Give 5% reservation to Muslims in Maharashtra, demands SP MLA Rais Shaikh ahead of special Assembly session for Maratha quota
Will welcome Maratha reservation if given without touching the OBC quota, says Rais Shaikh in his letter to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
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SP MLA Rais Shaikh. (Photo Credit: X/@rais_shk)Samajwadi Party (SP) MLA Rais Shaikh on Monday wrote a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde demanding that a 5 per cent reservation must be given to Muslims at the earliest to eradicate the backwardness of the community and to bring them into the path of mainstream development. The demand comes a day before the government convenes a special one-day session of the state legislature on February 20 to discuss the demands of the Maratha reservation.
Shaikh, in his letter, highlighted that the Congress-NCP government had previously given reservation to Muslims through an ordinance, and the Bombay High Court had also upheld the 5 per cent reservation in education for Muslims. He asked the state government to bring in a law immediately to provide reservations to Muslims.
“However, the state government hasn’t brought in a law to ensure the implementation of the reservation. It is a gross injustice to the Muslim community, which has been fighting for their rightful reservation for decades. There is a lot of resentment among the community for not getting our due. It is high time that the government must provide reservation to the community,” said Shaikh
The SP legislator further said that the demand for Muslim reservations is based on the economic and social backwardness of the community. “Around 50 sub-castes in the community will benefit from the reservation. The demand for reservation is based on the economic and social backwardness of the community. We hope that the government will give the rightful reservation to us,” added the Bhiwandi East MLA.
Shaikh said he would welcome the separate reservation fpr Marathas, stating that the OBC quota should not be touched. “If the Marathas are given reservation without touching the OBC quota, then we will welcome it. The OBC quota shouldn’t be touched at all,” he added.
The population of the Muslim community in the state is 11.5 per cent. The Justice Rajinder Sachar Commission (2006) and Justice Ranganath Mishra Committee (2004) proved the economic and educational backwardness of the Muslim community with statistics. In 2009, the Congress-led government formed the Dr Mehmoodur Rehman Committee. It recommended 8 per cent reservation for the Muslim community in education and jobs.
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