The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), represented by its Villupuram district secretary and Law Minister C.Ve. Shanmugam, has moved the Madras High Court seeking 50% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in medical seats surrendered by State governments to the All India quota in non Central government colleges. In his affidavit, Mr. Shanmugam said, it was the party’s founder M.G. Ramachandran who had raised the reservations for OBCs from 31 to 50% in the State. Subsequently, Jayalalithaa was instrumental in the passing of a resolution by the Legislative Assembly on September 30, 1991 demanding the Centre too, provide reservations for OBCs
[6/13, 15:41] Sekarreporter 1: NEWS STATES TAMIL NADU
TAMIL NADU
AIADMK also moves Madras High Court seeking 50% reservation for OBCs in medical seats
Legal Correspondent
CHENNAI 13 JUNE 2020 13:55 IST
UPDATED: 13 JUNE 2020 13:55 IST
The DK and DMK too, have filed similar public interest litigation petitions in the High Court, but they are yet to be listed for hearing before the courtThe All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), represented by its Villupuram district secretary and Law Minister C.Ve. Shanmugam, has moved the Madras High Court seeking 50% reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in medical seats surrendered by State governments to the All India quota in non Central government colleges.
In his affidavit, Mr. Shanmugam said, it was the party’s founder M.G. Ramachandran who had raised the reservations for OBCs from 31 to 50% in the State. Subsequently, Jayalalithaa was instrumental in the passing of a resolution by the Legislative Assembly on September 30, 1991 demanding the Centre too, provide reservations for OBCs.
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He also credited Jayalalithaa for enacting the Tamil Nadu Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions and of Appointments or Posts in the Services under the State) Act of 1993. She obtained presidential assent for the Act and included it in the ninth schedule to the Constitution, he said.
“Thus, AIADMK has a long history as a vanguard for the rights of the oppressed and socially disadvantaged groups,” the deponent said and added that for the “past several academic years,” OBCs had been grossly under-represented in the All India quota seats in undergraduate, postgraduate and diploma courses in medical colleges.
Providing an illustration, the party said, 8,137 postgraduate seats were available in the All India quota in 2019. As per the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admissions) Act of 2006, OBCs should get 27% of seats. Even as per that law, they should have got 2,197 seats but only 224 seats were allotted to OBCs in non Central institutions.
Hence, the party sought a direction to the Centre to reserve 50% of seats for OBCs in the All India quota for the academic year 2020-21. Already, the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) too have filed similar public interest litigation petitions in the High Court but they are yet to be listed for hearing before the court.
Initially, the DMK, AIADMK, Communist Party of India and others had approached the Supreme Court for an identical relief but they withdrew those cases from the apex court recently with liberty to move the Madras High Court. DK was the only organisation to approach the High Court at the first instance.
