Oppn not banking on review plea on quotas, wants statute tweaked

NEW DELHI: As the Modi government moved the Supreme Court for a stay on its judgment denuding the states of their powers to identify OBCs, several leaders and opposition members demanded that the Centre initiate the process to amend the contentious 102nd constitutional amendment, arguing that the history of review petitions in the apex court do not inspire optimism.
The opposition and champions of OBC rights are upset with the BJP government for ignoring their objections in Parliament during the debate on the 102nd constitutional amendment which granted constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) and rewrote the process of decision-making on issues relating to the backward classes.
They had repeatedly warned the Centre that specific clauses in the bill would deprive the states of their powers but the Centre had rubbished their objections.
Now, these sections do not appear to be reassured by the government approaching the Supreme Court on Thursday.
BJD MP Bhartruhari Mahtab, who was the most vocal in the Lok Sabha debate on the 102nd amendment, told TOI, “Given the history of review petitions in the SC, it is necessary that the confusion that has erupted relating to the amendment be settled soon. The Centre should prepare the alternative route of amending the law.”
Congress leader B K Hariprasad, who led the charge against the 102nd amendment in Rajya Sabha, said, “The only way out is an amendment.”
OBC rights activists and regional parties felt that leaving the controversy to a court judgment may not be prudent, as restoring the rights of states was “non negotiable”.