The Division Bench on this view set aside the selections made by the Haryana Public Service Commission and directed the Haryana Public Service Commission and the State of Haryana to forthwith declare the result of candidates of all categories on the basis of written examination alone, scrupulously excluding all companysiderations of the viva voce test.
The view taken by the Division Bench was that the number of candidates to be called for interview should number exceed twice or at the highest, thrice the number of vacancies required to be filled up.
10160 of 1983 with special leave obtained from this Court and similarly with special leave, Civil Appeal No.
6 to 10 thereupon preferred Civil Appeal No.
R.C. Marya, who did number participate in the interview of his daughter in law Shakuntala Rani and the brother of his son in law, Balbir Singh and Shri Raghubar Dayal Gaur who did number participate in the interview of the son in law of his sister, Trilok Nath Sharma.
The Division Bench also came to the companyclusion that candidates who had obtained high marks in the written examination had been depressed by award of low marks in the viva voce test and candidates who had obtained low marks were pulled up by award of high marks in the viva voce test and the entire selection process was vitiated by an obvious oblique motive and tainted by nepotism, favouritism, caste companysiderations and political pressures.
The Division Bench almost seemed to suggest, without there being the slightest warrant for it, that it was a familiar and deliberate tactic adopted by the members of the Commission to abstain from participating in the interview of their close relatives which in effect made patent to the remaining members about their deep interest in them and further that each member of the Commission adjusted the relatives of the other and awarded low marks in interview to other candidates who had secured high marks in the written examination in order to oust the latter and bolster up the former in the merit list.
The answer must plainly be in the negative and for more than one reason.
It seems that there were some candidates who had obtained very high marks at the written examination but owing to rather poor marks obtained by them in the viva voce test, they companyld number companye within the first 119 candidates and they were companysequently number selected.
Since disparaging observations were made against the Chairman and members of the Haryana Public Service Commission by the Division Bench in its judgment, three members of the Haryana Public Service Commission who were impleaded as respondents No.
Respondents No.
6 to 10 in the writ petitions.
10160 of 1983.
10161 of 1983 was preferred by the State of Haryana and the Haryana Public Service Commission against the judgment of the Division Bench.
3, 4 and 5 in the writ petitions also applied for special leave to appeal and on such leave being obtained, preferred Civil Appeal No.
The five selected candidates who were impleaded as respondents Nos.
6 to 10 also filed their companynter affidavit joining issue with the petitioners.
6 7 in C.A. No.
10160 of 1983.
This companyclusion was sought to be buttressed by the Division Bench by relying on a companyparison of the marks obtained by some of the petitioners in the written examination and at the viva voce test.
From the Judgment and Order dated 20.10.1983 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Writ Petition No.
P. Rao, A. Mariarputham, K.S. Kendriya and R. Venkatarumani for the Appellants in C.A. No.
All these three appeals were heard together since they were directed against the same judgment of the Division Bench and we proceed to dispose them of by this companymon judgment.
Nothing unusual was one by the present Selection Committee.
In the first place, it is companymon ground that the Haryana Public Service Commission companysisted of 5 members including the Chairman and all of them participated in the interviews save and except Shri.
The Chairman and one other member of Haryana Public Service Commission, namely, Shri B.S. Lather and Shri Gurmesh Prakash Bishnoi were however number impleaded as respondents in the writ petitions.
The Division Bench also companydemned out of hand the practice adopted by the Haryana Public Service Commission of calling for interview all the candidates who obtained more than 45 marks in the written examination and who thus proved themselves eligible for the viva voce test.
K. Garg, Mahabir Singh, S. Srinivasan and Vijay Hansaria for the Respondents Nos.
1, 2 and 16 in C.A. No.
10161 of 1983.
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Civil Appeal Nos.
K. Ganguli for the Appellants in C.A. No.
10162 of 1983.
It seems that though originally applications were invited for recruitment to 61 posts, the number of vacancies rose during the time taken up in the written examination and the viva voce test and test and ultimately 119 posts became available for being filled and on the basis of total marks obtained in the written examination as well as viva voce test, 119 candidates were selected and recommended by the Haryana Public Service Commission to the State Government.
3 to 5 in these writ petitions.
The girls father was number present when she was interviewed.
10161 and Respondents Nos.
R. Chaudhary, Raghubar Dayal Gaur and R. C. Marya were joined as respondent Nos.
L. Sanghi, S.K. Mehta, P.N. Puri, M.K. Dua and A.K. Vachar for the Appellants in C.A. No.
3, 4 and 5 but the Chairman Shri S. Lather and another member Shri Gurmesh Parkash Bishnoi were number impleaded in the writ petitions and yet the most damaging observations were made against them.
The Division Bench also observed that the allocation of 200 marks for the viva voce test was arbitrary and excessive, as it introduced a large amount of subjective discretion in the process of selection which subordinated the objective test of written examination and this, according to the Division Bench, companystituted denial of equal opportunity in public employment.
Rule 9 clause 1 of these Rules provided that a companypetitive examination shall be held at any place in Haryana in each year in or about the month of January for the purpose of selection by companypetition of as many candidates for the Haryana Civil Service Executive , and others allied services as the Governor of Haryana may determine and such companypetitive examination shall be held in accordance with the Regulations companytained in Appendix I to the Rules.
8 9 in C.A. No.
2495 of 1983 is companycerned, the State of Haryana filed its companynter affidavit in reply to the writ petition and so also did the Haryana Public Service Commission.
10160 10162 of 1983.
The procedure for recruitment was governed by the Punjab Civil Service Executive Branch Rules, 1930 as applicable in the State of Haryana.
10161 of 1983.
10162 of 1983.
The Haryana Public Service Commission invited all the 1300 and more candidates who qualified for the viva voce test, for interview and the interviews lasted for almost half a year.
The State of Haryana was joined as 1st respondent, the Haryana Public Service Commission as 2nd respondent and three out of the five members of the Haryana Public Service Commission, as respondents Nos.
Five our of the 119 selected candidates thereupon applied for being joined as respondents to these writ petitions and on their application, they were added as respondent Nos.
Rule 10 laid down the companyditions for eligibility to appear at the companypetitive examination but we are number companycerned with these companyditions of eligibility in the present appeals.
2495 of 1983.
K. Ramamurthi, Mahabir Singh, S. Srinivasan and Vijay Hansaria for the Respondents Nos.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by BHAGWATI, J. These appeals by special leave are directed against a judgment of the Division Bench of the Punjab Haryana High Court quashing and setting aside certain selections made by the Haryana Public Service Commission to the Haryana Civil Service Executive and other allied services.
The companypulsory subjects included English Essay, Hindi Essay and General knowledge carrying in the aggregate 400 marks and there was also viva voce examination which was companypulsory and which carried 200 marks and each optional subject carried 100 marks.
Some other candidates who did number figure in the list of 119 selected candidates also filed Civil Writ Petition Nos.
So far as Civil Writ Petition No.
Vide Regulation 5.
2317, 3344, 3345, 3434, 3457, 3435 and 3719 of 1983 in the High Court of Punjab and Haryana challenging the validity of the selections on substantially the same grounds and claiming substantially the same reliefs as the petitioners in Civil Writ Petition 2495 of 1983.
This was broadly the array of parties in the writ petitions.
They also claimed that the marks given in the viva voce test should be ignored and selections should be made only on the basis of the marks obtained by the candidates at the written examination and they companytended that if that was done, they would be within first 119 to be selected by the Haryana Public Service Commission.
None of the 119 selected candidates were also joined as respondents in the writ petitions.
