Decision to scrap 5% Muslim quota challenged in Bombay High Court

The Maharashtra Government’s recent decision to rescind the 5% reservation for the Muslim community in educational institutions and public employment has been challenged in the Bombay High Court.

Advocate Ejaz Naqvi has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking the immediate quashing of the government resolution (GR) issued on Tuesday (February 17, 2026). The petition, which is likely to be mentioned for an urgent hearing before the High Court, has questioned the rationale behind the sudden withdrawal of the quota, a move that has reignited a political and legal debate in the State.

Also Read: What the scrapping of reservation means for Muslims in Maharashtra

The State’s Social Justice and Special Assistance Department issued a GR, formally cancelling the December 2014 decision that had initially granted the 5% reservation to the Muslim community. With the issuance of the new order, the government has also immediately halted the process of issuing and validating caste certificates for claimants under this category.

The petition argues that the rescinding notification is arbitrary and fails to provide a substantive justification for reversing a policy that has been in place for nearly a decade. It has raised “tough questions” regarding the government’s stance, pointing to the sudden uncertainty created among beneficiaries who were in the process of availing the reservation.

The original quota was introduced in the backdrop of the 2014 Assembly elections. The erstwhile Congress-NCP Government had proposed a 16% reservation for the Maratha community and a separate 5% quota for Muslims. According to the petition’s submissions, the proposal was tabled in the cabinet by the then Minority Welfare Minister, Naseem Khan, and was passed unanimously without any discussion.

However, both quotas faced legal challenges.

While the Maratha quota was eventually struck down by the Supreme Court, the Muslim quota had also been under judicial scrutiny. The new petition contends that the current government’s decision to cancel the reservation outright, ten years later, is a regressive step that will adversely impact a marginalised section of society.