In Union of India v. G. Kiran, the Supreme Court of India clarified that a reserved category candidate who avails relaxation at any stage of a competitive examination cannot later claim an unreserved vacancy, even if they secure a higher final rank. The case arose from the Indian Forest Service Examination, 2013. The respondent, an SC candidate, qualified the preliminary examination by availing a relaxed cut-off, while a general category candidate qualified on general standards. Although the SC candidate secured a higher rank in the final merit list, there was no SC insider vacancy for his cadre. He sought adjustment against a general category insider seat, which was denied by the Union but later allowed by the CAT and High Court. Reversing those rulings, the Supreme Court held that the IFS examination is a single integrated selection process. Rule 14(ii) clearly bars candidates who avail any relaxation at any stageincluding prelims from being considered against unreserved vacancies. Higher final merit cannot nullify earlier relaxation. The original cadre allocation was upheld.