Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 14: High Court today held that a candidate by adoption or marriage or conversion doesn’t become eligible to the benefit of reservation.
This significant order has been passed in a petition filed by Munir Ahmed through Advocate Monish Chopra, who challenged the appointment of Ruhi, wife of Sikander Mehmood for the post of Medical Officer (Ayurvedic) under ST category.
During the course of hearing Advocate Monish Chopra submitted that appointee applied for her selection under ST category on the basis of scheduled Tribe Category certificate which she obtained by sheer misrepresentation and in connivance with the revenue officials.
“Ruhi in fact belongs to open merit category but in the year 2010 she got married to Sikander Mehmood, who belongs to Tehsil Mendhar District Poonch and is a member of ST Category. After marriage, the respondent by complete misrepresentation and by concealing true and correct facts in connivance with certain revenue officials secured ST category”, the counsel for the petitioner said, adding “this certificate is apparently issued in utter violation and contravention of the J&K Reservation Act”.
He drew the attention of the court towards the provisions of the J&K Reservation Act which state that a non-ST Category candidate married to a ST Category person is not entitled to the reservation under ST Category. “Needless to mention that ST Category is a right by birth and it cannot be acquired later on by way of marriage or by way of place of changing the residence”, he added.
After hearing Advocate Monish Chopra for the petitioner and Senior Advocate MA Goni with Advocate Mumtaz Chudhary appearing for the private respondent, Justice Janak Raj Kotwal issued notice to State and others and observed, “a candidate who had the advantageous start in life being born in forward caste but is transplanted in backward caste by adoption or marriage or conversion does not become eligible to the benefit of reservation”.
“Voluntary mobility into these categories would play fraud on the Constitution and would frustrate the benign constitutional policy under Articles 15(4) and 16 (4) of the Constitution”, Justice Kotwal said while staying the selection of Ruhi for the post of Medical Officer till next date of hearing.
Follow our WhatsApp channel