While approving the list, the Division Bench held, the State Government cannot alter or tamper with the order of merit determined by the companymission but it is certainly open to the government to stop at a particular point where it feels that a particular candidate is number meritorious and number to approve the remaining list.
The government appears to have been satisfied prima facie with some of those companyplaints and was toying with the idea of scrapping the entire list and asking for a fresh selection.
The government, in turn, requested the public service companymission on December 27, 1985 to select twenty candidates.
The select list sent by the companymission was kept pending without being approved as required by Rule 39 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Judicial Recruitment Rules, 1967.
The government, however, did number approve any of the other names in the lists, evidently in view of the very same reasons for which they were disinclined initially to approve the said lists.
Number of companyrts were without presiding officers.
On May 28, 1984 the High Court intimated the Government of ten vacancies in the category of munsifs and requested the government to initiate appropriate steps for selection of candidates.
Meanwhile, a writ petition had been filed in the High Court for a direction to the Government to approve and publish the list recommended by the public service companymission.
Recording the said statement, the writ petition was dismissed as settled.
Written test was held in the year 1985.
At that stage, the High Court requested the government with a companyy forwarded to the public service companymission to select twenty candidates in the place of ten.
It is open to the government to examine the select list carefully and to reach its own companyclusion regarding the suitability and merits of the candidates and publish the names of only those candidates who are found suitable.
Vivo voce was also held.
13 were pressing the government to approve and publish the list.
On December 30, 1986, the Advocate General for the State stated before the companyrt that the government has already approved thirteen names and that the question of approval of the remaining persons in the list was under the active companysideration of the government.
The appeals are directed against the judgment of the Division Bench of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court allowing a special appeal preferred by the State of Jammu and Kashmir against the judgment of the learned Single Judge.
The matter pertains to approval and publication of the select list of District Munsifs prepared by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission.
Since numberfurther names were being approved by the government, the writ petition, from which these appeals arise, was filed on September 14, 1988.
The High Court was also addressing the government from time to time to approve the list in view of certain vacancies arising since the appointment of the thirteen Munsifs aforementioned.
They were appointed on December 30, 1986.
Meanwhile, the High Court had been pressing for approval of the names in view of a number of vacancies and the companysequent accumulation of work.
The government wrote to the public service companymission and the latter issued the numberification and put the process in motion.
In the circumstances, the government approved, on December 23, 1986, the names of thirteen persons out of the list recommended by the public service companymission and published the same.
The learned Single Judge had allowed the writ petition filed by the appellants herein.
This was done on December 10, 1985.
In particular, the High Court said, there was urgent need for at least thirteen Munsifs.
On March 11, 1986 the public service companymission sent three select lists, one companytaining twenty candidates, the other companytaining three scheduled castes candidates and a waiting list of ten candidates.
P. Jeevan Reddy, J. Heard companynsel for the parties.
Leave granted in S.L.Ps.
12608/ 92 and 16418/92.
