Punjab & Haryana High Court Dismisses Petition for Constable Appointment; Holds Incorrect EWS Certificate Format Bars Reservation Claim

Case Name: Monika Sharma vs. State of Haryana and Others
Date of Judgment: 12 November 2025
Citation: CWP-24730-2025
Bench: Hon’ble Mr. Justice Jagmohan Bansal

Held: The Punjab and Haryana High Court dismissed the writ petition seeking appointment under the EWS category, holding that the petitioner was not entitled to reservation benefits as she had submitted an EWS certificate in the format prescribed for Central Government recruitment instead of the required State format. The Court held that strict compliance with eligibility conditions and prescribed formats is mandatory in public employment and failure to submit the correct certificate at the relevant stage disentitles a candidate from claiming reservation benefits.

Summary: The petitioner applied for the post of Female Constable under Advertisement No. 4/2020 in the EWS category. She cleared all stages of the recruitment process, including written test, Physical Screening Test and Physical Measurement Test, and was shortlisted for document verification. However, her candidature under the EWS quota was rejected because she submitted an EWS certificate issued for Central Government employment rather than the format prescribed by the State of Haryana. The rejection order further recorded that the petitioner also submitted income details for the financial year 2021-22 instead of the required reference year 2019-20.

In reply, the petitioner argued that she had applied online and the format was selected due to misunderstanding, and the error was attributable to the issuing authority rather than candidate intent. She further contended that she belonged to the EWS category in substance, her income was below the prescribed threshold and rejection on technical grounds was arbitrary. The State filed an affidavit explaining the online process and produced the original application form in which the petitioner herself selected the “Central” format option. The Court also relied on the recent Supreme Court judgment in Mohit v. State of Uttar Pradesh, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 1125, wherein it was held that reservation benefits cannot be claimed without a certificate in the prescribed format, even if eligibility criteria are otherwise satisfied.

Decision: The writ petition was dismissed. The Court held that uniformity and equal treatment in recruitment require strict adherence to prescribed formats, timelines and eligibility proof, and permitting post-process rectification would create uncertainty and unfair advantage. It further held that since recruitment rules clearly required production of a valid original certificate in the prescribed State format at the stage of scrutiny, failure to comply attracted the consequence of treating the candidate under the General Category.