Uttarakhand High Court Seeks State Govt. Reply on Horizontal Reservation Plea

• 04 Apr 2024

Why in News?

Recently, The Uttarakhand High Court sought a reply from the Uttarakhand government on a petition challenging 30% horizontal reservation to domiciled women of the state in government jobs.

Key Points

• The petition challenges Section 3(1) of the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (Horizontal Reservation for Women) Act, 2022, saying 30% reservation for women of the state is beyond the scope of Article 16 of the Constitution of India.
• As per the case, Uttarakhand Public Service Commission had released an advertisement for various posts of PCS (provincial civil services) on March 14, 2024.
  • Clause 10(d) of the advertisement provides for 30% horizontal reservation for female candidates who are native of Uttarakhand.
  • The petitioner challenged the reservation and said horizontal reservation based only on domicile should not be made.
    • Section 3(1) of the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (Horizontal Reservation for Women) Act, 2022 is unconstitutional because it violates the Article 16 of the Constitution of India.

Article 16 of the Constitution of India

• It provides for the grounds of positive discrimination or Reservation in government jobs.
  • Article 16(4) provides that the State can make any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favor of any backward class of citizens who, in the opinion of the state, are not adequately represented in the services under the State.
  • Article 16(4A) provides that the State can make any provision for reservation in matters of promotion in favor of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes if they are not adequately represented in the services under the State.
  • Article 16(6) provides that the State can make any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favor of any economically weaker sections.