Bihar's Move To Hike Reservation From 50 To 65% Struck Down By High Court

The Bihar government's move last year had taken the reservation in Bihar past the 50 per cent cap mandated by the Supreme Court.

In a big setback to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the Patna High Court today struck down the 65 per cent reservation in government jobs and education that was introduced last year after a statewide caste survey. The state government's move had taken the reservation in Bihar past the 50 per cent cap mandated by the Supreme Court.

The order was passed by a division bench headed by Chief Justice K Vinod Chandran on petitions opposing the legislation brought by the Nitish Kumar government in November 2023. Mr Kumar's JDU was then allied to the RJD and the Congress. A month later, he switched to the BJP and became Chief Minister again. 

Ritika Rani, one of the counsels appearing for the petitioners, told news agency PTI, "We had submitted that the amendments to the reservation laws were violative of the Constitution. After hearing both sides, the court had reserved its judgement in March. Today, the final order has come."