Serving a major blow to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the Patna High Court on Thursday dismissed the Bihar government’s decision to increase reservation quotas for SC-ST, OBC, and other backward classes to 65% in educational institutions and government jobs. 

This decision had faced challenges in the High Court through petitions filed by Gaurav Kumar and others. 

The hearing on these petitions was completed on March 11, 2024, and the verdict was delivered on June 20, 2024. Chief Justice V. Chandran presided over the bench that conducted extensive hearings on Gaurav Kumar’s petitions and others. 

The petitioners argued that as per Article 16(4) of the Constitution, reservations should be based on the representation of backward classes in terms of social and educational backwardness rather than numerical quotas. 

They contended that the Bihar government’s legislation violated Article 16(1) and Article 15(1) of the Indian Constitution. Article 16(1) guarantees equality of opportunity in matters relating to employment or appointment under the state, for all citizens. 

Article 15(1) prohibits discrimination on any grounds. Thus, the High Court concluded that the decision to increase reservation to 65% was unconstitutional and canceled it accordingly. 

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced in the Bihar Legislative Assembly on November 7, 2023, that the state government would expand the ambit of reservations. Initially set at 50%, the reservations were proposed to be increased to 65% or beyond, with the total reservation ceiling raised from 60% to 75%. 

Following the Chief Minister’s announcement, a cabinet meeting was promptly convened, where the proposal received cabinet approval within two hours. 

Subsequently, on the fourth day of the winter session, November 9, the proposal was passed by both houses of the legislature, marking its enactment into law.