JAIPUR: The Rajasthan High Court has ruled that candidates belonging to a Scheduled Tribe (ST) or other reserved category in another state cannot claim reservation benefits in Rajasthan government jobs merely by settling in the state. Such candidates will be considered under the General category.
A division bench comprising Justice Vinit Kumar Mathur and Justice Chandra Shekhar Sharma recently dismissed a special appeal filed by Baria Sharmishtha Ben, who originally belongs to Gujarat and is recognised as a Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidate there.
Following her marriage, she moved to Rajasthan and applied for the post of Nursing Officer, seeking reservation benefits under the ST category. However, the state government rejected her claim and considered her candidature under the General category in accordance with the conditions specified in the recruitment advertisement.
Challenging the decision, Baria Sharmishtha Ben initially approached a single-judge bench of the Rajasthan High Court. Her petition was dismissed in light of the Supreme Court's judgment in Ranjana Kumari v. State of Uttarakhand.
She subsequently filed a special appeal before the division bench, which also rejected her plea. The High Court observed that the conditions of social disadvantage and backwardness vary from state to state.
Therefore, recognition as a member of a reserved category in one state does not automatically entitle a person to the same reservation benefits in another state.
During the hearing, the division bench referred to the Supreme Court's landmark judgments in Marri Chandra Shekhar Rao and Action Committee on the Issue of Caste Certificate.
The Supreme Court has consistently held that a person belonging to a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe in one state cannot automatically claim the same reserved status and associated benefits in another state after relocating there.
Reiterating this legal position, the Rajasthan High Court held that caste and tribal communities notified as reserved categories in one state cannot automatically claim reservation benefits in another state.