Open Access Research Article

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN TRANSITION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF RESERVATION IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT IN HARYANA AND GLOBAL MODELS OF EQUALITY

Author(s):
SUMIT ANUPAM KURLWAL
Journal IJLRA
ISSN 2582-6433
Access Open Access
Volume 3
Issue 4
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Abstract

Abstract

This paper undertakes a comparative, doctrinal, and empirical examination of reservation in public employment in the State of Haryana, situating the state's evolving quota architecture within the broader universe of global affirmative action regimes. Since 2019, Haryana has implemented an unusually dense sequence of reforms: the introduction of a 10 percent Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) quota, an Agniveer quota in police recruitment, a 75 percent domicile-based reservation for private-sector jobs (subsequently struck down by the Punjab and Haryana High Court), an increase in Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservation from 15 to 27 percent, and, most significantly, a 2024 sub-classification of the Scheduled Caste (SC) quota into Deprived Scheduled Castes (DSC) and other Scheduled Castes following the Supreme Court's ruling in State of Punjab v. Davinder Singh. Drawing on administrative data, legislative and judicial sources, and the comparative literature on affirmative action in the United States, South Africa, Malaysia, Brazil, and the European Union, the paper develops a typology distinguishing rigid constitutional quotas from soft, procedural, or incentive-based diversity mechanisms. It argues that Haryana's trajectory reflects a broader shift in Indian reservation policy from a framework organised around a unitary category of disadvantage toward a fragmented, intra-group model of graduated entitlement, mirroring international debates about whether affirmative action should target group membership or verified relative disadvantage within groups. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for periodic empirical review, sunset clauses, and improved representation data disclosure.

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Author Details

Authors: SUMIT & ANUPAM KURLWAL
Registration ID: 1012095 | Published Paper ID: IJLRA12095 & IJLRA12096
Year: July-2026 | Volume: 3 | Issue: 4
Approved ISSN: 2582-6433 | Country: Delhi, India
Page No.: 1507-1529
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Article Information

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN TRANSITION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF RESERVATION IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT IN HARYANA AND GLOBAL MODELS OF EQUALITY

Authors: SUMIT, ANUPAM KURLWAL

  • Journal IJLRA
  • ISSN 2582-6433
  • Volume 3
  • Issue 4
Citation Download Paper Full Details Search on Google Search on Google Scholar

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International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis

  • AbbreviationIJLRA
  • ISSN2582-6433
  • AccessOpen Access
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