HC Strikes Down 45 Yrs Age Bar For Anganwadi Supervisor Promotions In Maha The Bombay High Court in Nagpur recently invalidated a Maharashtra government rule that barred anganwadi sevikas above 45 years of age from being promoted to the post of supervisor, calling the provision arbitrary, discriminatory, and violative of constitutional Articles 14 and 16. A division bench comprising Justices Anil Kilor and Raj Wakode upheld a writ petition filed by 10 anganwadi sevikas from Akola district, declaring Rule 7(1)(c) of the Service Entry Rules, 2021, unconstitutional. The rule, framed by the Women and Child Development Department, had reduced the maximum age limit for promotion from 55 to 45 years, effectively excluding senior workers from consideration. The petitioners, who had served as anganwadi sevikas under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme for over two decades, challenged the state’s June 4, 2021, notification that introduced the age cap. The court emphasized that the state’s policy lacked fairness and a justifiable rationale, stating, “The state action must be fair, non-arbitrary, and based on a justifiable principle.” The judges noted that the rule created “unreasonable discrimination” among similarly situated workers and failed to establish a “rational nexus” with the intended objective. The government had defended the rule by arguing that supervisors need to oversee nearly 25 anganwadi centres and that older workers would struggle with the workload and reporting responsibilities. However, the court rejected this reasoning, asserting that experience gained with age could not be treated as a disadvantage.#maharashtra_government #bombay_high_court #anganwadi_sevikas #women_and_child_development_department #icds_scheme
