Srinagar: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has granted six weeks for respondents to file counter affidavits in a case contesting the current reservation policy.
A division bench, consisting of Justice Sindhu Sharma and Justice Shahzad Azeem, issued this order on September 2, with the next hearing scheduled for October 14. The case was initiated by academician and lawyer Zahoor Ahmad Bhat and others, who are challenging several key provisions of the Jammu & Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004. Specifically, they are contesting Sections 3, 4, 6, 8, and 9 of the Act, along with multiple rules from the Jammu & Kashmir Reservation Rules, 2005, including Rules 4, 5, 9, 10, 13, 15, and 17. Additionally, they are disputing several government orders related to the reservation policy. The petitioners argue that the current reservation framework leads to excessive reservation, allocating approximately 70% of posts to various categories and leaving only 30% available for open merit or general category candidates. They contend that this reservation pattern is not supported by quantifiable data and violates Article 16(4) of the Constitution, which allows for reservations in favor of underrepresented backward classes in public services.
