News Citation : 2026 LN (HC) 152 | 2026:CGHC:5593
January 31, 2026 : The High Court of Chhattisgarh has dismissed a writ petition filed by a 33-year-old candidate who challenged his disqualification from the recruitment process for the post of Station Officer in the state’s Fire and Emergency Services Department. The court ruled that a candidate who participates in a recruitment process cannot later question its conditions after being declared unsuccessful.
Justice Parth Prateem Sahu passed the order in WPS No. 12349 of 2025, rejecting the plea of Gyaneshwar, a resident of Durg district, who had sought to quash the rejection order and be treated as qualified for appointment under the Scheduled Tribe category.
The petitioner had applied pursuant to an advertisement dated June 12, 2025, inviting online applications for various posts, including Station Officer. After submitting his application, he was called for the Physical Standard Test and document verification. However, during the physical measurement process, his height was recorded as 163 cm through both manual and digital methods. The advertisement clearly prescribed a minimum height of 168 cm for male candidates.
While chest measurement requirements were relaxed for Scheduled Tribe candidates, the advertisement specifically stated that no relaxation would be granted in the minimum height requirement. The petitioner argued that in a previous recruitment advertisement for Home Guard posts in 2024, height relaxation had been provided to ST candidates. He contended that the authorities were bound to follow reservation rules and extend similar benefits in the present recruitment.
The State opposed the plea, pointing out that the recruitment advertisement expressly barred relaxation in height. It further argued that the petitioner had participated in the process with full knowledge of the eligibility criteria and could not challenge the same after being disqualified.
The court examined the advertisement and noted that the physical standards were clearly specified. Male candidates were required to have a minimum height of 168 cm, with no provision for relaxation. Since the petitioner’s measured height was 163 cm, he did not meet the mandatory standard.
Relying on settled legal principles laid down by the Supreme Court, the High Court observed that once a candidate takes part in a selection process without objection, he cannot later turn around and question its terms merely because the outcome is unfavourable. The court referred to decisions including Bedanga Talukdar v. Saifudaullah Khan, Madan Lal v. State of J & K, Chandra Prakash Tiwari v. Shakuntala Shukla, Union of India v. S. Vinodh Kumar and Amlan Jyoti Borooah v. State of Assam, which reiterate that recruitment conditions must be strictly followed and cannot be relaxed unless expressly provided.
The judge noted that the petitioner had not challenged the advertisement at the time it was issued. Instead, he participated in the recruitment process and only raised objections after failing to meet the prescribed physical standard. The court also found no argument that the height requirement itself violated any statutory service rules. Holding that there was no merit in the petition, the High Court dismissed the writ plea.
Case Reference : WPS No. 12349 of 2025, Gyaneshwar vs State of Chhattisgarh and Another; Counsel for the Petitioner: Mr. Anukul Biswas, Advocate; Counsel for the Respondents/State: Mr. Suyashdhar Badgaiya, Government Advocate.
