30,000 Haryana Jobs Face Uncertainty; Surjewala Requests Government Action

Image Source: The Economic Times

Congress MP Randeep Singh Surjewala has sounded an alarm over the fate of nearly 30,000 permanent government employees in Haryana, following a recent Punjab and Haryana High Court decision that struck down the state’s policy of awarding bonus marks based on socio-economic criteria in government recruitment.

Key Highlights:

The High Court quashed the 2019 provision that granted up to 10 bonus marks for socio-economic criteria and experience in Group C and D government job recruitments, terming it unconstitutional and in violation of Articles 14, 15, and 16 of the Constitution.
As a result, all recruitments made on the basis of this now-invalidated policy since 2019 are under scrutiny. Surjewala warned that jobs of about 30,000 permanent staff appointed after 2019 are now “under a cloud.”
The court has ordered the government to prepare a fresh merit list for these posts, subtracting the bonus marks previously awarded. Employees who do not make it to the revised merit list risk losing their permanent status.
Surjewala criticised the BJP government for what he called a “fake dream” sold to the youth, accusing it of implementing a policy that could not withstand legal scrutiny and jeopardising the future of thousands.

He demanded that the government create additional posts to safeguard the jobs of affected employees and called on the Chief Minister to break his silence and clarify the government’s plan.

The court also suggested that those excluded from the new merit list could be retained on an ad hoc basis and considered for future vacancies, but their seniority would be affected.

Source: Hindustan Times, ABP News