Government wrestles with Supreme Court creamy-layer ruling for OBC civil service candidates
The Centre has sent mixed signals on implementing the Supreme Court’s Rohit Nathan judgment that bars salary from being used to define the creamy-layer for OBC candidates from PSU families.
A Supreme Court decision in the Rohit Nathan case barred the use of salary in calculating the creamy-layer for OBC candidates whose parents work in public-sector undertakings, prompting the Centre to seek clarification from the court on August 25. Simultaneously, the government informed the Central Administrative Tribunal that it intended to implement the March ruling, creating a puzzling contrast within a week. The CAT was hearing a contempt petition filed by Basant Singh, an OBC candidate denied a civil-service post, and the government noted that 56 other similarly situated applicants are being reviewed.
The Department of Personnel and Training has historically included salary for PSU-background candidates, contrary to the 1993 memorandum that excludes salary and agricultural income. The government also cited the lack of “equivalence of posts” across PSU, bank, and university positions as a complicating factor. OBC candidates, who had hoped the March judgment would secure their induction, are now facing uncertainty over the implementation of the creamy-layer criteria.
Why it matters
The ruling determines whether thousands of OBC candidates can enter elite civil services, affecting social equity and government recruitment.
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