Allahabad HC Rules Reserved Candidates Clearing General Cut-off Must Be Counted as Unreserved
The Allahabad High Court has ruled that reserved-category candidates who clear the general cut-off without relaxation must be considered under the unreserved category at the screening stage.
The Allahabad High Court has ruled that reserved-category candidates who clear the general category cut-off on their own merit, without availing any relaxation in qualifying standards, must be considered under the unreserved category at the screening stage.
The ruling was delivered by the Lucknow bench of Justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla in a recruitment case concerning the post of Swasthya Shiksha Adhikari through the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC).
The dispute arose over a recruitment condition that allowed reserved-category candidates to be adjusted against unreserved vacancies only at the final selection stage. The court examined the role of the screening examination, which carries 75 per cent weightage in the selection process, with the interview accounting for the remaining 25 per cent.
The court held that Section 3(6) of the Uttar Pradesh Public Services (Reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes) Act, 1994, does not restrict meritorious reserved-category candidates from being considered against unreserved vacancies only at the final selection stage.
The disputed condition was therefore set aside for the recruitment in question. The court directed UPPSC to review the applicability of the related office memorandum within three months and asked the Uttar Pradesh government to clarify its policy on the matter within the same period.
The ruling reinforces the distinction between candidates who qualify on merit without relaxation and those who benefit from concessions under reservation rules.
