In Brief
The State of Uttarakhand's accelerated promotion rule for Junior Engineers (JEs) holding a Degree in Civil Engineering to Assistant Engineer positions was challenged by Diploma-holding JEs as violating constitutional equality guarantees. The High Court had struck down the 7.33% accelerated promotion quota. The Supreme Court reversed this decision, holding that the rule-making authority may legitimately prescribe accelerated promotion or partial restrictions based on higher educational qualifications, provided there is a nexus to job requirements. Classification on education grounds in service matters is constitutional where rationally connected to administrative efficiency. The Court rejected the argument that integrated cadres must receive identical promotional treatment, affirming that rule-makers may choose between exclusion and graduated restriction on promotion eligibility.
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