CM Saini after SC rejected state’s plea to repeal additional brands policy

Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Monday said his government would consider moving a reconsideration motion or bringing a bill in the Assembly, hours after the Supreme Court upheld a Supreme Court order invalidating the state’s policy of awarding additional marks residents in the recruitment process – exams for government positions.

Terming the Haryana government’s policy a “populist move”, a vacation bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Rajesh Bindal refused to interfere with the Supreme Court order that declared the socio-economic criterion for granting extra marks to certain classes of employees as unconstitutional. candidates for state government positions.

“We respect the Supreme Court verdict,” Saini told reporters.

However, he said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government had launched a program in 2018 to give extra marks to candidates from poor, weak and disadvantaged sections of society.

“Our socio-economic policy is based on the principle of antiodai,” Saini said.

“Our government is fighting for the rights of the poor. If necessary, we will introduce the bill in the Assembly. Our government is firmly on the side of the poor. Even if we have to file a reconsideration petition (in court) or introduce a bill in the Assembly, we stand with the poor,” he added.

Saini, along with his cabinet colleagues and several BJP MLAs, went to Ayodhya in the morning to offer prayers at the Ram temple.

After his return, the Prime Minister talked to reporters here.

The state government introduced the socio-economic criterion a few years ago. It was aimed at providing additional marks to certain categories of candidates, including those who do not have a government employee in their family, are domiciled in the state and their annual family income does not exceed Rs 1.8 lakh.

The top court was hearing an appeal filed by the Haryana Employee Selection Commission against the May 31 order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

On May 31, the Supreme Court had quashed the Haryana government’s policy of awarding 5% extra marks on the basis of socio-economic status of state-resident candidates in CET for Group ‘C’ and ‘D’ posts.

It ruled that no state could restrict the employment of its own residents by allowing the use of a 5% weighting in evaluations, and stated: “The defendants (the state government) have created an artificial classification of similarly situated applicants for positions.”