Supreme Court To Entertain HSSC’s Petition Against 5% Additional Marks On Monday

The Supreme Court will hear a series of appeals by the Haryana Staff Selection Commission challenging the Punjab & Haryana High Court’s decision to strike down the award of 5 percent additional marks in the Common Eligibility Test (CET) based on socio-economic criteria on Monday.

According to the causelist on the Supreme Court’s website, a vacation bench comprising Justices Abhay S. Oka and Rajesh Bindal will hear the case on June 24.

Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to postpone the hearing after the petitioner’s counsel noted that two similar appeals were pending before the Supreme Court against the High Court’s May 31 decision.

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The Punjab & Haryana High Court ruled that since statutory reservations already exist under the EWS category and for Backward Classes due to social backwardness, further benefits under socio-economic criteria would breach the 50 percent ceiling limit set by the Supreme Court and acknowledged by the Constitution’s framers.

The court further stated that the socio-economic criteria introduced by the Human Resources Department of the Haryana Government was arbitrary and discriminatory, creating inequality among similarly situated individuals and denying equal benefits.

The writ petitions before the Punjab & Haryana High Court argued that the 5 percent bonus marks awarded on various grounds violated Articles 14, 15, and 16 of the Constitution of India, creating an artificial classification among equals based on residence, family income, place of birth, and social status. They also claimed that no quantifiable data or extensive study conducted before establishing the socio-economic criteria.