In a setback to the Harynana Government, the Punjab & Haryana High Court on Thursday stayed the reservation for Jats and five other communities provided by the Haryana Government under a newly carved Backward Classes (C) category.
The high court passed the order while hearing a petition challenging the constitutional validity of The Haryana Backward Classes (reservation in services and admission in educational institutions) Act 2016 that was passed unanimously by the State Assembly on March 29.
The interim order was passed by a HC Bench of Justice SS Saron and Justice Gurmit Ram. The Act was challenged by Murari lal Gupta of Bhiwani, who was seeking a direction to quash block ‘C’ of the Act, which provides reservation to the Jat community under a newly carved Backward Classes (C) category.
The counsel for the petitioner, Mukesh Verma, submitted that reservation for the Jat community has been provided under the new act on the basis of the Justice KC Gupta commission report, which the Supreme Court has already quashed. He said only the judiciary can revise the findings on an issue already decided in a judicial order.
It was further submitted in the petition that in 2014 as well, the State Government had introduced such a bill to include Jats in the list of other backward classes for reservation in jobs and educational institutes. However, the Supreme Court, in the case of Ram Singh and others versus the Union of India, had held that Jats were not backward socially, educationally and politically.
The matter was first put before the Bench of Justice Mahesh Grover last week. Justice Grover had opined the matter to be taken up as a PIl and had referred it to the Acting Chief Justice for placing it before the appropriate bench. Hearing the petition on Thursday, the Division Bench of Justice SS Saron and Justice Gurmit Ram ordered an interim stay on the operation of the Bill, and adjourned the matter for July 21.
The new act provides reservation for Jats and five other communities under the backward class (C) category. The five other communities, including Jat Sikhs, Muslim Jats, Bishnois, Rors and Tyagis, would be entitled to 10 per cent reservation in Government services and admission in educational institutions.