An Indian court has struck down a bid by the government of Andhra Pradesh state to set aside five percent of government jobs and educational places for Muslims, a lawyer said Tuesday.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Monday declared a state ordinance that would have given effect to the quotas as "unconstitutional", said lawyer S. Ramachandra Rao, who had argued in favour of the quotas on behalf of a Muslim member of parliament.
"In separate but concurring judgements, the five judges cited different reasons for their verdict. They struck down the ordinance mainly on the ground that religion-based reservations were unconstitutional," Rao said.
State governments are allowed to set quotas for "backward classes," a tag that refers to caste groups or tribal communities that have traditionally been discriminated against. But so far no reservations have been granted based on religion alone.
"To base the reservations only on religious grounds may not be right ... and the ordinance is struck down," said one of the judges as quoted by the Times of India newspaper Tuesday.
The ruling marks the second time the court has rejected an attempt by the Congress party, which came to power in the state in May 2004, to implement quotas for Muslims in Andhra Pradesh.
Both times, Hindu organisations and students have gone to court to challenge the quotas.
Political observers say Congress is trying to woo the Muslim vote in the state, where the group comprises close to 10 percent of the population.
The state government has said it will appeal the decision in India's Supreme Court.
"We will not go back on our commitment to the Muslims at any cost," said Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.