Reserved Vacancies for PwBD must be Filled per Merit in Identified Categories under Recent Administrative Guidelines

The applicant, a 24-year-old female candidate belonging to the Visually Impaired (VI) category, challenged the recruitment process for Level-1 posts under Centralized Employment Notice (CEN) No. 01/2019.

She contested a provisional part panel dated 15.03.2023, alleging that the respondents unlawfully subdivided the 1% reservation for the VI category into "Blind" and "Low Vision" sub-categories.

The applicant argued that she was excluded despite being more meritorious than 23 "Low Vision" candidates included in the panel, contending that such subdivision violated statutory provisions regarding Person with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) reservations.

During the pendency of the matter, the Ministry of Railways issued new guidelines dated 16.12.2024 and 20.03.2026 regarding the diversion of vacancies to lower medical categories and the adjustment of leftover candidates.

1. Whether the subdivision of the 1% reservation for the Visually Impaired category into "Blind" and "Low Vision" for recruitment under CEN 01/2019 was legally sustainable.

2. Whether the applicant's grievances regarding empanelment could be resolved through the application of the Railway Board's circulars dated 16.12.2024 and 20.03.2026.

The Tribunal primarily considered the administrative instructions issued by the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) via letters No. E(NG)11/2023/RR-1/63 dated 16.12.2024 and No. E(NG)11/2013/RR-1/83 dated 20.03.2026.

These rules provide for the diversion of unfilled vacancies to lower medical categories (B2-C1), the commencement of Document Verification (DV) for unfilled/replacement vacancies as per merit, and specific provisions for PwBD candidates higher in merit who were not empanelled due to lack of sub-disability vacancies to be transferred to other Railway Recruitment Cells (RRCs).

The Tribunal did not adjudicate on the merits of the alleged illegal subdivision of the VI category. Instead, it observed that the Railway Board had recently issued comprehensive guidelines to address the empanelment of leftover candidates, including those in lower medical categories and PwBD candidates.

Under Paragraph 4 of the 20.03.2026 circular, the Board specifically mandated that PwBD candidates who are higher in merit than the last empanelled candidate in their group but lacked suitable vacancies in their sub-disability should be considered for transfer to other RRCs where vacancies exist.

The Tribunal determined that since the executive authorities had already established a mechanism to resolve such merit-based grievances, the matter should first be addressed through administrative channels rather than judicial intervention.

The OA was disposed of with a direction to the respondents to treat the applicant’s case in light of the guidelines dated 16.12.2024 and 20.03.2026. The respondents were ordered to take a reasoned decision on the applicant's representation and consider her case for appointment within two months from the receipt of the order.