Chhattisgarh high court dismisses plea for visually impaired reservation in assistant professor recruitment
Chhattisgarh high court dismisses plea for visually impaired reservation in assistant professor recruitment
RAIPUR: The Chhattisgarh High Court dismissed a writ petition filed by a 27-year-old visually impaired candidate, who sought a 2% reservation for blind and low vision persons in the recruitment of Assistant Professors (Commerce).
The court upheld the state govt's decision to deny such reservation in this specific subject, citing the nature of teaching duties involved and the reservation already granted to other disability categories.
Saroj Kshemanidhi, 27, appeared for the 2019 Assistant Professor (Commerce) recruitment conducted by the Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission (CGPSC). Though he cleared the written examination and was called for the interview, he did not make it to the final selection list.
He then filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution, seeking a directive to the CGPSC to issue a corrigendum ensuring a 2% reservation for visually impaired candidates, covering both current and backlog vacancies. He also requested the court to stop the CGPSC from filling these vacancies until the matter was resolved.
The CGPSC argued that it functioned solely as an examining body and not as a policymaker.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Giao dịch vàng CFDs với mức chênh lệch giá thấp nhất
IC Markets
Đăng ký
Undo
It stated that the petitioner applied knowing there was no reservation for the visually impaired in the Commerce subject and could not challenge the process midway. The Commission also pointed out that identifying suitable posts for reservation falls under the domain of the state govt.
The State of Chhattisgarh, the second respondent in the case, submitted that the reservation pattern followed in the 2019 recruitment advertisement was in accordance with a govt circular dated 29 August 2018. They further noted that the High Court earlier directed the authorities to reallocate reservation in compliance with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPWD) Act, 2016, and subsequent
Supreme Court
rulings.
As a result, corrigenda were issued in November 2019 and January 2021 adjusting reservation across various subjects, including Commerce.
The state clarified that the Assistant Professor post is part of a larger cadre, and reservations are applied at the cadre level, not by individual subject. It further argued that Kshemanidhi's petition resembled a Public Interest Litigation and was not maintainable as he accepted the terms of recruitment without objection.
Appearing for the petitioner, Advocate Vijay K Deshmukh contended that denying reservation to the visually impaired in the Commerce subject violated Article 16(1) of the Constitution. He cited previous recruitment rounds where such reservation was granted.
Justice
Narendra
Kumar Vyas framed the core question: whether the state was obligated to provide a 2% reservation for blind and low vision candidates in Commerce, despite already allotting reservation to other disability categories under the same recruitment.
Citing Sections 33 and 34 of the RPWD Act, the court observed that while 4% of total vacancies must be reserved for persons with benchmark disabilities, the identification of suitable posts is the prerogative of the appointing authority. Given the writing-intensive nature of Commerce teaching, the court found the state justified in limiting reservation to candidates with disabilities such as OA (one arm) and OL (one leg).
The court ruled that the state's action was neither arbitrary nor illegal and declined to issue a writ directing the inclusion of visually impaired candidates in the reservation. The petition was dismissed, and the interim stay on appointment was vacated. The state has been directed to issue the pending appointment order within 60 days.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
44 minutes ago
- Time of India
Despite global turmoil, inflation to stay below 4% target: MPC member
New Delhi: A worsening geopolitical situation since the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting earlier this month has heightened the upside risk to India's inflation trajectory, on account of increases in oil and fertiliser prices , said Ram Singh, a member on the panel. However, despite the upside risks, he expects the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation to stay below the 4% target. "This (geopolitical situation) can put pressure on the INR, adding to the risk of imported inflation. To address unexpected developments on the external front, we adjusted our stance to neutral. Moreover, our foreign exchange reserves (about $700 billion) provide a significant cushion," Singh told ET. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Join new Free to Play WWII MMO War Thunder War Thunder Play Now Undo Going by the World Bank forecast and the S&P commodities index, global commodity prices are expected to remain stable, except for gold and oil, he said. "Food inflation is also likely to follow a downward trajectory. All considered, I expect CPI inflation to stay below the target level of 4%," said Singh, who is director of the Delhi School of Economics. Live Events India's retail inflation hit a 75-month low of 2.8% in May, driven down by a steep fall in food prices. Singh said the Reserve Bank of India has a range of monetary, liquidity, regulatory and forex market tools at its disposal to maintain macroeconomic and financial stability in an unlikely scenario of a deteriorating geopolitical situation causing stress on the financial market and putting pressure on the rupee. On June 6, the RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra -headed six-member MPC reduced the lending rate by 50 basis points (bps), taking the total reduction to 100 bps in 2025 so far. It also changed the policy stance to neutral from accommodative. A basis point is a hundredth of a percentage point. Singh said he did not believe the monetary policy had moved too quickly over the past six months or so, at a time of increasing global uncertainty. "There was a need for a big cut. Demand for mid-size housing and urban consumption remains subdued. Private investment also remains tepid, despite the massive capex undertaken by the Centre. The capex to net surplus from operations ratio remains below the pre-Covid level. Singh had backed the rate cut, as per the minutes of the MPC released last Friday. He also pointed out that given the headline inflation forecast of 3.7% for 2025-26, at the current policy rate (6%), the real repo rate turns out to be 2.3%, significantly higher than what would qualify as a growth-supportive rate. Due to the Covid-19 