Govt working for quick implementation of minority subquota

New Delhi: Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and Assembly polls in five states this year, Government on Wednesday said efforts are being made for expeditous implementation of 4.5 percent minority sub quota, a decision that was rejected by the apex court earlier.

Minority Affairs Minister K Rahman Khan, who has been holding the view that the SC had not questioned the merit of the minority subquota decision and its objection was on technical grounds, today said that Government is trying to get an early hearing on the issue so that the matter is resolved soon. "We stand committed to what we had promised in our party manifesto about resevation to backwards among Muslims. We are confident that 4.5 subquota for backward Muslims will see the light of the day. We are trying that the case comes up for an early hearing in the Supreme Court. Talks are on with Attorney General. We are hopeful that it will happen soon," Khan said. He felt that there was no ground for rejecting the minority suquota as "it is not a new thing, we have added." "Backward Muslims are already getting reservations under BC reservation category of 27 percent as per the Mandal Commission recommendations. We are just creating a subquota within the OBC group as backward minorities were not being able to get their share," Khan said. The Supreme Court has admitted the Centre`s petition against that verdict, but has asked for details on how the government arrived at the figure of 4.5 percent. The minority subquota decision was announced in December 2011 by the UPA government ahead of the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in 2012. The Minority Affairs minister was addressing a press conferece after the Union Cabinet yesterday modified certain criteria of Multi Sector Development Plans thereby expanding the reach of the national scheme for the development of minority concentrated states. With the change of criteria from districts to blocks, six more states -- Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tripura will also be covered. Of these, Assembly elections are due this year in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and in Andhra Pradesh in 2014. Khan said Narendra Modi-ruled Gujarat will also now come under the scheme for the first time. PTI