SC has taken away the rights given to OBCs: Sharad Yadav

he Janata Dal (United) national president has once again expressed his dissatisfaction with a Supreme Court judgement. This time he has criticised the apex court for its latest verdict on the Other Backward Class (OBC) quota issue, in which the Court upheld the 93rd Constitutional Amendment Act-2002 but asked the Centre to keep the creamy layer out of the purview of reservation in elite educational institutions.

Reacting to the verdict of the apex court, Yadav said, "The Supreme Court judgement introducing the creamy layer provision in OBC quota is unjustified and deplorable," adding, "It is very unfortunate that Supreme Court has ignored the fact about the implementation of OBC quota in services and introduced the creamy layer provision in quota for higher educational institutions as well."

He further said, "By this order the SC has taken away what the Parliament has given to the OBCs. I condemn this judgement." Yadav's criticism is quite interesting because he is the only political leader who has prima-facie criticised the judgement. Most of the leaders including the pro-quota leaders have welcomed the judgement in one form or the other.

Calling the judgement as detrimental to social harmony of the country, Yadav said that this whole concept of creamy layer is flawed. By the provision of creamy layer even the children of OBC clerks and peons, who are earning more than 2.5 Lakh annually, which they do at the age of 56-57 years, are being deprived the benefit of reservations.

Yadav also demanded constitution of a joint parliamentary committee to review the functioning of of the provisions of creamy layer in OBC quota. He said, "There is no provision of creamy layer in Indian Constitution. It is the invention of the Supreme Court."

He also criticised the Court for asking the government to review the list of OBCs every five years. He said that "without caste census in place how can any authority review the progress of a particular caste". He also demanded that a caste census be held in 2011.

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