Court Directs Re-evaluation of Candidate's Suitability for Assistant Post Due to Arbitrary Selection Process
In a landmark judgment, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed Chaudhary Bansi Lal University, Bhiwani, to reassess the candidature of Jaibir Singh for the post of Assistant, highlighting significant deviations from the advertised recruitment criteria. The court found the university's selection process to be arbitrary and contrary to the principles of fairness and transparency as laid out in the Constitution of India.
The petitioner, Jaibir Singh, had applied for the Assistant position under the Backward Class-B (BC-B) category as per Advertisement No. 2/2017. Despite being the most meritorious candidate in the BC-B category based on initial assessments, Singh was awarded zero marks in the Domain Knowledge and Interview components and subsequently declared "Not Found Suitable."
Justice Harpreet Singh Brar, presiding over the case, emphasized the importance of adhering to the notified selection criteria, which allocated 80 marks to Computer Typing, General Aptitude Test, Academic Qualifications, and Work Experience, and 20 marks to Domain Knowledge and Interview. The court noted that no minimum qualifying marks were stipulated for Domain Knowledge or Interview, rendering the decision to declare Singh unsuitable as arbitrary and in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution.
The judgment pointed out that the university's selection committee could not introduce disqualifying criteria at the assessment stage, effectively rewriting the rules post-commencement of the selection process. The court cited several precedents, including the Supreme Court's decision in "Manoj Manu v. Union of India," to support its ruling that recruitment authorities must adhere strictly to the advertised criteria.
Consequently, the court ordered the university to reconsider Singh's application for the Assistant post within six weeks, ensuring compliance with the original selection framework. If appointed, Singh would receive all notional benefits from the date other candidates joined, though monetary remuneration would only commence from his actual joining date.
This decision reinforces the judicial mandate for transparency and fairness in recruitment processes, ensuring that deviations from advertised criteria are not tolerated and candidates are assessed on a comprehensive and pre-defined basis.
Bottom Line :
Service Law - Recruitment - Where advertisement prescribed a composite selection process for post of Assistant and did not stipulate any minimum qualifying marks in domain knowledge or interview, Selection Committee could not declare candidate "Not Found Suitable" by awarding zero marks in those components and thereby convert interview into a veto/qualifying stage - Recruiting authority is bound by notified criteria and cannot rewrite rules after commencement of selection process.
Statutory provision(s): Articles 14, 226, 227 of the Constitution of India
Jaibir Singh v. Chaudhary Bansi Lal University Bhiwani, (Punjab And Haryana) : Law Finder Doc id # 2983056
