Eligibility for OBCs at most 10% less than general category: Supreme Court

Ironing out the different perceptions on the term ‘cut off marks’ for other backward classes (OBCs) in relation to unfilled seats in educational institutions under the 27% quota enactment, the Supreme Court has ruled that the vacant seats caused by non availability of reserved category students would be made available to the general category students.

This will be applicable for the 2011-2012 admissions. But where the process of   conversion and allotment is not completed, the OBC seats shall be filled by the eligible candidates alone. Disposing of a law suit filed by one Indrasen saying the court’s ruling upholding the 27% quota for OBCs has been misinterpreted by the educational institutions, the apex court said, “if in any such institution, the OBCs reservation seats remain vacant, such institutions shall fill them with OBC students.”

Only if OBC candidates possessing the minimum eligibility/qualifying marks are not   available in the OBC merit list, the seats shall be converted into general category seats, a bench of justices RV Raveendran and AK Patnaik said on Thursday.

In another direction, the court said, “if the last date for admissions has expired, the last date for admissions shall be extended till August 31, 2011 as a special case, to enable admissions to the vacant OBC seats.” This judgment is an off-shoot of a batch of petitions seeking clarification on ‘cut off marks’ in its judgment on October 14, 2008 that upheld the validity of Central Educational   Institutions under the Central Educational Institutions Act.