On Tuesday, the Calcutta High Court issued a stay on the West Bengal government's notification that designated 140 communities as Other Backward Classes (OBCs), as reported by a legal news outlet.

A bench led by Justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Rajasekhar Mantha instructed the state not to proceed with actions based on this classification until the next hearing scheduled for July 31.

Earlier this month, the West Bengal government had announced the inclusion of 76 sub-castes into the OBC category, raising the total number of recognized communities to 140.

Among these, 80 communities are identified as Muslim, while 60 are non-Muslim, indicating that Muslims represent 57.1% of the population classified under the OBC category.

The previous OBC list from the state government included 113 sub-groups, with 77 being Muslim and 36 non-Muslim. However, the High Court invalidated this list in May 2024, reducing OBC reservations from 17% to 7%.

The newly proposed list aims to reinstate OBC reservations to the original 17% level.

The High Court's ruling in May 2024 was anticipated to impact around five lakh certificates, and the state government's appeal against this decision is currently pending in the Supreme Court.

Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari criticized the government's new list, claiming it disrespects the court's authority and suggesting that the Trinamool Congress is attempting to allocate reservations based on religious affiliation in educational institutions and government jobs.

Adhikari noted that prior to 2010, the OBC list contained 66 communities, with only 11 being Muslim.

In response, the Trinamool Congress asserted that the criteria for inclusion in the OBC list are based on socioeconomic status rather than religion, accusing the BJP of fostering division between Hindus and Muslims through a 'divide and rule' strategy.