Manjula Sircar And Ors. vs Harendra Bahadur Singh And Ors.

The Supreme Court held that the 20 percent reservation for women candidates in the appointment of Civil Judges (Jr. Division) was not valid due to lack of consultation with the High Court, as mandated by the relevant rules. The Court exercised its jurisdiction under Article 142 of the Constitution to ensure justice, thereby upholding the High Court's decision that the reservation benefit should not apply, and set aside the direction for rearranging the select list that would have adversely affected the appointed women candidates. Consequently, the appointments of the women candidates were upheld, preventing their termination after six years of service.