SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS HORIZONTAL RESERVATION, ALLOWS RESERVED CATEGORY CANDIDATES TO CLAIM GENERAL SEATS ON MERIT
Category: Constitutional
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The Madhya Pradesh Education Admission Rules, 2018, provided for the open category to absorb the seats that were set aside for government school students if these were not filled. The meritorious reserved category candidates, who qualified for these unreserved seats on merit, were not taken; they brought the matter to court. The Madhya Pradesh High Court affirmed this exclusion and a further appeal to the Supreme Court was made.
KEY ASPECTS :
Supreme Court’s Ruling: In this case, the Supreme Court overruled the judgement of the Madhya Pradesh High Court with a view of stating that the candidates of reserved categories who are otherwise prove their merit as per the general category should be admitted to such category seats. The court found the support in the earlier case of Saurav Yadav v. State of Uttar Pradesh wherein the court upheld the proposition that the candidates belonging to the reserved category who fulfills the merit list of general category should be admitted to those seats.
Horizontal and Vertical Reservation: This was to explain the relationship between the, horizontal and the vertical reservations. Vertical reservation works on the Social Category SC, ST & OBC while horizontal reservation works across the SC, ST & OBC and targets particular mechanicals like Government School students or Women. The court also pointed out that while a candidate who qualifies on merit cannot be shut out of the job for failure to belong to the vertical category if he/she has been given a general seat under horizontal reservation.
Impact on Policy: This ruling gives a vivid example of the reservation policies so that merit is not cramped and candidates do not get locked into the lower social categories if they are capable to make a better category based on the examination.
Conclusion:
The Supreme Court's judgment reinforces the principle that merit should be the primary criterion in admissions, even within the framework of reservations. It ensures that candidates from reserved categories who excel should not be limited by their social categories and must be allowed to claim seats in the general category based on their performance. This decision is likely to influence how reservations are applied in educational institutions and other sectors, promoting a fairer and more merit-based approach to reservations.
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WRITTEN BY: ABHISHEK AIYAPPA
GUIDED BY: ADVOCATE ANIK
