The Supreme Court in September suspended the implementation of the Maratha quota in employment and education (File)
Bombay:
The Maharashtra government is considering the possibility of reimbursing fees for students who would have benefited from Maratha’s reservation for medical school admissions, Minister of State Amit Deshmukh said on Monday.
Deshmukh, who is the state’s minister of medical education, said his department will present a proposal in this regard to the state cabinet.
In September of this year, the Supreme Court suspended the implementation of the Maratha quota in jobs and education and referred the matter to a larger tribunal.
The government of Maharashtra subsequently filed a petition before a larger bench of the Supreme Court, requesting the rescission of the stay following the implementation of the quota.
The state government is considering how students who have been affected by the Supreme Court’s interim stay on the implementation of the Maratha quota can be relieved in medical education admissions, Mr. Deshmukh to a TV channel.
Asked if the government will reimburse their fees, he said: “… this (reimbursement of expenses) could be an option and the proposal will be submitted to the cabinet by the department of medical education.”
“Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray ji will take a final call on the same after the cabinet discusses it, ”he said.
Mr Deshmukh also said that the Maha Vikas Aghadi government – comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress – is committed to ensuring that students in the Maratha community do not suffer.
In September, the Supreme Court suspended the implementation of the 2018 Maharashtra law granting reservations to Marathas in education and employment, but clarified that the status of those who have enjoyed the benefits will not be disturbed.
The Socially and Pedagogically Backward Classes (ESCB) Act 2018 was enacted to grant a reservation to people from the Maratha community of Maharashtra in jobs and admissions.
The Bombay High Court, while upholding the law in June last year, ruled that the 16 percent reserve was not justifiable, and said the quota should not exceed 12 percent in the employment and 13 percent in admissions.
