Central Administrative Tribunal - Jammu
Sajda Parveen vs School Education Department on 22 December, 2025
TA/8120/2021
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
JAMMU BENCH, JAMMU (RESERVED)
Hearing through video conferencing
Transfer Application No. 8120/2021
Reserved on: - 30/07/2025
Pronounced on: - 22.12.2025
HON'BLE MR. RAJINDER SINGH DOGRA, MEMBER (J)
HON'BLE MR. RAM MOHAN JOHRI, MEMBER (A)
Sajda Parveen Age 38years D/o Safaid Khan R/o Chandak,
Tehsil Haveli and District Poonch .
...Applicant
(Advocate: - Mr. M. Tariq Mughal)
Versus
1. State of J&K through Commissioner/Secretary, Education
Department Govt. of Jammu and Kashmir, New Secretariat Jammu.
2. Director School of Education , Muthi Jammu.
3. Chief Education officer poonch.
4. Zonal Education Officer Nagali, poonch.
5. Zonal Education Officer Surankote ,Poonch .
6. Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Service Selection Board, Sehkari
Bhawan , Near Bahu plaza Tehsil And District Jammu.
HARSHIT Digitally
by HARSHIT
signed
YADAV YADAV
TA/8120/2021
7. Secretary Jammu And Kashmir Service Selection Board , Sehkari
Bhawan Near Bahu Plaza Tehsil and district Jammu.
8. Yasser Ahmed S/o Janaid Ahmed R/o Village Sania, Tehsil
Suronkote and District Poonch.
9. Lal Hussain S/o Mohd Sharief R/o village Dingla, Tehsil Haveli
and District Poonch.
...Respondents
(Advocate: - Mr. Rajesh Thappa, AAG, Mr. Sudesh Magotra, AAG)
HARSHIT Digitally
by HARSHIT
signed
YADAV YADAV
TA/8120/2021
ORDER
Per: - Rajinder Singh Dogra, Judicial Member
1. The SWP No.1328/2016 was transferred from the Hon'ble High Court of Jammu & Kashmir at Jammu and was registered as T.A No.8120/2021 by the Registry of this Tribunal.
2. The present matter was filed before the Hon'ble High Court seeking following relief: -
a) Writ of certiorari, for the quashment of selection and appointment of private respondents for the post of teacher, District cadre Poonch, vide advt. notification No. 02 of 2012 dated 07-11-2012 item No. 078 issued by the respondent No.7 because private respondents are low meritorious and less qualified and are not selected as per rule and norms mentioned in the advertisement notice and as per reservation rule, petitioner's right of selection is deprived which is illegal, arbitrary and against the law and petitioner is seeking the quashment of the same and may also seeking quashment of the selection/placement of private respondents.
b) Writ of certiorari, for the quashment of order of respondent No.1 vide No. Edu-11/213/2007 dated 20-05-2014 and for the quashment of appointment orders of private respondents issued vide No.CEO/Estt/8921-23, No.CEO/Estt/8918-20 dated 22-8-
2014 and may also quash the joining report of the private respondents because official respondents have made this appointment in violation of this Hon'ble High Court direction dated 14-03-2014 passed in SWP No.720/2014 in which select list of the private respondents was stayed by this Hon'ble court and in spite of stay official respondents issued appointment HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 orders and joined on the posts of teacher to private respondents which is illegal, arbitrary and with malatide intention required to be quashed.
c) Writ of Mandamus, commanding the official respondents to select and appoint to the petitioner for the post of teacher, District Cadre Poonch being more qualified and meritorious to private respondents and also coming in the zone of consideration on the basis of ALC category as is evident from the short list, qualification certificates.
d) Writ of Mandamus, commanding the official respondents to select the petitioner under ALC category because both the candidates cannot be selected from ST category because it is in violation of reservation rule because 100% reservation cannot be provided to any one class of category and petitioner deserves to be appointed visually handicapped and being residence of ALC area under the reservation policy.
e) Any other writ, order or direction which this Hon'ble court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case may also be issued in favour of the petitioners and against the respondents."
3. The facts of the case as pleaded by the petitioner in her pleadings are as follows: -
a) The present Transfer Application arises out of SWP No. 1328/2016, which was originally instituted before the Hon'ble High Court of Jammu & Kashmir at Jammu and, upon transfer, was registered as TA No. 8120/2021 before this Tribunal.
HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
b) The applicant, Ms. Sajda Parveen, is a permanent resident of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir and a citizen of India. She claims enforcement of her constitutional, statutory, and legal rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India in relation to selection and appointment to the post of Teacher, District Cadre Poonch.
c) Respondents issued Advertisement Notification No. 02 of 2012 dated 07.11.2012, inviting applications for the post of General Line Teacher in various districts, including District Poonch. Two posts under Item No. 78 were earmarked under the Visually Handicapped category, pursuant to the mandate flowing from WPPIL No. 31/2011 titled National Federation of the Blind v. State of J&K & Ors.
d) The applicant applied for the said post under the Physically Handicapped (Visually Impaired) category, also claiming eligibility under the Area Line of Control (ALC) category. She asserts that she possessed higher academic qualifications, being a graduate at the relevant time and subsequently acquiring a Master's degree.
HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
e) It is the specific case of the applicant that despite her higher merit and qualification, respondents selected and appointed private respondents (Respondent Nos. 8 and 9), both belonging to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category, which according to her resulted in impermissible 100% reservation in favour of one vertical category.
f) The applicant contends that such selection is in violation of the reservation policy, as horizontal reservation for persons with disabilities is required to cut across vertical categories. According to her, one of the two posts ought to have been filled under the ALC category, particularly when she was eligible and within the zone of consideration.
g) The applicant further asserts that she suffers from 40% visual disability, duly certified by the Medical Board, and was therefore entitled to 1% reservation under the relevant disability category in terms of the Jammu & Kashmir Persons with Disabilities Act, 1998.
h) It is alleged that preference was required to be accorded to candidates possessing higher qualifications as per the HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 advertisement notice, yet private respondents--one of whom allegedly possessed only 10+2 qualification--were selected in disregard of this condition.
i) The applicant was duly shortlisted, appeared in the interview, and claims to have performed well. However, despite figuring higher in the shortlist than at least one private respondent, she was not selected, allegedly due to malafide and arbitrary action on the part of the selecting authorities.
j) The applicant also alleges that the appointment orders dated 22.08.2014 were issued in favour of private respondents despite an interim stay granted by the Hon'ble High Court in SWP No. 720/2014, thereby rendering such appointments illegal and void. Subsequent contempt proceedings and related writ petitions were also filed, culminating in withdrawal of earlier writ with liberty to file a fresh petition, leading to the present proceedings.
k) On the cumulative basis of the above facts, the applicant seeks quashment of the selection and appointment of private HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 respondents and a direction for her own appointment to the post of Teacher, District Cadre Poonch.
4. The respondents have filed their reply statement wherein they have averred as follows: -
a) The answering respondents, while contesting the Transfer Application, have raised preliminary objections, asserting that the applicant has no enforceable legal right to claim appointment merely on the basis of higher qualification or alleged entitlement under a particular category.
b) It is submitted that no cause of action has accrued to the applicant against the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board, as the selection process was conducted strictly in accordance with the governing rules, advertisement notification, and applicable reservation policy.
c) The respondents assert that the Services Selection Board received a valid indent from the Education Department and accordingly advertised two posts of Teacher under the Visually Handicapped category for District Cadre Poonch vide Notification No. 02 of 2012 dated 07.11.2012.
HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
d) Upon completion of the selection process, a duly constituted selection committee finalized the merit list and forwarded the same to the indenting department. The Board, thereafter, became functus officio.
e) It is specifically pleaded that the private respondents were selected purely on merit. Respondent No. 8 secured 30.80 marks and Respondent No. 9 secured 29.35 marks, whereas the applicant secured only 23.13 marks, which was substantially lower than the cut-off merit of the last selected candidate.
f) The respondents deny the allegation of illegal 100% reservation and assert that the selection was made strictly on merit within the horizontal reservation for visually handicapped candidates, and placement in the respective vertical category was a consequence of merit ranking.
g) It is further contended that higher qualification by itself does not confer an indefeasible right to selection unless supported by superior merit as per the notified selection criteria. HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
h) The respondents also deny any violation of court orders, mala fides, or arbitrariness, and submit that the applicant has approached the Tribunal with distorted facts, suppressing material particulars regarding her lower merit position.
i) It is emphasized that the selection list was finalized and forwarded long back, appointments have been made, and the applicant has failed to establish any illegality or procedural irregularity warranting interference by this Tribunal.
j) On the strength of the above submissions, the respondents pray for dismissal of the Transfer Application as being devoid of merit and misconceived both on facts and law.
5. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material available on record.
