Private Job Quota: The controversial law mandating 75 percent reservation in private sector jobs for residents of the state in Haryana has been canceled by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The court has declared it unconstitutional.
Under the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Act passed in 2020, a provision was made to reserve 75 percent of private sector jobs with a monthly salary or wage of less than Rs 30,000 for residents of the state. For this, domicile certificate was made necessary. The domicile requirement was reduced from 15 years to 5 years.
Will the court’s decision prove to be a blow to the Khattar government?
This decision of the High Court has come at a time when less than a year is left for the assembly elections in Haryana. This decision is being seen as a big setback for Manohar Lal Khattar’s government.
This Act, passed by the Haryana Assembly in November 2020, received the assent of the Governor in March 2021. The law was seen as the brainchild of the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), an ally of the BJP in the state and whose leader Dushyant Chautala serves as the Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana. The promise of reservation was also prominent among the promises made by Chautala before the 2019 assembly elections.
Gurugram Industrial Association and other companies had filed a petition
Gurugram Industrial Association and other employer bodies had filed a petition in the High Court against this law of Haryana . The petitioners had argued that the concept behind the law violates the constitutional rights of employers. He had also said that this Act is against the principles of justice, equality, liberty and fraternity enshrined in the Constitution.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court had stayed the Act in February 2022, but a few days later, after the appeal of the Haryana government, the Supreme Court canceled the High Court order.
The Supreme Court had asked the High Court to take a decision on the petitions soon. While hearing the petitions on Friday (November 17), the bench of Justices GS Sandhawalia and Harpreet Kaur Jeevan declared this law unconstitutional and canceled it.
