SAMYUKTA MENON vs UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

Judgment text excerpt

$~36 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI + W.P.(C) 14740/2025 and CM APPL. 60500/2025 SAMYUKTA MENON .....Petitioner Through: Mr. S S Pandey and Mr. Roshan Kumar, Advs. versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS. .....Respondents Through: Mr. Satya Ranjan Swain, CGSC, Mr. Kautilya Birat, Mr. Ankush Kapoor, Mr. Vishwadeep Chandrakar, Advs. Major Anish Muralidhar, Army CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C. HARI SHANKAR HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE OM PRAKASH SHUKLA JUDGMENT (ORAL) % 30.10.2025 C. HARI SHANKAR, J. 1. The petitioner Samyukta Menon, is an aspirant for recruitment to the Judge Advocate General1’s Department of the Indian Army through the Short Service Commission2 (JAG-31) Course. She has filed the present writ petition challenging a declaration that the Notification dated 18 January 2023, to the extent it restricts women to three vacancies as against six vacancies for men, is ultra vires Articles 14, 15, 16 and 19 of the Constitution of India, and that she underwent all stages of selection but was not selected on the ground that she did not qualify, on merit, against the number of vacancies in the respective posts for which she had applied, which was reserved for women candidates. 1 “JAG”, hereinafter 2 “SSC”, hereinafter Signature Not Verified W.P.(C) 14740/2025 Digitally Signed By:AJIT Page 1 of 5 KUMAR Signing Date:06.11.2025 12:21:16 2. The issue that arises for consideration in the present writ is whether, after issuance of a Notification under Section 12 of the Army Act, 1950 which permitted induction of women in the JAG Branch, the respondent could have denied admission to the petitioner who secured 446 marks and was ranked 7th in the merit list in preference to male candidates with lesser marks, solely on the basis that 18 January 2023 Notification prescribed separate merit li