JUDGMENT :

Jagmohan Bansal, J.

By this common order, the above-noted petitions are hereby adjudicated as issues involved and prayers sought in all the petitions are common. For the sake of convenience and with the consent of parties, the facts are borrowed from CWP No.24608 of 2023.

2. The petitioners through instant petition under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India are seeking setting aside of instruction dated 07.10.2023 (Annexure P-2).

By aforesaid instructions, the State Government has made provision for reservation in Group 'A' & 'B' posts for Scheduled Castes. For the ready reference, the impugned instructions are reproduced hereinbelow:

'No. 22/56/2023-5 HR-III

HARYANA GOVERNMENT

HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT

(HUMAN RESOURCES-III BRANCH)

Dated Chandigarh, the 7th October, 2023

To

1. All the Administrative Secretaries to Government Haryana

2. All Heads of Departments in the State of Haryana.

3. All the Managing Directors of Boards/Corporations in the State of Haryana.

4. All the Divisional Commissioners in the State of Haryana.

5. All the District & Session Judges in the State of Haryana.

6. All the Deputy Commissioners in the State of Haryana.

7. The Registrars of all the Universities in the State of Haryana.

Subject Matter of backwardness and inadequacy of representation of Scheduled Castes in Promotion in Group A&B posts in State Government Services.

Sir/Madam,

I am directed to invite your attention to the subject cited above and to say that keeping in view the principles laid down by the Apex Court in the case of Jarnail Singh and others Vs Lachhmi Narain Gupta and Ors. (I), (2018) 10 SCC 396 & (II), 2022 (10) SCC 595 and Judgement of the Punjab & Haryana High Court order in CWP No. 22475 of 2018 (Same Singh & others Vs State of Haryana & Others), the Government, in exercise of the powers conferred under Article 16 (4A) of the Constitution of India, has decided to grant the benefit of reservation in promotion in all the cadres of Group A & Group B posts, to the employees belonging to the Scheduled Castes, to the extent of 20% of the sanctioned posts of promotional quota subject to the following terms and conditions:-

2. These instructions will be applicable with immediate effect and will apply to all Departments, Boards, Corporations, Universities and Statutory Bodies etc., under Haryana Government and may please be brought to the notice of all concerned for strict compliance. All the previous instructions already issued by Government for reservation in promotion to Group A & B posts are hereby withdrawn.

Yours faithfully,

(Satbir Singh)

Deputy Secretary Human Resources,

for Chief Secretary to Government, Haryana '

3. The petitioners have raised multiple grounds to challenge the instructions dated 07.10.2023 (Annexure P-2). The grounds raised by petitioners are as under: -

(i) The exercise with respect to assessing the inadequacy of representation of Scheduled Castes is to precede the formulation of opinion by the State Government to provide for reservation.

(ii) The power to provide for reservation is with the State Government and the same cannot be delegated to the Departmental Promotion Committee.

(iii) The above-said exercise of providing reservation should also meet the parameters of Article 335 of Constitution of India and the said exercise should be consistent with the maintenance of efficiency of administration.

(iv) It is necessary to exclude the creamy layer of the employees belonging to Scheduled Castes before providing for reservation in the aforesaid promotional posts.

Note: At the time of filing petitions and disposal of interim prayer, the petitioners were claiming that exercise to collect data should be cadre wise whereas during the course of final hearing, they have changed their stand and are claiming that data should be collected with respect to 'service of the State' and not 'cadre wise'.

4. Mr. Sunil K. Nehra, Advocate elaborating aforesaid issues submitted that as per judgments of the Supreme Court in M. Nagaraj and ot