New Delhi: Five days after the Supreme Court order putting a stay on reservation for OBCs in Central educational institutions, the tremors were felt in Mumbai on Monday when pro-quota activists hit the road in the northern suburbs of the city to register their protest.
The protesters blocked Mumbai's Western Express Highway near Borivalli, bringing traffic to a complete standstill during the morning rush hours.
Nearly 300 protestors belonging to the Samata Parishad, who staged the blockade, also resorted to violence and burnt tryes.
They shouted slogans, demanding 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in institutes of higher education. Mumbai Police rushed one unit of Riot Control Police to the spot and detained some of the protestors.
The Samata Parishad outfit is believed to be close to NCP leader Chaggan Bhujjbal. The activists gathered at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park junction in Borivili and stopped traffic at peak hours.
Police said 15 of the protesters have been detained. The road has been cleared and traffic flow is limping back to normal, they said.
The protest erupted at a time when the Union Government is still planning to appeal in the apex court to remove the stay on quota proceedings. The matter may possibly be referred to a larger Constitutional Bench.
The line of action was arrived at after Union Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh discussed the matter with Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium and other legal experts on Sunday.
Though there was no official word on the discussions, sources said the government was 'anxious' for a solution. "Consultations are on. The Government is looking at various matters and is anxious for a solution," PTI quoted a government source as saying.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the government will take all constitutional measures to get the Supreme Court stay on the 27 per cent quota for OBCs in elite educational institutions vacated.
"The Supreme Court has not rejected anything... We will take all constitutional measures to vacate the stay," he said.
Mr Singh reiterated that the UPA Government will take all constitutional measures to get for vacation of the stay. He had, however, made it clear that the government would do all to avoid any confrontation with the Supreme Court.
He had also said that all-party meeting would be convened after the SAARC summit to discuss the issue.
The court had on March 29 stayed till further orders the operation of the notification issued in January this year under the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2006 providing 27.5 per cent reservations to the OBCs in admission to the Centrally-run educational institutions from the academic year 2007-2008.
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