Ajmer: In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court Friday emphasised that just being listed in a reserve or waiting list does not automatically grant a candidate the right to be appointed for a job. The apex court overturned the Rajasthan High Court‘s directive to the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) to fill positions from a reserve list, despite one with an expired time frame. Hearing an appeal filed by the RPSC against orders passed by a single bench and later upheld by a division bench of the Rajasthan High Court, the apex court held that under the Rajasthan Service Rules the reserve list remains valid only for six months from the date the main merit list is released. After that period, the reserve list is invalid.The apex court bench, comprising justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih, ruled that merely having a name on the reserve list does not grant any candidate an indefeasible legal right to a job appointment.Rakesh Ojha, joint legal advisor for the RPSC, told TOI that the apex court further reaffirmed that the commission operates as an independent constitutional body with the authority to appeal decisions that might compromise recruitment regulations, regardless of whether the state govt chooses to file an appeal.The matter arose following the Junior Legal Officer Recruitment 2013 and 2019 and Assistant Statistical Officer Recruitment 2020. When some selected candidates from the main merit list did not join, candidates from the reserve list approached the high court seeking appointment against the resultant vacancies. A single bench initially ruled in favour of the candidates — Yati Jain, Aakriti Saxena, and Vivek Kumar Meena — prompting the RPSC to challenge it before a division bench of the high court. The division bench upheld the single bench’s decision, leading to an appeal in the Supreme Court.The apex court highlighted that keeping the selection process open indefinitely would hinder opportunities for new and eligible candidates readying for future examinations, thereby maintaining the integrity of the recruitment system and ensuring fairness for all applicants.
