Recruitment criteria for government jobs cannot be changed midway – Supreme Court

He noted that the recruitment process begins with the issuance of a call for applications and ends with the filling of vacancies and the recruitment authorities may adopt the appropriate procedure. “The recruitment authorities, in accordance with the rules in force, may formulate an appropriate procedure to carry the recruitment process to its logical conclusion, provided that the procedure so adopted is transparent, non-discriminatory/non-arbitrary and has a rational connection with the objective to be achieved. “, the message says.

Writing the 44-page verdict for the bench, Justice Misra said the existing rules, which have statutory force, are binding on the recruitment authority, both in terms of procedure and eligibility.

However, where rules are missing or silent, administrative regulations can fill in the gaps, he said.

The court said that inclusion in the select list does not confer a conclusive right to appointment and the State or its agencies may, for bona fide reasons, decide not to fill the vacancies.

“However, if there are vacancies, the State or its agencies cannot arbitrarily refuse appointment to a person falling within the consideration area of ​​the select list,” it said.

The Supreme Court added that when a State’s action in denying appointment to a selected candidate was challenged, the burden was on the State to justify its decision.

The Supreme Court ruled that the 2008 verdict in the case K. Manjusri v. State of Andhra Pradeshwhich was questioned by a three-judge bench in 2013 when it was referred to a larger bench for an authoritative statement, was a good decision and did not contradict the 1974 verdict in the case Haryana State v Subash Chander Marwaha.

The bench said that the 1974 verdict dealt with the right to be appointed from the select list, while the 2008 verdict dealt with the right to be placed in the select list.

“Thus, the two cases involve completely different issues,” the statement said.

It further said: “The appointing authority/recruiting authority/competent authority, in the absence of rules to the contrary, may formulate a procedure for selecting a candidate suitable for a given post and in doing so, it may also set benchmarks for various stages of the recruitment process. including a written examination and interview.”

The bench said that if any criteria have been laid down, the same should be specified before the recruitment process begins.