Court directs appointment of Economically Weaker Section candidate after ruling that selection of non-EWS candidate violates Uttarakhand Public Services (Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections) Act, 2019
In a significant judgment delivered on October 6, 2026, the Uttarakhand High Court (Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Upadhyay) quashed the selection and recommendation of a general category candidate for the post of Assistant Professor (Statistics) reserved for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) at Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali Uttarakhand University of Horticulture and Forestry (VCSG University). The Court ruled that the appointment of a candidate who did not belong to the EWS category and had failed to furnish the requisite EWS certificate was contrary to the statutory provisions of the Uttarakhand Public Services (Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections) Act, 2019.
The case arose when Jagdish Chandra Purohit, an EWS candidate, applied for the post of Assistant Professor in Statistics, which was explicitly reserved for the EWS category under the university's August 2023 advertisement. Although only two candidates were shortlisted for the interview-Purohit and respondent no.3 (a general category candidate)-the university's selection committee recommended the general category candidate for appointment, as he had scored higher marks in the interview.
Purohit challenged this recommendation, contending that respondent no.3 did not belong to the EWS category and had not applied under this reservation. The University defended its decision by citing Section 3(3) of the Uttarakhand Public Services (Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections) Act, 2019, which permits filling an EWS reserved vacancy with a general category candidate only if no suitable EWS candidate is available.
Upon examination, the Court found that the petitioner was not declared unsuitable nor was there any minimum qualifying cut-off prescribed that the petitioner failed to meet. The marks obtained by the petitioner (15 out of 25) were lower than those obtained by respondent no.3 (21 out of 25), but this alone did not justify bypassing the statutory requirement for EWS reservation. The Court emphasized that the general category candidate's selection against an EWS reserved post is permissible only when no suitable EWS candidate is available. Since the petitioner was considered suitable and was in merit for the post, the selection of the general category candidate was illegal.
The Court further noted that respondent no.3 had not produced the mandatory EWS certificate as required under Section 7 of the Act, which mandates certification by an officer not below the rank of Tehsildar. The failure to produce this certificate underscored the illegality of the selection.
Accordingly, the Uttarakhand High Court quashed the selection committee's recommendation and the Board of Management's approval and directed the university to consider the petitioner's candidature for appointment and issue an appointment letter within three weeks.
This ruling reinforces the importance of strict adherence to reservation laws for Economically Weaker Sections, upholding the statutory framework designed to provide equitable opportunities to deserving candidates from weaker economic backgrounds.
Bottom Line:
Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections - Candidate not belonging to EWS and not possessing EWS certificate cannot be selected against post reserved for EWS merely because he secured higher marks than EWS candidate - General category candidate can be considered under Section 3(3) of Uttarakhand Public Services (Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections) Act, 2019 only when reserved vacancy cannot be filled due to non-availability of a suitable EWS candidate - In absence of prescribed cut-off or finding of unsuitability of EWS candidate, selection of general category candidate against EWS post is illegal.
Statutory provision(s):
Uttarakhand Public Services (Reservation for Economically Weaker Sections) Act, 2019 - Sections 3(3), 4, 5, 7
