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The West Bengal government on Tuesday withdrew its appeal from the Supreme Court against the Calcutta High Court judgment, which struck down a State policy to include 77 communities, including 75 Muslim communities, in the OBC list.
A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana allowed the withdrawal of the appeal after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the State, said that the State Cabinet had taken a decision to withdraw the appeal. Recently, the West Bengal Legislative Assembly passed two Bills amending laws enacted by the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) government governing Other Backwards Classes (OBC) reservation in the State. Earlier, the Mamata Banerjee-led government had approached the apex court challenging the High Court's May 22, 2024 order, which quashed a series of State orders during 2010-12 to include 77 castes in the OBC category. The High Court had struck down the inclusion of 77 castes into the OBC list, observing the classification "illegal and unconstitutional". It remarked that religion appeared to be the sole criterion for the inclusion, characterising the move as an attempt to treat a community as a vote bank for electoral gains. (ANI)
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