The Jharkhand High Court today stayed, until further orders, the state government’s decision to cancel appointments made through the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examination and the Food Safety Officer recruitment.
Justice Deepak Roshan passed the order while hearing three separate petitions challenging the government’s Tuesday notification cancelling the examinations and appointments. The court directed that the selected candidates be reinstated, observing that they could not be removed without following due process and the principles of natural justice.
The court sought a response from the state government and the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and fixed 15th of September for the next hearing. Two of the petitions challenge the cancellation of the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examination and appointments, while the third relates to the Food Safety Officer recruitment.
According to the petitioners, 342 candidates selected through the 11th to 13th JPSC examination are currently in service. The state government had cancelled the examinations and appointments based on findings emerging from the CID investigation into alleged irregularities and the role of TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL) in the examination process.
The government had issued a notification cancelling 22 examinations, putting six examination processes on hold and bringing 17 examinations under investigation.
