Service law – Recruitment – Appointment of OBC candidate to unreserved candidate – Permissibility – Recruitment of Constables – OBC candidates availed age relaxation for participation in the recruitment process, however, declared unsuccessful as they had scored marks lower than the last selected candidate in the OBC category, but their marks were higher than the last selected candidate in the unreserved category – OBC candidates sought migration to the unreserved category – High Court held that the writ petitioners-OBC candidates who had applied as reserved candidates in OBC category after having availed age relaxation for the post of Constable (GD) to be considered for recruitment under unreserved category – Correctness:
Held: Whether a reserved candidate who has availed relaxation in fees/upper age limit to participate in open competition with general candidates may be recruited against unreserved seats would depend on the facts of each case – In the event there is no embargo in the recruitment rules/employment notification, such reserved candidates who have scored higher than the last selected unreserved candidate shall be entitled to migrate and be recruited against unreserved seats – However, if an embargo is imposed under relevant recruitment rules, such reserved candidates shall not be permitted to migrate to general category seats – As the respondents-writ petitioners had availed concession of age for participating in the recruitment process, in the teeth of office memorandum dated 01.07.1998 which clearly barred such migration in the event the reserved candidates had availed relaxations in age, experience qualification, etc, the High Court erred in applying the ratio in Jitendra Kumar’s case wherein by virtue of the government instructions dated 25.03.1994 expressly permitted reserved candidates who have availed relaxation in fees/upper age limit etc. to be considered for appointment in unreserved category – Thus, the impugned judgment and order by the High Court set aside. [Paras 32, 33]
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Headnotes prepared by: Nidhi Jain. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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