effect, the average r* (r-star or neutral real interest rate) estimated for India had increased to 1.65% for the fourth quarter of 2023-24 from 1.2% for the third quarter of 2021-22, he said. "Now that the Covid-specific factors - elevated public debt and pent-up demand - are behind us, the neutral rate has likely headed toward pre-Covid levels. This gives us scope for a 75 bps rate cut in this cycle," Singh reasoned. "Factoring in the global economic and geopolitical uncertainty, a 50-basis-point rate cut in this cycle was reasonable and highly desirable," he said, adding that limited space for rate cuts does not mean that no more rate cuts are possible in this cycle. Singh further said, "Having reduced the repo rate by 100 bps, we must carefully assess the macroeconomic situation for additional cuts before proceeding with further cuts, given the elevated risks emerging in the external sector." On the surge in bond yields after the MPC's decision, he said a part of the elevated bond yields for 10-year and longer-duration treasury bonds partly reflect the strong prospects for future GDP (gross domestic product) growth. "The overall steepening of the yield curve is also a reflection of the bond market's overreaction to the change in the stance," he said, adding that the bond market would prefer a situation where it can expect more rate cuts. An alternative course would have been a staggered rate cut, but given the subdued credit growth rate and private capex, it would have further delayed the materialisation of demand and investment decisions in anticipation of future cuts. "By contrast, a front-loaded 50-bps cut in the policy rate is likely to help achieve the twin objectives of supporting demand and growth by reducing the cost of funds for borrowers," he said, pointing out that since the MPC decision there has been some (about $5 billion) outflows by foreign institutional investors from the bond market, resulting in hardening of yields and steepening of the yield curve. "Our rate cut decision is fully justified, coming on the back of strong fundamentals and a stable outlook on the domestic fronts, including fiscal prudence and a benign inflation forecast," Singh said.
Time of India
44 minutes ago
- Time of India
ASEAN co-chair rebukes Piyush Goyal over 'B-team of China' remark
New Delhi: The Asean co-chair for the review of India FTA has expressed displeasure over commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal's recent remarks, describing several countries in the region as a "B team of China". At a scheduled India-Asean meeting held in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, the Malaysian co-chair put out a strongly worded message in response to the Indian minister's comments, ET has learnt. The occasion was Asean-India trade in goods agreement review. The Asean-India Free Trade Agreement, signed in 2009, is currently undergoing a review to address trade imbalances and other concerns. India seeks a more balanced and sustainable trade relationship with Asean. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like ¡Kit alarma con cámara Wi-Fi: ¡Precio increíble por tiempo limitado! Verisure Alarmas Leer más Undo Several officials from SE Asian states, including those who enjoy close partnership with India, speaking on the condition of anonymity told ET that the public comments were surprising as India's direct trade with China is high and the Asean states cannot be blamed for that. The officials expressed surprise as India as well as the Asean have been making concerted efforts over the last few years to expand ties across sectors. SE Asia's biggest state Indonesia has been proactive in blunting Pakistan's narrative in the OIC. On Friday, a senior MEA official held an informal meeting with the Asean Secretariat at Jakarta to discuss steps to further ties. Live Events The meeting exchanged views on the progress of Asean-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Last Thursday Goyal had slammed Asean countries as the "B-team of China" and dubbed trade deals with them as "silly". This took the entire SE Asia by surprise on the 30th anniversary of India becoming a full dialogue partner of Asean in 2025.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
We do not have power to act on noise and can only monitor: Pollution board
Panaji: The Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has said at a recent meeting that it could not make the installation of electronic signboards to monitor sound decibel levels, online noise meters, and CCTV a condition to issue its consent to operate for restaurants along the coast. The board stated that this is because it does not come under the Water Act and the Air Act. The board was deliberating on directives to it from the additional collector. 'Members, after deliberations, decided to request the collector to entrust the responsibility of imposing such conditions to the authority notified under the noise rules and the notified noise action plan,' the board meeting minutes state. The board received directions from the additional collector to make these conditions part of its consent to operate. The directives came after a meeting was held at the North Goa collectorate on April 4 to discuss issues relating to the control of noise pollution, based on a PIL in the matter. The additional collector-I directed representatives from GSPCB and SDMs that while issuing consent/permission, the condition of installation of CCTV should be included in the permission. Directions were also issued to all establishments, including beach shacks, to mandatorily have CCTVs installed on their premises and that the footage should be made available to the officials of the GSPCB and police on demand. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Cervecería Nacional CFD: Calcula cuánto podrías ganar invirtiendo solo $100 Empieza a invertir Inscríbete ahora Undo The high court was informed of these measures to control noise pollution along the North Goa coast. However, board members noted that state govt recently notified the noise action plan under the noise rules, 2000, and that GSPCB is not the authority under the noise rules 2000 or the noise action plan. The members noted that GSPCB only carried out the real-time noise monitoring and the data is being transmitted on a real-time basis at police stations as well as the SDM, along with the board. 'As the police inspector and the SDM are the authorities responsible for enforcing the provision of noise rules, 2000, as well as the noise action plan, they are required to immediately act upon violations of the noise rules, that is, exceedance of noise levels and/or playing of music in the open beyond 10pm after considering the noise level data transmitted to them on a real-time basis,' the board noted.
