No stay on 10.5% vanniyar quota for now, says Madras high court – Times of India

Chennai News

CHENNAI: The Madras high court has refused to stay law providing 10.5% reservation for vanniyars, but made it clear that any admissions made in educational institutions and appointments to state government services under the quota would be subject to the outcome of a batch of pleas challenging its constitutional validity.
A division bench of Justice M M Sundresh and Justice S Kannammal passed the interim orders on Wednesday, while refusing to stay operation of the law providing the internal reservation. The court then posted the pleas for final hearing on September 14.
The court is inclined to pass the order to put on notice parties to such admissions and appointments, the bench said.
Earlier, representing the state government, advocate general R Shunmugasundaram submitted that the petitioner had failed to secure an interim stay from the Supreme Court and from even the first bench of this court. Therefore, pressing for such an order before this court is not fair.
Supporting the stand of the state, senior advocate G Masilamani contended that granting interim stay at this stage would bring the admission process to a standstill and would create confusion in the minds of the students as to whether or not to join the courses.
Opposing the argument, senior advocate for petitioners K M Vijayan submitted that the court had to pass an interim stay against admissions to educational institutions alone as the same could not be reversed if the case was decided in their favour.
The issue pertains to a legislation passed by the then AIADMK government minutes before the model code of conduct came into force ahead of the assembly election. Subsequently, a series of PILs were moved in the high court challenging the validity of such exclusive reservation for Vanniyar community.
The petitioners, including associations of various communities falling under the MBC category, said if the reservation was implemented, vanniyars and other sub-castes that come under Vanniyakula Kshatriya community would enjoy exclusive 10.5% reservation in admission to higher education and government services while other 25 castes under MBC and 68 castes under DC will have to share 7% of the remaining reservation.
After the change of regime, the present DMK government also supported the reservation and submitted that internal reservation for vanniyars has been provided based on the survey conducted by the Tamil Nadu Backward Classes Commission in 1983.
It added that such exclusive reservation will not affect the prospects of the members of the other MBCs, BCs and other communities.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/no-stay-on-10-5-vanniyar-quota-for-now-says-madras-high-court/articleshow/85645285.cms