6. The present Transfer Application, originally filed as SWP No. 1328/2016 before the Hon'ble High Court of Jammu & Kashmir, has been transferred and registered as TA No. 8120/2021. The applicant seeks quashment of the selection and appointment of private respondents to the post of Teacher, District Cadre Poonch, pursuant to HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 Advertisement Notification No. 02 of 2012 dated 07.11.2012, and a consequential direction for her own appointment.
7. The respondents issued Advertisement Notification No. 02 of 2012 dated 07.11.2012 inviting applications for the post of General Line Teacher in various districts, including District Poonch. Under Item No. 78, two posts were advertised under the Visually Handicapped category, pursuant to the mandate flowing from the judgment in National Federation of the Blind v. State of J&K & Ors.
8. The applicant belongs to the Visually Handicapped category, having a certified disability of 40% visual impairment, and also belongs to the Area Line of Control (ALC) category. She possessed higher academic qualifications and was duly shortlisted and interviewed by the Selection Board. The Selection Board selected and recommended two private respondents, both belonging to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category, for the said two posts. Appointment orders were thereafter issued by the department.
9. The grievance of the applicant is that despite her eligibility, higher qualification, and horizontal reservation entitlement, she was ignored, resulting in both posts being filled from a single vertical category, HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 thereby defeating the very object of horizontal reservation meant for persons with disabilities.
10. The following issues arise for consideration:
Whether horizontal reservation for visually handicapped candidates has been properly implemented in the present selection?
Whether selection of both posts from a single vertical category result in impermissible exclusion of eligible candidates like the applicant?
Whether the applicant is entitled to relief, and if so, the nature of such relief?
11. It is now well settled that reservation for persons with disabilities is horizontal in nature and is required to cut across vertical categories. Such reservation is intended to ensure representation of disabled persons across categories and not to be subsumed or nullified by vertical reservation alone.
12. The advertisement in question specifically earmarked two posts for visually handicapped candidates. The record reveals that although both selected candidates were visually handicapped, both belonged to HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021 the same vertical category (ST). This resulted in complete exclusion of other eligible horizontal candidates, including the applicant, who also belonged to a reserved area category (ALC).
13. The respondents have heavily relied upon the merit position to justify selection. While merit undoubtedly plays a vital role, merit cannot be applied in isolation, divorced from the constitutional scheme of reservation, particularly where horizontal reservation is involved.
14. The Hon'ble Supreme Court has repeatedly held that horizontal reservation must be meaningfully implemented and cannot be rendered illusory by selecting all candidates from a single vertical category, thereby frustrating the purpose of such reservation.
15. In the present case, the applicant was admittedly eligible, was shortlisted, participated in the selection process, and belonged to the very category for which posts were earmarked. Her exclusion, despite availability of posts under horizontal reservation, amounts to arbitrary exercise of discretion and results in denial of equal opportunity guaranteed under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India.
HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
16. Another significant aspect which cannot be ignored is that appointments were made during the subsistence of interim orders passed by the Hon'ble High Court, which further casts a shadow on the manner in which the selection process was concluded.
17. At the same time, it is also a settled principle that courts and tribunals should avoid unsettling appointments which have attained finality over long years, unless compelling reasons exist. Therefore, relief needs to be balanced, equitable, and pragmatic, without causing undue hardship to parties who are already in service.
18. In view of the foregoing discussion, this Tribunal is of the considered opinion that the applicant has made out a clear case of violation of horizontal reservation principles, warranting interference.
19. Accordingly, the Transfer Application is allowed with the following directions:
a) The respondents are directed to consider and appoint the applicant to the post of Teacher, District Cadre Poonch, against a vacant post, if available, within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV TA/8120/2021
b) In case no vacancy is presently available, the respondents shall create a supernumerary post for the applicant and adjust her against the same, without disturbing the services of the private respondents already appointed.
c) The applicant shall be entitled to notional seniority from the date her immediate junior was appointed, however, monetary benefits shall be restricted to actual service rendered by her.
d) The appointment shall be subject to verification of eligibility, category certificates, and fulfillment of all other statutory requirements, which shall not be withheld arbitrarily.
20. The above directions are issued to advance the object of social justice, while maintaining administrative stability and fairness to all stakeholders.
21. The Transfer Application is allowed in the aforesaid terms. No order as to costs.
(RAM MOHAN JOHRI) (RAJINDER SINGH DOGRA) Administrative Member Judicial Member /harshit/ HARSHIT Digitally by HARSHIT signed YADAV YADAV