No OBC quota in women's bill, says govt

Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily on Wednesday ruled out providing reservation for Other Backward Castes in the Women's Reservation Bill, saying data on OBCs is not available at the national level.

Moily said there would be no change in the bill compared to that passed in the Rajya Sabha and exuded confidence that it would get through the Lok Sabha also in April.

"There is no provision in the Constitution to provide for OBC reservation, particularly for political reservation, even though for employment and education, reservation is provided," he told media persons in Bangalore.

Moily said census on OBCs was not pursued since 1931. "So unless these data are available, it is not possible to pick up who's OBC and who's not OBC."

He opined that if Parliament passed the bill with amendment providing OBC quota in the women's legislation, the court would strike it down "from day one".

Asked about Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's comment that only women belonging to affluent class would get the benefit of the bill, he said a "similar argument" was aired when 73rd and 74th Constitution amendment bill providing reservation for women in Panchayat Raj institutions was enacted.