Question 1

Reservation for PwD is a vertical reservation category just like SC, ST, or OBC.

Accepted Answer

PwD reservation is a horizontal reservation. It cuts across all vertical categories, meaning a candidate can be a General-PwD, SC-PwD, or OBC-PwD.

Question 2

A PwD candidate moving to the general merit list reduces the total number of PwD candidates selected.

Accepted Answer

Upward movement actually increases or maintains the overall representation of PwDs. By vacating the reserved seat, a lower-scoring PwD candidate gets selected in their place.

Question 3

Consider the following statements regarding the reservation for Persons with Disabilities (PwD) in public employment:
1. According to the RPwD Act 2016, a minimum of 4 percent of total vacancies in government establishments are reserved for persons with benchmark disabilities.
2. The Supreme Court has ruled that PwD reservations operate as vertical reservations to ensure the upward movement of meritorious candidates.
3. The Supreme Court has recognized 'reasonable accommodation' as a fundamental right flowing from Articles 14, 16, and 21 of the Constitution.
How many of the above statements are correct?

Accepted Answer

(b) Only two — Statement 1 is correct: Section 34 of the RPwD Act 2016 mandates a 4 percent reservation. Statement 2 is incorrect: PwD reservation operates as a HORIZONTAL reservation, cutting across vertical categories (SC/ST/OBC/General), though the SC has now allowed upward movement to the unreserved list within this horizontal framework. Statement 3 is correct: The September 2025 judgment explicitly recognized reasonable accommodation as a fundamental right, not charity.

Question 4

Match List I (Constitutional/Legal Concept) with List II (Definition/Application) based on the Supreme Court's jurisprudence on equality:
List I:
A. Formal Equality
B. Substantive Equality
C. Horizontal Reservation
D. Vertical Reservation

List II:
1. Socially and educationally backward class quotas under Article 16(4) (e.g., SC, ST, OBC).
2. Compartmentalized quotas that cut across all other categories (e.g., Women, PwD).
3. Recognizing historical disadvantages and providing differential treatment to achieve actual fairness.
4. Treating everyone exactly the same in a mechanical manner, ignoring structural barriers.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Accepted Answer

(a) A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1 — Formal Equality (A) strictly treats everyone the same (4). Substantive Equality (B) requires affirmative action and reasonable accommodation to address actual disadvantages (3). Horizontal Reservation (C) cuts across other categories like PwD and Women (2). Vertical Reservation (D) applies to social classes like SC/ST/OBC under Article 16(4) (1).

Question 5

Assertion (A): The Supreme Court mandated the 'upward movement' of meritorious PwD candidates to the unreserved list in public employment exams like the UPSC CSE.
Reason (R): Retaining meritorious PwD candidates in the reserved quota amounts to hostile discrimination, as it consumes a reserved seat and excludes lower-scoring PwD candidates who are the intended beneficiaries of the RPwD Act.
Select the correct answer:

Accepted Answer

(a) Both A and R are correct and R is the correct explanation of A. — The Assertion is true, as the SC's September 2025 judgment mandated that PwD candidates scoring above the general cut-off must migrate to the unreserved list. The Reason is also true and perfectly explains the Assertion: if high-scoring PwD candidates take up the 4 percent reserved seats instead of the general seats they earned on merit, it blocks opportunities for more disadvantaged PwD candidates, which the Court termed 'hostile discrimination'.

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