The Supreme Court on Tuesday quashed the Jharkhand government's 2016 decision to grant 100% reservation to locals of 13 Scheduled Areas in public jobs and upheld a High Court decision that had termed the government decision discriminatory and impermissible.
The top court said "the citizens have equal rights, and the total exclusion of others by creating an opportunity for one class is not contemplated by the founding fathers of the Constitution of India".
A Bench of Justices M.R. Shah and B.V. Nagarathana said, “In view of the above discussion and for the reasons stated above, we uphold the common impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court declaring the impugned Notification/Order dated July 14, 2016 as unconstitutional and ultra vires Articles 14, 16(2), 16(3) and 35(ai) of the Constitution of India.”
