'Can't Change Rules Midway': Big Supreme Court Verdict On Recruitment Process For Govt Jobs

The top court held that the "rules of the game" cannot be changed midway after the selection process for a government job has begun unless the rules permit so.

The apex court further said that placement on a select list does not give a candidate an absolute right to employment.

Source : ANI

A five-judge Supreme Court constitutional bench on Thursday held that in recruitment to public services, rules for selection of candidates to posts cannot be changed mid-way through the process or after completion of the process. Transparency and non-discrimination must be the hallmarks of public recruitment.

The top court held that the "rules of the game" cannot be changed midway after the selection process for a government job has begun unless the rules permit so.

The apex court was faced with a legal question of whether the criteria for appointment to a public post could be altered by the authorities concerned in the middle or after the process of selection has allready started.

In its verdict today, the apex court has upheld the previous Supreme Court ruling in the case of K Manjusree etc. vs State of Andhra Pradesh(2008), in which it was held that the rules of recruitment processes cannot be changed midway.

The five-judge bench today held that the K Manjusree judgment is good law and cannot be held to be incorrect.

The top court concluded that the recruitment process begins with calling for applications and ends with filling of vacancies and eligibility rules cannot be changed midway and it can be done only if extant rules prescribe so.

The top court further clarified that even the rules for recruitment have to meet the standard of Articles 14 (right to equality) and 16 (non-discrimination in public employment) and extant rules having statutory force must not be arbitrary.

It held that placement in the select list gives no indefeasible right to appointment.

"The State or its instrumentality for bona fide reasons may choose not to fill up the vacancies. However, if vacancies exist, the State or its instrumentality cannot arbitrarily deny appointment to a person within the zone of consideration in the select list."

Following are the key conclusions by top court:

1) Recruitment process commences from the issuance of the advertisement calling for applications andends with filling up of vacancies;

2) Eligibility criteria for being placed in the Select List, notified at the commencement of the recruitment process, cannot be changed midway through the recruitment process unless the extant Rules so permit, or the advertisement, which is not contrary to the extant Rules, so permit. Even if such change is permissible under the extant Rules or the advertisement, the change would have to meet the requirement of Article 14 of the Constitution and satisfy the test of non-arbitrariness;

3) The decision in K. Manjusree (supra) lays down good law and is not in conflict with the decision in Subash Chander Marwaha (supra). Subash Chander Marwaha (supra) deals with the right to be appointed from the Select List whereas K. Manjusree (supra) deals with the right to be placed in the Select List. The two cases therefore deal with altogether different issues;

4) Recruiting bodies, subject to the extant Rules, may devise appropriate procedure for bringing the recruitment process to its logical end provided the procedure so adopted is transparent, non-discriminatory/ nonarbitrary and has a rational nexus to the object sought to be achieved.

5) Extant Rules having statutory force are binding on the recruiting body both in terms of procedure and eligibility. However, where the Rules are non-existent, or silent, administrative instructions may fill in the gaps;

6) Placement in the select list gives no indefeasible right to appointment. The State or its instrumentality for bona fide reasons may choose not to fill up the vacancies. However, if vacancies exist, the State or its instrumentality cannot arbitrarily deny appointment to a person within the zone of consideration in the select list.