The Rajasthan High Court has rejected a doctor’s plea to retain his lien on two government posts while pursuing higher studies, saying he was trying to sail in two boats at the same time.
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Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has dismissed a writ petition by a government doctor who sought an extension of joining time for a newly secured Assistant Professor post at Government Medical College, Tonk, until he finished his M.Ch. in Urology, while continuing to hold his existing post as a Medical Officer, holding that a government servant can hold a lien on only one substantive post at a time [Dr. Nitin Jhalani v. Rajasthan Medical Education Society and Others].
Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand held that extensions of joining time are meant for administrative exigencies or personal hardship of an emergent nature, not for holding multiple employments while pursuing higher studies.
The case
The petitioner, Dr. Nitin Jhalani, was a Medical Officer at SMS Hospital and Medical College, Jaipur. He was granted study leave to pursue an M.Ch. in Urology. While on the course, he was selected as Assistant Professor in General Surgery at Government Medical College, Tonk, and was directed to join by September 30, 2026.
He asked for the joining time to be extended until he completed the M.Ch., and for extraordinary leave for the same period, so that the Tonk post would be held for him in the meantime. He relied on earlier judgments and a 2021 memorandum of the Finance Department.
What the Court said
The Court found that the petitioner effectively wanted to keep his lien in two services at once, the post at SMS Hospital and the Tonk post. On the settled position, it held:
“A government servant can hold the lien on one substantive post only at a time.”
The Court noted that the Tonk college had increased its MBBS intake by 50 seats and needed faculty, and that deferring the joining by two years would leave the post vacant and affect the teaching and training of students. Deliberately delaying a new appointment to keep options open, it observed, can also block meritorious candidates on the waiting list.
Rejecting the prayer, the Court said the petitioner was “trying to sail in two boats at the same time”. It held that the earlier judgments and the 2021 Finance Department memorandum relied on by the petitioner did not help him on these facts.
The outcome
The writ petition was dismissed, along with all pending applications.
Why the order matters
The order draws a clear line for government doctors who move between posts while studying: study leave on one post does not entitle an employee to park a second, newly secured substantive post in reserve. Joining-time extensions are an exception for genuine administrative or emergent personal reasons, not a tool for keeping both options open.
The Court also weighed the public interest in filling faculty posts at a medical college that had added MBBS seats, placing the needs of students and waitlisted candidates ahead of the petitioner’s convenience.
Case Title: Dr. Nitin Jhalani v. Rajasthan Medical Education Society and Others [S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 19854/2026]
Bench: Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, Rajasthan High Court
Date of Order: September 30, 2026