Court Quashes Rejection of Candidature Based on Salary Source; Directs Granting of Bonus Marks for Experience
In a significant judgment, the Rajasthan High Court has ruled in favor of petitioners Sanjay Kumar and others in their challenge against the rejection of their candidature for the post of Nursing Officer. The court quashed the impugned order dated July 24, 2025, which denied the petitioners bonus marks due to their salaries being disbursed through a charitable trust instead of directly by the State Government.
The petitioners had applied for the Nursing Officer Recruitment-2023, responding to an advertisement issued by the State Government. They were employed at a Government Community Health Centre under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model since October 2019, with verified experience certificates. Despite securing marks higher than the category-wise cut-off in the provisional merit list, their final selection was withheld due to non-verification of their experience certificates, leading to the rejection of their candidature.
Presiding over the case, Dr. Nupur Bhati, J. emphasized that denying bonus marks solely on the basis of salary disbursement through an NGO or charitable trust is arbitrary. The court held that experience gained on government-approved posts cannot be discounted based on the source of salary payment. The judgment affirmed the applicability of the ratio from the Govind Dayma case, which established the precedence for awarding bonus marks based on practical experience in government health institutions, irrespective of the salary source.
The court directed the respondents to grant bonus marks for the petitioners' work experience and consider them for final selection on merits. If the petitioners qualify in the merit list and meet other eligibility criteria, they are to be appointed as Nursing Officers within eight weeks.
This judgment underscores the importance of recognizing the practical experience of candidates who have rendered service in government health institutions, irrespective of administrative arrangements concerning salary disbursement. It aligns with the legal framework of Rule 19 of the Rules of 1965, which governs the computation of bonus marks for experience in government recruitments.
Bottom line:-
Bonus marks for work experience in government health institutions cannot be denied solely on the basis of salary disbursement through NGOs or charitable trusts when the service was rendered on government-approved posts.
Statutory provision(s): Rule 19 of the Rules of 1965, Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model in government health institutions.
Sanjay Kumar v. State of Rajasthan, (Rajasthan) : Law Finder Doc id # 2937664
