DSSSB Teacher Vacancies: Supreme Court Asks Why Posts Are Split by Gender
Image: Wikimedia Commons
A Supreme Court bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran has asked the Delhi government to explain, on affidavit within 15 days, why teaching vacancies advertised by the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) are split between male and female candidates, and how transgender persons will be accommodated in public employment. The court passed the order on 16 October in two petitions, one by Jane Kaushik, a transgender woman, and one by Praveen Singh, as reported by LiveLaw and ANI.
Seven Questions for the Delhi Government
The order asks which recruitment rules govern DSSSB notifications and where the board gets its power to notify subject-specific teaching posts. It asks whether any constitutional provision, statute or service rule requires vacancies to be notified by gender. If none does, the Delhi government must give the basis for the split; if one does, it must justify using gender in public recruitment.
The court also asked whether the respondents plan to add a third-gender category. In Singh’s petition, it asked why the Delhi High Court did not use Rule 12 of its own 1972 establishment rules to grant transgender candidates age relaxation. The affidavit is to be shared with the petitioners, who may file a rejoinder.
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How the Case Reached This Stage
This is Kaushik’s second petition in the Supreme Court. The court had earlier awarded her compensation for discrimination based on gender identity and set up a committee headed by Justice Asha Menon to suggest policy changes. When she went to the Delhi High Court over the lack of transgender-specific vacancies, the High Court told her to approach that committee. The Supreme Court held that was an error and directed that she be allowed to register on DSSSB’s online registration system as a transgender person.
The recruitment notification stayed gender-binary, which brought the matter back. On 16 October, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that another petition concerns age limits.
Affidavits Due Within 15 Days
No ruling has been made; the court has only framed questions. ANI reported that the case is listed for hearing on 19 November. Until then, DSSSB teaching notifications remain as issued, and the Delhi government’s answer on whether a transgender category exists in its recruitment rules will decide how the court proceeds. Read more in our Daily Updates section.
Source: Supreme Court order dated 16 October 2026. Also based on reporting by LiveLaw and Asianet News (ANI).
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
