Supreme Court sets aside order creating sub-category of creamy layer

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 24

The Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down the Haryana Government’s August 17, 2016, notification that gave preference to those having income up to Rs 3 lakh within the non-creamy layer group of Backward Classes in government jobs and admission to educational institutions.

A Bench, led by Justice LN Rao, however, asked the state not to disturb admissions to educational institutions and appointments in state services already done on the basis of the said notification dated August 17, 2016.

“The notification dated August 17, 2016, is in flagrant violation of the directions issued by this court in Indra Sawhney-I and is at variance with the memorandum dated September 8,1993, issued by the Union of India,” the Bench said while quashing the notification.

“As we have struck down the notification dated August 17, 2016, in toto, there is no need for adjudicating the validity of the notification dated August 28, 2018, which is solely dependent on the notification dated August 17, 2016,” it noted.

The order came on petitions seeking the quashing of the two notifications as “arbitrary and violative of Articles 14, 15 and 16 of the Constitution of India.”

The state government had issued a notification on August 17, 2016, specifying the criteria for the exclusion of the “creamy layer” within the backward classes. As per the notification, children of persons having gross annual income up to Rs 3 lakh shall first of all get the benefit of reservation in services and admission in educational institutions.

The left-out quota shall go to backward classes who earn more than Rs 3 lakh, but up to Rs 6 lakh per annum. The sections of backward classes earning above Rs 6 lakh per annum shall be considered as “creamy layer” under Section 5 of the Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Act, 2016.

The top court, however, said, “The criteria mentioned for identifying such of those persons who are socially advanced have not been taken into account by the Government of Haryana while issuing the notification dated August 17, 2016.”