Bihar reiterates parents’ salaries, agricultural income cannot be counted for OBC creamy layer

The Bihar government has reiterated its stance that parents' salaries and agricultural income should not be included when calculating the income for determining the 'creamy layer' status of Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates, citing existing Central and State guidelines. This comes as the Union government has approached the Supreme Court for clarity on applying the income test, particularly after the March 2023 Rohith Nathan judgment. The judgment had criticized the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) for applying the income test differently, deeming it 'hostile discrimination' to exclude OBCs based solely on parents' salaries, emphasizing that creamy layer exclusion should target social and economic privilege, not just economic criteria. The Centre is now seeking clarity and has argued that in some cases, salary income might be a necessary differentiator.