GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court, in a judgment on Wednesday, December 11, dismissed writ appeals filed by multiple candidates challenging their exclusion from the final selection for state civil services despite clearing the main examination and interview.
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The controversy stems from the Assam Public Service Commission's (APSC) handling of the Combined Competitive Examination (CCE), 2018. Following the preliminary examination, APSC declared 3,361 candidates as qualified. However, discrepancies in the published answer key led to its revision, and an additional 406 candidates were declared qualified, while 98 candidates from the original list fell below the cut-off marks.
Despite their disqualification under the revised key, APSC allowed the 98 candidates to proceed to the main examination, citing fairness and procedural delays as reasons. Among these candidates, four, including the appellants Shalini Khan and Girbani Deka, performed well enough in the main examination and interview to make the final merit list.
The appellants, including Shalini Khan and Girbani Deka, contended that discrepancies in the answer key for the Combined Competitive Preliminary Examination (CCE), 2018 unfairly affected their results. The court, however, found that clearing the preliminary examination was a non-negotiable requirement and dismissed their petitions.
The bench consisting of Chief Justice Vijay Bishnoi and Justice Suman Shyam ruled that clearing the preliminary examination is a mandatory requirement under the Assam Public Services (Combined Competitive Examination) Rules, 1989, and no relaxation of this criterion is permissible. It further held that the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) violated the rules by allowing 98 candidates, who failed to meet the cut-off marks in the revised answer key, to proceed to the main examination.
The bench criticised APSC's handling of the evaluation process and termed the inclusion of ineligible candidates as arbitrary and illegal. While dismissing the appeals, the court emphasised the importance of adhering to statutory rules in the recruitment process to ensure fairness and transparency.