HC Stays Its Judgment, Allows JKSSB To Go Ahead With JE, SI Selection Process

JAMMU — In a big development, a division bench of Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Friday stayed the judgement quashing the recruitment process for Jal Shakti Department Junior Engineer-civil and Jammu and Kashmir Police Sub Inspector.

Staying the judgement of Writ Court passed on Thursday by Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal, the bench comprising of Justice Sindhu Sharma & Justice Vinod Chatterjee Koul allowed the Jammu and Kashmir Service Selection Board (JKSSB) to continue with the selection process.

The court has further granted three weeks time to JKSSB to file its response.

The JKSSB had conducted the Computer Based Written Test (CBT) Examination for 163 posts of Jal-Shakti Junior Engineer (Civil) on December 5 and 6, while the same for 1200 posts of Sub-Inspector have been scheduled from December 7 to 19.

On Thursday, Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal of the High Court had quashed the ongoing recruitment process for these posts, while hearing a petition filed by Vinkal Sharma and others aspirants who sought direction to JKSSB not to conduct the examination through M/s Aptech Limited, blacklisted in the past, and to appoint some other agency, which is not previously blacklisted for conducting such examinations.

Noting that undue benefits seems to have been granted to M/s Aptech Limited, the examination conducting agency for JKSSB, Justice Nargal had also directed the UT Government to constitute a high level Committee headed by not less than a retired High Court Judge to enquire into the conduct of Jammu and Kashmir Service Selection Board.

Later Thursday evening, the JKSSB had postponed the CBT examination scheduled for December 9, saying that a fresh date of examination shall be notified separately.

On Friday, the JKSSB appealed against the decision and the matter was heard by the division bench comprising of Justice Sindhu Sharma & Justice Vinod Chatterjee Koul, which allowed the JKSSB to continue with the selection process.

While hearing the petition on Thursday, Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal had observed that the process adopted and decision made by SSB to award contract to M/s Aptech Limited is malafide and change of condition in tender was intended to favour M/s Aptech Limited and these decisions will have an effect on public interest as the M/s Aptech Limited has been assigned to conduct examinations, wherein the selectees will be appointed to hold public posts.

Justice Nargal on Thursday allowed the writ petition and quashed the contract awarded by JKSSB in favour of M/s Aptech Limited pursuant to e-NIT No.19 of 2022 dated 30.09.2022 for conduct of its various examinations through computer based tests mode.