya Pradesh government defended its decision to increase the reservation for OBCs from 14 per cent to 27 per cent, telling the Supreme Court that the backward community has more than 85 per cent of the population and is severely deprived. The Supreme Court will hear the matter daily from October 8. In its affidavit filed on 23 September, the state cited the 2011 census, according to which the Scheduled Castes (SC) represent 15.6%, Scheduled Tribes (ST) 21.1% and OBCs more than 51% population. The 2022 report of the OBC Commission confirmed that OBCs alone represent more than half of the population of the state. According to the state, the disadvantaged groups together represent more than 87 percent of the population of Madhya Pradesh.
The government said that the OBC was limited to only 14 per cent reservation earlier, which was completely ratioless for social and educational backwardness in terms of population. The government argued that up to 27 percent increase is not only appropriate, but is also a constitutionally necessary improvement step. This affidavit was filed in response to the petitions challenging the validity of Section 4 of Madhya Pradesh Public Service (Reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes) Act, 1994, which was amended by the 2019 Amendment Act, due to which reservation for OBCs has been increased from 14 per cent to 27 per cent in the state services.
How much will reservation be in Madhya Pradesh?
In the year 2022, an interim order was passed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, in which the state was stopped from giving more than 14 percent OBC reservation and the rules of December 2019 were banned. In 2024, the petitions were transferred to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court did not cancel the High Court order and set the final hearing of the case for October 2025. Since Scheduled Castes in Madhya Pradesh get 16 percent and Scheduled Tribes get 20 percent reservation, the reservation will be more than the 50 percent limit by increasing OBC reservation to 27 percent. The total reservation with 10 percent financially backward class (EWS) quota will be 73 percent.
