The Rajasthan High Court has quashed a notification dated 16th October, 2015, issued by the state government and Rajasthan Special Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutions in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Act, 2015, which provided 5% reservation to Gujjars and four other castes under the Special Backwards Classes (SBC) category.
A division bench comprising Justices MN Bhandari and JK Ranga also upheld the challenge against the report submitted by the Other Backward Classes commission recommending five castes for Special Backward Classes with 5% reservation.
The bench observed that five castes brought under the umbrella of special backward classes were earlier also getting benefit of reservation for last many years.
“The extraordinary circumstances have been shown for sake of it and otherwise based on incomplete data. If the extra ordinary situation is due to less or negligible representation of five castes in the services as well as in educational courses, the status of other castes was not seen which are having no representation.”
The petitioners have challenged the notification and the Act of 2015 apart from the report of the SBC commission providing reservation beyond 50 per cent in educational institutions as well as in public employment.
The bench added that reservation should not be provided to achieve political goals as it results in caste based agitation to bargain with the government.