By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The High Court has sought the response of the Centre and the Army chief on a petition alleging that only three castes are considered for recruitment to the President’s Bodyguard.A bench of Justices S Muralidhar and Sanjeev Narula issued notices to the Ministry of Defence, Chief of the Army Staff, Commandant of the President’s Bodyguard, and Director, Army Recruitment, asking them to file reply in four weeks.

The court was hearing a petition by Gaurav Yadav, a Haryana resident, who has sought setting aside of the recruitment of President’s Bodyguard on September 4, 2017 as only Jats, Rajputs and Jat Sikhs were invited for it.

The petitioner said he belonged to the Ahir/Yadav caste and fulfilled all the eligibility criteria of recruitment to the President’s Bodyguard except caste, and pleaded that he be recruited. The “preferential treatment” given to the three castes deprived other eligible citizens of the opportunity of recruitment, the petition said.

“The recruitment criteria so formulated and followed contains an arbitrary classification which is based on caste and henceforth, it being in the nature of class legislation, stands in complete violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. Also, the recruitment process stands in violation of Article 15(1) which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, caste, sex, colour and place of birth.”

“Since only three castes were allowed to be recruited to the office of Presidential Bodyguards, which is indeed a public office, there is violation of Article 16 as well,” it alleged.The petition sought quashing of the recruitment policy based on caste/ region/ religion. The court scheduled the next hearing for May 8, 2019.