Reserving solitary post for SC/ST doesn't stand scrutiny of law: HC

The High Court has said that reserving a solitary post in favour of a candidate belonging to SC/ST would not stand the scrutiny of law.

Allowing a petition filed by a mathematics lecturer, employed in an aided PU college at Mandya, the court said that the reservation should be subject/discipline-wise. The court said clubbing of vacancies and operating the roster is contrary to the judgments of the Supreme Court.

The petition filed by M S Rashmi, working at PES College in Mandya since September 2007. She challenged the September 22, 2019 notification calling for applications from candidates belonging to SC (women) in mathematics subject. The petition said that fixing reservation for a particular category, single cadre post would amount to 100% reservation, which is impermissible.

On the other hand, the government contended that as long as government orders are in force, directing clubbing of vacancies, even a single post can be notified in favour of candidates belonging to SC or ST.

Justice M Nagaprasanna referred to judgments passed by the Karnataka High Court as well as the Apex Court where it has been held that reservation has to be subject-wise.

“Insofar as clubbing of the vacancies is concerned, for application of reservation i.e., clubbing of all the vacancies in all the subjects and then notifying the post and reserving the same in favour of candidates belonging to either Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes will also fall foul of the judgments rendered by the Apex Court. The Apex Court following the judgments rendered earlier had clearly held that reservation shall be subject/discipline-wise. Clubbing of vacancies and operating the roster is contrary to the judgments rendered earlier,” the court said.

The court granted liberty to the management to undertake a fresh exercise in accordance with law. However, the bench directed the college not disturb petitioner’s services till such exercise is undertaken.

The petitioner had joined the college as a mathematics lecturer in September 2007. In 2019, the college issued a notification and determined the reservation on the basis of clubbing, in terms of the state government’s directive.