SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA
Ranchi, May 7: The Jharkhand High Court has ruled that candidates seeking reservation benefits in recruitment examinations can be treated under the general category if they fail to submit details of caste certificates in the prescribed format before the application deadline.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice M S Sonak and Justice Rajesh Shankar passed the order while dismissing a batch of Letters Patent Appeals challenging recruitment decisions of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).
The court upheld the validity of clauses in recruitment advertisements which required candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Backward Classes to furnish details of caste certificates issued by competent authorities in prescribed formats while filling online application forms.
Appeals challenged recruitment conditions
The appeals arose from a common order passed by a single judge in December 2019 in a batch of writ petitions led by W.P.(S) No. 3151 of 2018.
The petitioners had argued that, though they belonged to reserved categories, they were treated as general category candidates because they either uploaded caste certificates in formats meant for the central government or submitted proper certificates after the cut-off date during document verification.
Several appellants contended that they possessed valid caste certificates before the deadline but had inadvertently uploaded incorrect formats while filling out online forms.
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Court distinguishes Supreme Court ruling
The High Court examined the Supreme Court judgment in Ram Kumar Gijroya vs Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board, relied upon by the appellants to seek relief.
However, the bench observed that the facts of the Jharkhand cases were different because the recruitment advertisements specifically mentioned the requirement of submitting caste certificate details in prescribed formats before the last date of application submission.
The court referred to the Full Bench judgment delivered in September 2025, which had held that the Ram Kumar Gijroya ruling cannot be applied universally in every recruitment case.
The bench noted that where rules or advertisements clearly prescribe a cut-off date, candidates are required to strictly comply with those conditions.
Court warns against administrative chaos
The judgment also referred to later Supreme Court observations stating that allowing candidates to submit caste certificates after the cut-off date could affect other eligible candidates who did not apply due to the notified conditions.
The court observed that accepting certificates beyond the deadline in such cases could create “administrative chaos” in the recruitment process.
The matters related to multiple recruitment advertisements issued by the JPSC and JSSC for posts including Dentist (Basic Cadre), police radio operator and other government services.