CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday informed the Madras high court that it has withdrawn an earlier circular which asked tahsildars not to issue income and assets certificates for those covered under the new quota for 'economically weaker sections' among the forward communities.
The issue has now been referred to a group of ministers for taking a policy decision which will be conveyed to the court, Advocate-General Vijay Narayan submitted before the bench of Justices R Subbiah and Krishnan Ramasamy.
The quota for the economically weaker sections among the forward communities was introduced by the central government. However, most Tamil Nadu-based political parties, including the ruling AIADMK, had expressed apprehensions over it. In an all-party meeting on the issue last year in Chennai, 16 of the 21 parties had opposed the new quota.
On June 4, the State Commissioner of Revenue Administration had issued a circular directing the district collectors to inform the tahsildars not to issue income and asset certificates to families belonging to the economically weaker sections from the forward communities.
Challenging this, T P Kulathumani, president of Akhila Bharatha Brahmin Association in Nagercoil and advocate G Girubakaran, executive member of the Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Pondicherry Reddy Nala Sangam, filed a public interest litigation in the high court.
When it came up for hearing on Tuesday, the advocate general, on behalf of the state government, said that the erstwhile revenue commissioner had issued the circular without consulting the government. The present revenue commissioner, after consulting with the government, has withdrawn that circular.
Now the issue has been referred to a group of senior ministers for taking a policy decision and the same will be conveyed to the high court, the AG added. The case has been posted for the next hearing on July 13.