Supreme Court order gives me a sense of fulfillment, says Banthia

It was the report of the commission headed by the retired bureaucrat that the apex court accepted while directing that quota be provided to OBCs in the local body polls.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Banthia said, “The time given to us was short. Yet, we did our best. There were many angles to be studied, such as, legal, social and demographic…Normally, it is a judge or a politician who heads such commissions. This time, the government chose me, a retired bureaucrat and I chose people from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, International Institute of Population Science, and the law secretary for aiding our commission.” Banthia said that soon after the SC turned down the state’s plea, the issue was discussed in the Cabinet and he got a call from the Chief Minister’s office asking him to head the commission and also to apprise him with how the Cabinet wanted him to
head it.

“We called political parties and they made representations supporting reservation. We held a webinar wherein law universities and social scientists, and economists were called. We also travelled to six divisions in Maharashtra. We had a 360 degree approach.”