Ranchi, Aug 20: The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday stayed the state government’s decision to cancel the 11th–13th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) Combined Civil Services examination and appointments made through it, bringing temporary relief to candidates who had already joined government service.
The order came while the court was hearing petitions filed by candidates challenging the government’s decision to cancel recruitment examinations and appointments following allegations of irregularities in the state’s competitive examination system.
The government had recently announced the cancellation of several recruitment examinations and processes conducted by the JPSC and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC), following investigations by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and a Special Investigation Team (SIT).
The action followed weeks of protests by students and job aspirants, who had alleged irregularities in multiple recruitment examinations and demanded stronger action and an independent probe.
The government had cancelled 22 recruitment examinations or processes, while several others were placed under investigation. Some earlier recruitment processes were also referred for a CID probe.The affected examinations covered a wide range of posts, including civil services, engineers, doctors, forest officials, prosecutors, judges, scientific officers, teachers and other technical and administrative positions.
The cancellation created particular uncertainty for candidates whose recruitment processes had already reached the appointment stage. The 11th–13th JPSC Combined Civil Services examination had resulted in appointments to 342 posts, while 1,932 candidates had reportedly been appointed through the JSSC Combined Graduate Level (CGL) examination.
The petitioners argued that cancelling examinations and appointments collectively was unfair to candidates who had successfully cleared the selection process. They contended that individuals accused of malpractice should be investigated separately and that genuine candidates should not lose their jobs without being given an opportunity to present their case.
The legal challenge is also based on the principle of natural justice, which generally requires authorities to provide affected individuals a reasonable opportunity to be heard before taking decisions that have serious consequences for them.The controversy gained momentum after candidates raised questions over the results of the 14th JPSC Combined Civil Services preliminary examination held earlier this year.
Concerns were also raised about examination records and an OMR sheet circulated on social media, although the authenticity of the document had not been independently established.The state government subsequently initiated investigations through the CID and SIT.
The probe expanded to examine the functioning of examination agencies and alleged irregularities in other recruitment processes.The government has also proposed reforms in the recruitment system, including stronger vigilance mechanisms within the JPSC and JSSC and a committee to study changes required to make examinations more transparent and secure.
The latest court order does not finally settle the allegations surrounding the examinations. The High Court will consider the petitions and determine the legal validity of the government’s cancellation decisions.
The development has therefore provided temporary relief to appointed candidates, while the wider dispute over examination transparency, alleged malpractice and recruitment reforms in Jharkhand remains unresolved.
