- (1.) Leave granted.
(2.) The Government of Tamil Nadu questions legality of the judgment rendered by the Madras High Court bolding that the policy of the State Government in providing 10% special quota to the children/wards of serving/retired/deceased personnel of police and like forces is invalid.
(3.) A brief reference to the factual issue would suffice. 1. The Tamil Nadu Service Recruitment board (in short 'recruitment Board') published a notification in several local dailies on 5.3.2000 calling for applications filling up 1155 posts of Police Constables, Grade it. In the Notification the Board had stated that 10% of the posts were reserved for legal heirs of serving personnel, for ministerial staff and also for legal heirs of those persons who had been invalidated on medical grounds. The respondent (hereinafter referred to as the 'applicant') filed an original application before the Central Administrative tribunal (in short the Tribunal'). The respondent-applicant was not found successful as he had not fared well in the written test as well as the physical test. He was, therefore, not held to be qualified for selection. 2 The Tribunal held that since the applicant had not qualified he was not fit for selection. He had failed to get selected because his performance was not satisfactory. It was further held that he was not entitled for any preferential treatment. It is to be noted that there was no challenge by the applicant before the Tribunal to validity of the policy because he himself wanted to avail benefits under the policy. The respondent- applicant filed a writ petition before the Madras High court. A learned single judge of the Madras High Court dismissed the writ petition on the ground that writ petitioner had not come out successful in the tests. But at the same time held that the preference which was being sought for on the ground of descent was ited by Article 16 (2) of the Constitution of india, 1950 (in short the 'constitution'). It was held by relying on a decision of this court in Yogendra Pal Singh v. union of india that there cannot be any reservation on the basis of descent lt was held that the reasoning of the Tribunal that reservation provided for wards of police persnnel is unconstitutional was in order it was father noted that the though the reservation provided by the state had been applied in the case of many persons wrongly it would not be proper to invalidate the appointments already made though it was urged by learned counsel for the state that the consttutional validity of concerned policy was not in issue the high court felt that in view of the declaration of law by this court the matter could be taken note of by it;