Supreme Court Bars Migration to General Quota Where Rules Impose Embargo

Overview

• A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi delivered the ruling on September 9 in a Centre-led appeal arising from SSC constable recruitment.
• The court held that reserved-category candidates who used age or fee relaxations cannot be considered for unreserved seats when the recruitment framework imposes an embargo.
• It clarified that, where no such bar exists, higher-scoring reserved candidates may migrate and be appointed against unreserved vacancies.
• The judgment relied on the July 1, 1998 Office Memorandum deeming candidates who availed relaxations unavailable for general-category vacancies and stressed strict adherence to notifications and service rules.
• Setting aside a High Court directive in a case involving OBC aspirants for SSC GD constable posts, the bench found the 2010 Jitendra Kumar Singh precedent inapplicable to the governing rules.