HC seeks compliance affidavit from state on OBC admission process
Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has directed the ‘State of West Bengal’ to file an affidavit confirming compliance with its previous order regarding the reservation of seats for OBC-A and OBC-B categories in the centralized college and university admission portal.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Rajasekhar Mantha and Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty issued the direction while hearing a contempt petition alleging violation of the court’s June 17, 2025 order.
The petitioners claimed that despite the order, the state continued with the admission process, requiring applicants to declare their categories under OBC-A or OBC-B.
Counsels, representing the petitioners, argued that this action contravened the court’s instruction and failed to reflect the judgment passed on May 22, 2024, which had implications for the classification of OBCs. Appearing for the state, Advocate General Kishore Dutta submitted a notice dated June 21, 2025, which is now displayed on the admission portal. The notice clarifies that no category details are being collected for the time being from applicants.
Such details will be collected in due course prior to the applications being processed. The portal, it stated, will be reopened to allow fresh submission of categorization data once the legal issues are resolved.
Furthermore, the notice affirms that the admission process and any resultant decisions are subject to the outcome of ongoing legal proceedings and do not confer any vested rights upon the applicants.
The state has challenged the High Court judgment on the matter in the Supreme Court. The High Court, however, emphasised that these assurances must be placed on record through a sworn affidavit. It further directed that the term “receipt of all applications” in the centralised portal must include individuals recognized under the pre-2010 OBC classifications. The state is required to clarify this aspect publicly via the online portal.
The matter is scheduled for further hearing on July 4, 2025, at 3:00 pm, by which time the court expects the required affidavit to be filed and served on the petitioners.
