The Punjab and Haryana High Court, in its 83-page judgment, held the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Act, 2020, “ultra vires” and “unconstitutional”, and ruled that it will become “ineffective from the date it came into force”.
New Delhi: The Haryana government will challenge the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s decision to strike down a legislation mandating 75% reservation for state residents in private sector jobs. Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala made the declaration on Saturday. The High Court ruled that the law was unconstitutional and discriminatory against people from other states. Chautala stated that the government will file a petition in the Supreme Court to challenge the High Court’s decision.
“We are examining the high court verdict and will soon move to the Supreme Court,” the JJP leader said in a statement here, asserting that the law was in the interest of the state and the industry.
Punjab and Haryana High Court’s Friday Decision
The high court’s Friday decision was also a setback for Chautala, as providing 75 percent reservation in private sector jobs for state-domiciled candidates was a key poll promise of his Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) during the 2019 assembly polls. Chautala said the state government’s intention was to give employment to local youths and provide skilled workers for the industry.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court, in its 83-page judgment, held the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Act, 2020, “ultra vires” and “unconstitutional”, and ruled that it will become “ineffective from the date it came into force”.
The verdict came following multiple petitions filed by several industrial associations against the implementation of the Act. After the polls, the JJP extended support to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and formed a government in alliance as the saffron party fell short of attaining a simple majority on its own.
The law, which came into effect on January 15, 2022, provided 75 percent of jobs in the private sector to candidates from the state. It covered jobs offering a maximum gross monthly salary or wages up to Rs 30,000.
The Act was applicable to employers of private sector companies, societies, trusts, limited liability partnership firms, partnership firms, and any person who employs 10 or more people on salary, wages, or other remuneration for manufacturing, carrying on business, or rendering any service in Haryana.