SHAH KHALID
SRINAGAR, Feb 28: The Jammu and Kashmir government today sought two more weeks for submitting its response in a petition challenging reconstitution of Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission in High Court here.
The counsel for petitioner, Manzoor Ganie while appearing in the matter before the division bench of the high court, pleaded the Government’s order asking for reconstitution of JK PSC, was in violation of Section 93 of J&K Reorganization Act 2019.
However, the government sought weeks to file its reply in the matter.
The division bench comprising of Chief Justice Gita Mital and Justice Tashi Rabistan after listening the arguments of the parties directed the government to file its response by or before two weeks.
Pertinently, a Non Governmental Organization Maulana Azad Educational Trust has challenged the government order of reconstitution of Public Service Commission through a Public Interest Litigation in High Court Srinagar.
Pertinently, after the abrogation of Article-370 the Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory administration initiated the process for the re-constitution of J&K PSC by which the apex body will be headed by a new chairperson and members and the position of existing chairman and members will come to an end.
The decision, however, created strong criticism and resentment from all walks of life, as the order issued by General Administrative Department allegedly violates the Section-93 of the J&K Reorganization Act which states that the JK PSC shall remain as it is.
According to some legal experts the order is “substantially” as well as procedurally “unreasonable” as only the President could issue such an order. However the order has created more confusion among hundreds of civil service aspirants who have qualified the preliminary and mains examinations of civil services.
Talking to Kashmir Depatch, Manzoor Ahmad Ganaie, the counsel for petitioner said, “the matter in essence is that after passing Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019, by virtue of Section 93 of the said act JKPSC of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was protected and on and from the appointed day be Public Service Commission of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Quoting Section 93 of Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019, the counsel for the petitioner said, “The Public Service Commission for the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall, on and from the appointed day, be the Public Service Commission for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.”
He said that the Union PSC, with the approval of the President, shall serve the needs of the Union territory of Ladakh. The persons holding office immediately before the appointed day as the Chairman or other member of the PSC for the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall, as from the appointed day, be the Chairman or, as the case may be, the other member of the PSC for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Ganaie added.
He added that every person who becomes the Chairman or other member of the PSC for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir on the appointed day under sub- section (3) shall be entitled to receive from the Government of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, conditions of service not less favourable than those to which he was entitled under the provisions applicable to him.
“The report of the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission as to the work done by the Commission in respect of any period prior to the appointed day shall be presented to the Lieutenant Governor of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, and the Lieutenant Governor of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall, on receipt of such report, cause a copy thereof together with a memorandum explaining as far as possible, as respects the cases, if any, where the advice of the Commission was not accepted, the reasons for such non- acceptance to be laid before the Legislature of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said it clearly means that PSC for UT will remain as it was before.
Even then the Government of J&K through its General Administration Department issued an order on 21st of November 2019 for reconstitution of commissions. Taking recourse of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Removal of Difficulties) order dated 30-10-2019, the administration said the PSC including its members President, Chairman, are supposed to be members and chairman only upto the appointed date.
The order further stated that a ‘fresh exercise’ for reconstitution of PSC is going to be initiated as all the appointees are deemed to have held office till the appointed date only. This interpretation of section 93 and taking recourse of Removal of Difficulties order is totally misplaced because the order authorities are referring it cannot replace/abrogate the Section 93 of main Act, the Counsel remarked. According to the counsel this order is an executive order and it cannot supplant the provision of an act passed by the Parliament.
The matter is up for the hearing again on 28-02-2020. The J&K PSC has already stopped all the recruitment process including interviews for various positions, after the confusion over the continuity of the PSC post abrogation of special status, which has led to disappointment among thousands of aspirants, who have applied or in need of applying.
The PSC which has in past already faced the criticism for slack performance in filling up Gazetted posts in the erstwhile state, is now totally defunct by which the candidates are facing lot of inconvenience by which the applicants are stuck with waiting in anticipation for a possible fair move.
