Story perspectives

Madhya Pradesh High Court Cuts OBC Quota to 14%

By Drooid · Oct 10, 2026, 4:24 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Madhya Pradesh High Court struck down the 2019 law raising OBC reservation to 27%.
Justices Anand Pathak and Vinay Saraf said no extraordinary circumstances justified exceeding the 50% ceiling.
The court restored OBC reservation in state jobs and education to 14%.
Appointments from March 2019 to September 29 2022 under the extra quota will retain jobs.
Congress president Jitu Patwari said the party will challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.

History

Historical Context

In 1992, the Supreme Court of India delivered the Indra Sawhney judgment, capping affirmative-action quotas at a 50 % ceiling. The ruling, authored by Justice M.N. Rao, upheld the Mandal Commission’s 27 % OBC reservation while limiting total reservations to fifty percent. Madhya Pradesh’s 2019 amendment that raised OBC quotas to 27 % mirrors the same percentages, prompting the High Court’s 2024 reversal to 14 %. The precedent warns that any state exceeding the 50 % threshold, as Jitu Patwari’s Congress plans to contest, may face nationwide judicial scrutiny.

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Story summary

Madhya Pradesh High Court struck down the 2019 law raising OBC reservation to 27%.
Justices Anand Pathak and Vinay Saraf said no extraordinary circumstances justified exceeding the 50% ceiling.
The court restored OBC reservation in state jobs and education to 14%.
Appointments from March 2019 to September 29 2022 under the extra quota will retain jobs.
Congress president Jitu Patwari said the party will challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.

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