Slug: Group C, D posts | Socio-economic criteria
The Punjab and Haryana high court has quashed domicile-based marks to locals in Haryana in the recruitment of group C and group D posts on the basis of socio-economic criteria.
The high court bench of justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and justice Sudeepti Sharma allowed the petitions, challenging award of 20 marks on the basis of socio-economic criteria on the basis of descent or domicile. In some categories, the weightage was of 5 marks.
It was on January 19, 2023, the high court had stayed the award of marks in the recruitment of assistant engineers. The court had observed that the bench prima facie agrees with the contentions of the petitioner that confining of the benefit of socio-economic criteria and awarding 20 marks therefore on the basis of descent or domicile is violative of Article 16(2) of the Constitution.
Lawyer Sarthak Gupta, who was one of the counsels in the case, said the petitions challenging the criteria have been allowed and award of marks have been declared as unconstitutional and violative of Articles 14 (equality before law), 15 (state shall not discriminate on the basis of birth, caste, religion and race etc) and 16 (prohibition of discrimination in public employment).
Among other petitions, in one plea criteria for the recruitment of assistant engineers was challenged by one Arpit Gahlawat, who had submitted that he was eligible to apply for the post and intended to apply but had claimed that selection criteria is discriminatory.
{{/usCountry}}Among other petitions, in one plea criteria for the recruitment of assistant engineers was challenged by one Arpit Gahlawat, who had submitted that he was eligible to apply for the post and intended to apply but had claimed that selection criteria is discriminatory.
{{/usCountry}}He had sought quashing of advertisement put out on December 20, 2022, for filling up posts of assistant engineers (electrical cadre).
In the advertisement, 20 marks out of 100 were earmarked for the “socio-economic criteria and experience”, by making them dependent on descent or the domicile of the state. It was a form of reservation, it was claimed.
The government had argued that marks in question have been earmarked since various requests were received from the candidates who had applied in earlier recruitment for considering them also in the present recruitment process. The weightage of marks is being given not only on the ground of domicile, it was submitted. Detailed judgment is awaited.