This is a desk rejection. I think you may send your paper to another journal, why to stick to X and Y journals.

Journal editors want variety of topics. They want to avoid too many similar papers. This may be why the editor declined your paper.

As long as your paper is within the scope of these other journals, maybe you will have a better chance with them.

I agree with Marek. As an editor, I would prefer different to similar topics. But you are free to choose the journal for publication.

Interpret comments with a grain of salt.

Thank you everyone for your answers.

I have been an editor and I agree this is a desk rejection. The suggestion of other journals is an effort to be helpful, particularly if the editor believes that you may be an emerging scholar who misjudged the readership of hte journal in question. (We've all received these kinds of rejections, and usually complained bitterly about the editors in question.)

If journal X is a general readership journal, the author may have believed your paper too specialized for their readership and suggested instead field journals. (Probably field journals in an area in which he or she is not an expert, so the suggestions might not be useful to you.)

Often authors disagree with the editors about how broad the appeal of their paper might be. You say they published similar papers, but ask yourself: were these other papers written by big names in the field who would draw a readership beyond a specialized subfield? addressed to a more general readership than yours? written at a more accessible level?

At the end of the day, the editor will have his or her way. Just chalk it up to experience and look for another outlet.

Dear Harish,

If I were you, I would follow the suggestion of the Editor of Journal X. The editor should think that your paper in not suitable for Journal X, but it is appropriate to Journal Y1 or Y2, or Y3. It is up to you to decide if in fact this is the case. If this is the case, then submit your manuscript to Journal Y1 or Y2, or Y3.

Good luck and best wishes,

Orlando