The political war between the Congress and the BJP over the 27% OBC reservation in Madhya Pradesh intensified on Thursday after the Supreme Court once again postponed the hearing, this time citing the absence of state government lawyers.
The Congress accused the BJP of deliberately delaying the case to deny OBCs their constitutional rights, while the BJP hit back, alleging a conspiracy to mislead the OBC community with "false narratives".
All 16 petitions related to the 27% OBC quota were listed for final hearing before a bench of Justices P Narasimha and Vijay Bishnoi. However, when the cases were called, no counsel representing the Madhya Pradesh government was present.
The court adjourned the matter for a week and fixed the next hearing for February 4, remarking that government lawyers "repeatedly seek time instead of arguing the case".
Senior advocate Anoop George Chaudhary, appearing for the OBC community, sought an urgent hearing on applications linked to the 13% posts, allegedly being withheld, but the bench declined due to the absence of state lawyers. Advocate Varun Thakur's request to place the matter at the "Top of the Board" was also rejected.
The Supreme Court had earlier treated the OBC reservation matter as a priority, ordering that cases from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh be heard together on a day-to-day basis. Yet, despite repeated listings since September, arguments have not begun. In October, the court had sharply remarked that "every hearing feels like an old movie" and warned the state against using adjournments as a tactic, noting that the future of thousands of young aspirants was at stake.
OBC lawyers pointed out that the Madhya Pradesh government has appointed five senior advocates, including Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, to argue the case. "Despite this, not a single lawyer appeared when the matter was called," they said, questioning the government's seriousness.
The controversy has further fuelled political sparring.
Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath said the repeated adjournments expose the BJP government's intentions, alleging a systematic attempt to postpone and complicate the issue.
The BJP, however, rejected the charge.
State media in-charge Ashish Agarwal claimed that senior law officers, including ASG KM Nataraj and AAG Dhirendra Singh Parmar, were present, accusing the Congress of trying to confuse the OBC community.
Significantly, neither the High Court nor the Supreme Court has stayed the law granting 27% OBC reservation. Yet, recruitment processes continue with 13% of posts being withheld. As the hearing is deferred yet again, the legal deadlock has turned into a high-voltage political battle, leaving thousands of OBC aspirants caught between court delays and political blame games.
