On 23rd February, the Supreme Court of India heard a petition seeking 10% reservation for Pasmanda Muslims by sub-categorising the Other Backward Classes (OBC) in terms of the Ranganath Misra Commission report. The plea has been filed by Mohammad Waseem Saifi. A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi heard the matter briefly. The matter has now been listed for further consideration on 6th April.
Senior Advocate Anjana Prakash appeared for the petitioner. She submitted that Indian Muslims are broadly divided into three categories, namely Ashraf, Ajlaf and Arzal. She further argued that the latter groups require affirmative action.
CJI Kant questioned the basis of such classification. He remarked, “At the cost of other poor Muslims, you only want to promote… where is the homework on how many total Muslims are backward?” He asked, “You are trying to say that one category of Muslims is backward and the other is not, how can we decide this?”
Link to Andhra Pradesh reservation case
Prakash urged the Court to tag the matter with the long pending Constitution Bench case State of Andhra Pradesh and Others v. B. Archana Reddy and Others, which will examine the constitutional validity of reservations granted to Muslims in Andhra Pradesh and whether a religious community can be identified as a backward class.
In 2005, the Andhra Pradesh government enacted a law that granted 5% reservation to Muslims in education and public employment by treating them as a socially and educationally backward class.
Reliance on Sachar Committee findings
The plea relies on the 2006 Sachar Committee report, which examined the socio economic and educational status of Muslims in India. The petitioner contended that nearly eighty to 85% of India’s Muslim population comprises Pasmanda communities, who remain underrepresented in education, employment and politics.
The Court permitted the petitioner to file a brief note and will take up the matter again in April 2026.
