Quota policy not meant to deny merit, says Supreme Court

A bench headed by justice Uday Lalit ruled that subject to permissible quota benefits, any method of filling up seats must focus on merit and it should enable meritorious candidates, irrespective of their categories and caste.

The Supreme Court on Friday ruled against the idea of “communal reservation”, saying the policy of quota is not intended at denying meritorious candidates job opportunities just because they belong to reserved categories.

The Supreme Court said that the contest in the open category must purely be on merit. (Amal KS/HT Photo)

A bench headed by justice Uday Lalit ruled that subject to permissible quota benefits, any method of filling up seats must focus on merit and it should enable meritorious candidates, irrespective of their categories and caste. It said that the contest in the open category must purely be on merit.

The bone of contention was the manner in which vacancies under the special classes were to be filled for posts of female constable in Uttar Pradesh. With a policy that all male candidates securing marks more than the cut-offs for the general category will be selected, the same rule was not applicable for women.