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PETITIONER: MS. SWATI GUPTA

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: STATE OF U.P. & ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT02/02/1995

BENCH: SAHAI, R.M. (J) BENCH: SAHAI, R.M. (J) SEN, S.C. (J)

CITATION:  1995 SCC  (2) 560        JT 1995 (2)   438  1995 SCALE  (1)480

ACT:

HEADNOTE:

JUDGMENT: ORDER 1.   The  petitioner  who  appeared for  the  Combined  Pre- Medical Test of 1994 held in the State of U.P. challenged  a circular issued by the Lucknow University based on a  letter dated  17th May 1994 issued by the Secretary, Government  of U.P. It was claimed  that  reservation  of 65%  general  seats  in  the, medical   colleges  was  violative  of  the   constitutional guarantee Under Articles 16, 14, 19 and 21 of the Co  stitu- tion and the ratio laid down by this Court in Indira Sawhney & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors. (1992) Supp. 3 SCC 217.  Af- ter  the  petition was filed the Government  issued  another notification  on 17.12.1994 clarifying its stand in  respect of reservations.  The relevant portions of it are  extracted below:               "In  continuation  of  G.O.  No.2697/Sek14/V/-               94/III/93 dated 17.5.94 or the above  subject,               1  am  directed to say  clarifying  the  Govt.               policy that horizontal reservation be  granted               in all medical colleges on total seats  of all               the  all  the  courses to  be  filled  through                             combined Pre Medical  Test  [C.P.M.T.] 1994  a s               given below :-               1.    Real dependents of                     freedom fighters              05 percent               2.    Sons/daughters of                     deceased/disabled                     soldiers                      02 percent               3.    Physically handicapped                     candidates                    02 percent               4.    Candidates belonging                     to hill areas                 03 percent               5.    Candidates belonging to                     Uttaranchal areas             03 percent

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             The  above reservation would be  ’horizontal’,               and  the candidates  of the  above  categories               selected  on the basis of merit would be  kept               under  the  categories  of  Scheduled   Caste/               Scheduled  Tribes/  Other  Backward   Classes/               General  to which  they belong.  For  example.               if a candidate dependent on a Freedom  Fighter               selected  on the basis of  reservation,belongs               to  the Scheduled Caste, he will  be  adjusted               against  the  seats  reserved  for   scheduled               caste.   Similarily,  if a  physically  handi-               capped  candidate  selected on  the  basis  of               reservation belongs to other bakward class  or               general    category,  he  would  be   adjusted               against the seats reserved for other  backward               classes or general category.               [a] Scheduled caste                   candidates      -21 percent] 30 per cent               [b] Scheduled tribe                   candidates      -02 percent] seates                                              ] in each               [c] Other backward             ] category                   class candidates-27 percent] reserved                   for ladies" In the earlier circular the provision for reservation  which is relevant read as under:-               "Out  of  the  total  seats  being  filled  up               thruogh   the  C.P.M.T.  1994, 35%  seats  are               reserved   for the candidates   belonging   to               the  general category and remaining 65%  seats               shall  be for the reserved  categories   which               are  limited   to  the  percentage   mentioned               against   the  following  categories  of   the               candidates :-                          Percentage of the  reserved seats.                          ----------------------------------  440 Reserved Categories 1.Backward Classes           27       (of them 30% reserved                              per cent  for ladies.) 2.Hilly area                 3 per    (of them 30 per cent                              cent      reserved for ladies.) 3.Uttrakhand Area            3 %      (30% reserved for                                        ladies.) 4.Scheduled Caste            21 %     (30% for ladies) 5.Schedule Tribes            2 %      (30% reserved for                                        ladies.) 6.Actual dependents          5 %      (30% percent reserved   of the freedom fighters              for ladies.) 7.Daughter/sons of soldiers  2 %      (30% reserved for   who became handicapped or            ladies)   killed in action/war. 8.For handicapped candidates 2 %      (30% reserved for                                        ladies.)                              -----------                              65 per cent                              ----------- The remaining seats will be of the general category in which 30 % reservation will be for the ladies.  " 2.Reservation  of  65%  resulting in  reducing  the  general category  to  35% was undoubtedly violative of  Article  16. Further by reserving 30% of the general seats for ladies the general   category  shrinked  to  5%.   But  these   glaring infirmities  have  been rectified by the  amended  circular. Reservation  of  30%  for ladies has now  been  confined  to

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paragraph  (3)  of the amended circular.   Dr.  Dhawan,  the learned  senior  counsel appearing for the  State  clarified that he has instructions to make a statement on the  amended circular that now there is no reservation for ladies in  the general category. 3.   Similarly,  the other defect in the circular  reserving 35% seats for general category     has  been  removed.   The vertical  reservation is now 50 % for general  category  and 500 %     for scheduled caste, scheduled tribes and backward classes.  Reservation of 15% 441 for  various  categories mentioned in the  earlier  circular which  reduced the general category to 35% due  to  vertical reservation  has  now been made horizontal  in  the  amended circular  extending it to all seats.  The reservation is  no more in general category.  The amended circular divides  all the  seats in C.P.M.T. into two categories one, general  and other reserved.  Both have been allocated 50%.  Paragraph  2 of the circular explains that candidates who are selected on merit  and  happen  to  be  of  the  category  mentioned  in Paragraph 1 would be liable to be adjusted in general or re- served category depending on to which category they  belong, such  reservation is not contrary to what was said  by  this Court  in Indira Sawhney (supra).  Whether  the  reservation for  such  persons  should have been made  or  not  was  not challenged, therefore, this Court is not required to examine it. 4.   In the result this petition is disposed of by directing that  in  view of the circular issued by the  Government  on 17.12.1994  clarified by paragraph (2) the grievance of  the petitioner  cannot  be said to The interim order  passed  by this Court staying the declaration of results is discharged. 443